Making a rental car look inconspicuous

Many years ago, I remember that several tourists in Florida were attacked by thugs specialized in tourists. They would crash their car into the tourist's car to make them stop and then, pull a gun. Some victims got killed. Nowadays, rental cars in Florida are not marked as such and cannot be differentiated from normal cars.

I do not expect this level of violence in the countries I rent cars, mainly Germany, Belgium and Spain. However, I know some cases in Spain from the newspapers where thugs targeted tourists specifically. Mostly the loss was only monetary, but even then, that could ruin any trip.

I was told that in Germany, you can recognize a rental through the license plates.

I know that in Spain some rentals, specialize from no-name car rentals, put a sticker on their car, always on the rear, mostly in bright colors like yellow.

In the German case, I assume there's no way of covering the evidence that you are driving a rental.

However in Spain, would that be feasible to cover the sticker with something that could be later removed, some kind of non-permanent sticker? Removing their sticker might damage the paint, and I could incur in hefty costs.

Is that a good idea, or I'm just being paranoid?

car-rentals

Best Answer

I think it's a bit pranoid, but you could use magnetic bumper stickers to cover the logo, when they have placed it on the chassis of the car and not on the window.

I'm not going to post a link to a webshop, but you get plenty of them when you google it.

If it's on the glass, you could use two magnetic bumper stickers, one on the inside and one on the outside but i think it will look a little bit ridiculous and may not be legal in some countries, when you are decreasing visibility.

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Do rental cars have camera inside?

Rental cars typically do not have hidden cameras in them, as that would violate multiple federal laws. However, depending on what type and model of the vehicle you are buying, you can have backup and rearview cameras as part of a safety package. These cameras are there for safety reasons.

How do you get around not being able to rent a car?

Take an Uber or a taxi. Ride-sharing services are available in most cities, and now it's possible to schedule rides in advance. Taxis and car services are also available in most places. Lyft will allow riders to schedule a ride a week ahead of time, and Uber has an option to schedule a ride a month out.

How do you tell if a car is rented?

Answer provided by

Find the VIN on the bottom of the windshield outside the driver's seat or inside the driver's side door near the latch. ...

Run the VIN through a website like CarFax or Autocheck.

Check the vehicle's history record for any evidence of rental status.

What color are most rental cars?

Now, most people would agree that a white surface reflects more heat than a dark surface. I.e white rental cars are generally cooler than dark coloured cars.

A Classic Rental Car Scam And How To Avoid It

Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Tim Samuel, Carlos Pernalete Tua, Ron Lach, Mikhail Nilov