Which is better in Singapore: Renting or Buying a Car

Singapore is a costly city, especially when it comes to owning and driving a car. The Land Transport Authority is responsible for the high price due to the tax requirement. There is a high tax on buying, registering, and driving a car. The main reason for this tax is to avoid traffic congestion in the city. Therefore, there may be a concern about whether to buy or rent a car. There are pros and cons to each of the sides. It is also essential to take note of the requirements of buying and renting. That way, the consumer can make a substantial financial and social decision.

These are some of the issues to consider if you are to buy a car.

You do not want to repair your car with every slight dent or scratch
You will want to sell your vehicle at any time.
You have the upfront cash to buy a newer or premium car.
You have car preference

Alternatively, if you wish to go for car rentals, you need to understand that;

You will need to repair even minor issues like dents
It is safe if you do not afford a large deposit upfront.
You might get an old car to rent.
There is no domination on car preference

Moreover, you need to consider all the advantages and disadvantages facing both sides.

Car Rentals

In this category, we begin with the advantages. Renting a car is better when you are low on cash to pay upfront since car rentals do not require a large amount of money. Additionally, with rental cars, you can approach your dealer to have an exchange. Exchange is efficient for people who do not need the car daily. One category is the tourist class. Again, some people are only in Singapore for a duration doing some task assigned by their organization. They might not need to purchase a car.

Moreover, the provider will offer you an all-in-one price. In other words, the price you pay for renting the car is inclusive of insurance and maintenance. For specific models, one can save a lot of money since some as low as $60 a day.

Unfortunately, it may be very unnecessary to rent a car on certain occasions. For instance, if you are staying for more than four years, you will realize it is getting more costly to rent a car than owning one. Additionally, if you prefer specific brands with particular mileage, renting a car can be unsatisfactory.

Buying a car

On the other hand, you need to know why to buy a vehicle or not purchase one. Well, purchasing a car is cheap if you intend to stay for more than four years in Singapore. Additionally, you can sell the car if need be. Again, you can sell the vehicle at any price depending on your customer. Still, compared to renting a car, you can purchase according to your preferences and stay with the car for as long as you can. Unfortunately, once you buy a car, you will need to stay with it for as long as you cannot sell it or exchange with a potential customer.

While it seems inviting to buy a car in Singapore, the disadvantages are something to consider. If you do not have a large cash deposit upfront, you cannot purchase your vehicle. Matter of fact, if you do not consider renting a car, you may depend on taxis or use the bus. Additionally, you will need towing fees and maintenance fees. Again, when the car breaks down, you will incur the additional renting costs.





Moreover, you risk depreciation of the car. In five years, you cannot sell the vehicle at the same price you bought at or higher. It can only get lower.

Most importantly, if you wish to go for car rentals, consider how long you are to stay in Singapore. Also, decide if you are to drive daily or not. If you are to stay for more than five years, it is better to purchase a car. If you do not intend to drive daily, a car rental is the best solution.

In conclusion, car rental is more of a short-term solution. If you are taking your family on vacation but do not own a car, Singapore has many car rentals to help you instead of catching the bus.

A Complete Guide to Rent a Car in Singapore

Perhaps you're planning to rent a vehicle in Singapore. However, it can be quite daunting in case this happens to be your first time. If you have already performed this task before, you might have come across some unpleasant experience in Singapore.

Irrespective of whether you happen to be a first-timer or an experienced vehicle renter, you will definitely find this guide on the rules and regulations for renting a car in Singapore to be helpful.
This particular guide intends to assist you in renting the car from the beginning to the end. So let us not wait for any further and delve deeper into this article.

1. Background on renting

For what reason is renting considered daunting in Singapore?

A paradox of choice:
You will come across in excess of 150 rental firms in Singapore which range from regional rental companies to large global brands. Although it is good to make choice, too much choice can lead to confusion.

Industry status:
We all are aware of the fact that several rotten apples can spoil the barrel. The automobile rental industry in Singapore is not an exception to this irrespective of whether it is the restaurants or the budget airlines.

Lack of information:
In Singapore, the majority of the rental organizations can boast of owning online sites; however, it is very difficult to come across one which is updated on a regular basis or with the terms of rental upfront. It is likely you will only learn about the full terminology on the collection, thus leaving you with very little choice due to the fact that you are already there without more alternatives.

Finding an automobile for your requirements

It is only known to you what vehicle fits you the best. Therefore, we will go through a general guideline in terms of renting.

a. Car type:
While the rental fleet is categorized by a lot of rental companies as per the set tiers, vehicles of identical capacity or make are generally grouped together. Vehicles are usually classified like this although the tiers can differ from one partner to another.

b. Dates:
Make it a point to be clear on those dates which you are searching for. It would be a nice thing to reserve in advance of those dates (for example, before two weeks to one month). Rental vehicles will usually remain the same throughout the year apart from the subsequent couple of circumstances which can affect the rental charges.

i. Weekdays versus weekends
Differentiation price is practiced by the rental firms in between weekday and weekend rentals since the demand is high for rental vehicles during the weekends. Besides this, local partners will not usually operate during the weekends because of the shortage of manpower.

ii. Festive periods

For the rental vehicles, the peak time happens to be usually in the festive season (for example, Christmas, Hari Raya Puasa, and so on) and to some extent on the holidays which are on a Monday or Friday thus making it a long weekend. In Singapore, the rental charges can increase because of 2 factors.

- Peak period overcharge:

At this time, the demand for rental vehicles will be always high. In case you do not like to make payments, there are other individuals who can do so. This implies increased daily charges.

- Set package dates:
On some occasions, a major holiday would imply that the employees also will go for the holiday. Most of the rental organizations out there are shut down during that time, and therefore, it is imperative for the renters to rent for that entire period. It implies that you are going to rent for longer than what you would've usually done.

c. Your driving experience:

In case you do not belong to the category of a probation driver, then you need not go through the subsequent steps.

However, if you happen to be a probation driver with a driving experience of at least one year in Singapore,

1. Not every rental company will rent out to the probation drivers because of the fact that the rental organizations will enjoy expensive insurance coverage because of an inexperienced driver.

2. Rental organizations which are known to rent out to the probation drivers may have clauses in the terms and conditions which will result in the increase of the insurance excess in case the lender happens to be under probationary license at that time.

d. Other partner alternatives

There are two considerations to make while taking a decision on where to get the rent from. It becomes really tricky out here since the car rental can prove to be quite confusing at that time. A huge difference exists in the terms of the policies with regards to the obtainable choices. The majority of these choices are meant to be specific to the rental company.
e. Insurance coverage:

3rd party insurance:
It is going to cover any damage to other individuals in any mishap for which you are thought to be responsible. You need to bear the damage to the rental vehicle as well as yourself.

In-depth insurance:
This is going to cover any damage to other individuals (property as well as people) and it will also include any damage caused to the rental vehicle out there.

iInsurance excess:
The optimum amount for which you are responsible while getting into the mishap with the rental vehicle.

Crash damage waiver:
It would provide an option for the users to reduce insurance excess.

Rental/Security deposit:
A returnable amount of money held along with the rental charge to guarantee the expense of repair/damages with regards to any impairment to the automobile caused by the renter at the time of rent.

Selecting A Rental Firm:

After you are able to figure out your requirements and also understand the terms and conditions, it is time for you to begin searching on the web. For this, you can go through the Yellow Pages while calling rental organizations in Singapore.

Selecting The Best Rental Company

Apart from those options which differ from one rental company to another, below, we have provided some general guidelines in terms of selecting rental companies out there.

i. Trade-offs versus price
While it is often assumed that you will desire for everything (for example, comprehensive insurance, No Malaysia Surcharge, and so on) the available options will depend on your financial budget and also how much you want to pay for all those options.

ii. Brand Name versus Regional & Partner Reputation
Global brands are usually presumed to offer better quality as well as service when it comes to rental vehicles. While that might not be always the real fact, you'll come across local firms which are reputed for better maintenance of their vehicles as compared to most of the global brands on the market.

iii. Payment procedures:
It is important to keep in mind that not every car rental company is going to accept a credit card during the payment procedure. On the other hand, there are several companies that accept Major Credit Cards, PayPal, Bank Transfers, and so forth as online booking methods. It does not matter what your choice is; once you have made the payment you will get a verification of the booking. Once you get the confirmation, you need to do nothing till the date of the car rental