📖 Practical tool
Car rental glossary
The terms you meet in rental contracts, explained simply, so you know exactly what you sign.
- CDW (Collision Damage Waiver)
- Cover that limits what you pay for damage to the car to a fixed amount (the excess). It is not full cover: it often excludes tyres, glass, the underside and keys.
- SCDW / full cover
- An add-on that lowers the excess, often to zero, for a daily fee. Read what is still excluded.
- Excess
- The most you pay yourself after damage or theft, even with CDW.
- Deposit
- An amount blocked on your card or paid at pick-up and returned after the car is checked. It is usually linked to the size of the excess.
- TP (Theft Protection)
- Limits what you pay if the car is stolen, up to the excess.
- TPL (compulsory insurance)
- Third-party liability insurance, compulsory for every car in Albania. It covers damage you cause to others, not to the rental car.
- Green Card
- The international insurance certificate that lets the car be driven in the other countries of the system. To leave Albania with a rental car you need the company's permission and this document.
- International Driving Permit (IDP)
- An official translation of your licence, carried together with the original. Recommended when your licence is not in the Latin alphabet or when the company asks for it.
- Fuel policy (full to full)
- You get the car with a full tank and return it full. If you return it with less, the company charges the missing fuel, often with a service fee.
- Unlimited mileage
- No extra charge for kilometres. With a daily limit, every kilometre above it is paid separately.
- Additional driver
- Another person named on the contract to drive the car. Only named drivers are covered by the insurance.
- One-way fee
- An extra charge when you return the car in a different city or place from where you picked it up.
- Out-of-hours handover
- Pick-up or return at night or when no staff are present, often with an extra fee. Ask for it when booking.
- Handover form
- The document with the car's condition (damage, fuel, mileage) at pick-up and return. Check it carefully before signing.
- Late return
- Returning after the contract time. Many companies allow a short grace period, then charge extra hours or days.
- Young driver fee
- An extra charge or restriction for drivers under a certain age or with a new licence. Terms vary by company.