Zero Excess Bulgaria Car Hire

Find the best "No Excess" deals in Bulgaria

With a massive choice from the biggest brands, Enjoy the best way to find the best prices for no excess car hire in Bulgaria.

• Huge choice of cars to suit every budget
• Save up to 70% compared to buying on the day
• 10 years experience in car hire

No Excess Car Hire in Bulgaria - Your protection package

When booking a rental vehicle, the process is extremely straightforward if you know what to include in your booking. There are certain things like additional insurance that is automatically included in your booking, or that you have to add on to your booking. Zero Excess is a common addition to most vehicle hires across Europe, but if you’re new to car hire you’ll likely be wondering what it means. Zero Excess essentially means that you will not be liable to pay any damages that may occur to the car during your rental period. Many suppliers offer either zero excess or reduced excess and, along with a Collision Damage Waiver, can offer sufficient coverage and protection from having to pay for repairs.

Certain areas of your vehicle may not be covered in a Collision Damage Waiver, which usually protects certain areas of the vehicle like the doors or main body of the vehicle. The areas most often not covered by a CDW are the undercarriage, wheels and windows, which means you’ll need to drive carefully and ensure you’re taking precautions and preventive measures to make sure these areas are not damaged.

Some of Bulgaria’s roads are notorious for being difficult to drive on, with many off-road areas being in poor condition. If you’re taking a road trip across Bulgaria and don’t plan on driving in large cities where the roads are usually more regularly maintained and well signposted, you may want to consider buying extra insurance for areas of the car that are most likely to be damaged by these road conditions.

What Car Hire Suppliers are Most Commonly Found in Bulgaria?

It may be convenient for you to hire your car from an airport as opposed to small towns or downtown cities. This is because airports tend to have cheaper car hire rates and you can simply hop off the plane and begin your journey straight away. The current car hire suppliers available from Sofia Airport are GreenMotion, Europcar, and AutoUnion, all of which offer reduced excess for their vehicles. Reduced excess can be purchased alongside additional insurance that helps cover any extra charges or any areas of the car that are not included in the CDW. Reduced excess tends to include a Theft Waiver too, which removes liability for car theft.

Make sure that if booking your car hire in person, you ask for zero excess as it may not automatically be added. This is useful to know for first-time car renters who may be unaware of what zero excess is or how to find it. When booking online, it’s a lot easier to ensure that your booking has zero or reduced excess as it is often included in your checkout or on your car’s additional information.

What to Consider When Renting a Vehicle in Bulgaria and How to Find Zero Excess

There are several important factors to consider when hiring your car in Bulgaria to ensure the booking process is as efficient and hassle-free as possible. One of the most important things to consider is your supplier– researching your supplier beforehand can give you a better idea of the services they offer and ensure that they align with your expectations. The suppliers available at Sofia Airport are reputable, reliable, and well-renowned, which can offer you peace of mind regarding the quality of service.

Ensure that the supplier offers a Collision Damage Waiver or reduced/zero excess along with your vehicle hire. CDWs are often included automatically in many car rentals, but reduced or zero excess is not always included, which is why it’s important to enquire about it beforehand. One way to ensure that zero excess is included in your booking is to book online, as you can select zero excess or add additional insurance and see whether it is included– in contrast, when booking in person at a car rental desk, there is no guarantee that zero excess will be included. This is important to know if you’re a first-time car renter and are unsure of what to ensure is included in your booking.

Zero excess is sometimes included in filter or toggle tools, but if it’s not, you can normally add additional coverage or top-up insurance on the extras or checkout page of the booking platform. You can either select zero excess and CDWs are often automatically included, or you can select reduced excess and purchase additional insurance to cover areas that the Damage Waiver or excess does not cover.

How to Drive Safely in Bulgaria

Driving in Bulgarian cities is relatively easy, where the roads are straighter, wider, and better maintained, making for a more efficient and smoother driving experience. Bulgaria’s speed limit for inner-city or built-up areas is around 50km/h (30 mph), and on country roads or off-road mountainous areas, the speed limit goes up to around 90km/h (50-60 mph). Bulgarians also drive on the right and overtake on the left, which is especially important to know when coming from the UK where driving takes place on the left.

Bulgaria’s off-roads or roads outside large cities tend to be less regularly maintained, meaning there may be potholes or uneven ground. It’s your responsibility to ensure that you drive safely on these roads to avoid any unwanted damages to your rental vehicle, especially to areas like the undercarriage or wheels, which aren’t normally included in your Collision Damage Waiver and would therefore rack up extra charges.

Another important thing to consider when driving in Bulgaria is parking. In Sofia, parking is available on a short-term paid basis, which is indicated by blue and green zones. In smaller towns and cities, parking tends to be cheaper or free in some places, but always check this before parking. Some areas also have resident-only parking, where you can be charged if you park in this zone without a resident’s permit.

What to Do if You Break Down or Get into an Accident in Bulgaria

If you’re unfortunate enough to get into a road accident or emergency, there are several things you can do to ensure the safety of yourself and other drivers. The main code of conduct in these types of situations is to find a safe place to park your vehicle like a hard shoulder (if there isn’t one, indicate that you are about to stop and turn on your hazard lights to warn passing or approaching cars).

Once you’ve parked and there is no danger to yourself or anyone else, you can call your vehicle’s breakdown number or the local emergency services– in most European countries, dialing 112 will connect you to the emergency services. Your rental vehicle will normally have breakdown cover automatically, so you shouldn’t need to worry about forking out extra to pay. Once your car is fixed or you’re given the all-clear, you can get back onto the road once you know that there’s no more potential danger or damage to your car.

Bear in mind that in Sofia, people will likely speak English, but in smaller country towns, the language may not be as widely spoken, which is why it’s a good idea to learn some basic phrases like ‘help’ or ‘thank you’ in Bulgarian.

How to Avoid Extra Charges on Your Vehicle Hire in Bulgaria

Extra charges can sometimes creep up on you when you least expect them, usually if you’ve forgotten something like adding insurance or extra coverage. While these are unlikely, there are things you can do to ensure you don’t get charged any extra. The main way to avoid extra charges is to drive as safely as possible so you don’t damage parts of the car that aren’t covered by insurance or damage waivers, which tend to be the undercarriage and wheels. It’s a good idea to research and familiarize yourself with Bulgaria’s roads before driving on them so as to have a greater chance of reducing damages– this is especially important if you’re planning to road trip around the country or aren’t staying in one city.

Another way to avoid any potential extra charges is to return your vehicle on time and to the correct location that was agreed with your supplier. Showing up late or not at all can incur extra fines or penalties. If you’re concerned about this, you can book a one-way rental which certain suppliers offer. A one-way rental means that you can drop off your car at a different location from where you picked it up, which is especially useful if you are embarking on a road trip or have to catch a flight.