RV Rental Post-Trip Charges | 8 Fees you should be aware of.

While you pay most of the RV Rental charges upfront, there are some usage-based RV post-trip charges that you may have to pay after you finish your trip.   A common charge for long-distance RV Rental trips is the excess mile charge. Renters who return the RV without dumping the tanks have to pay the dumping charge. Renters who return late may have to pay the late return charge.  

What are the different RV Post-Trip Charges?

  Please read through the following charges list which we at RV Rental Guru have compiled for you and plan your budget to avoid surprise charges at end of your trip.  

1. Excess Miles Cost – About $0.33 to $0.50 per excess mile.

  Usually, you get 100 free miles for each rental night (not day). If you rent for 7 nights then you get a total of 700 free miles (irrespective of how many miles you drive each day,) If you drive a total of 1700 miles then you have driven 1000 excess miles. If the excess mile charge is $0.33/mile then you will pay a total of $330 ($0.33*1000).     Tip: There is no harm in negotiating a discount in excess miles especially if you are renting for more than a week.

   

2. Propane Charges – Not expensive, just refill at RV Campground when you checkout

  Propane is used for the RV’s cooking range, for furnaces, and in some cases for RV refrigerators. Just get the propane filled up at the RV campground on the day of your check-out. It usually costs about $4-5 per gallon. For a week-long RV trip, it may cost an average of about $30.  

3. Generator Charges – Don’t worry if you plan to stay in an RV Campground

  With RvShare.com and Outdoorsy.com rentals you usually get about 2-4 hours per night rental. An additional charge may range from $3-$5 per excess hour. If you are staying at an RV campground or using the RV only to commute then you do not need to worry about this charge. The rare scenario when you should worry about an extra generator charge is if you do not have any electricity source for your entire trip, in this case, you may end up using the generator for running the RV roof air conditioner. If the weather is warm then you may end up using 6-10 hours per day.      

4. Tank Dumping Fee – About $50.

  If you use the RV toilets or kitchen sink on the last day of your trip (after checking out of the RV campground) and do not want to search for places to dump then you will need to pay this fee that is usually about $50.  

6. Fuel Charges – About $5/gallon of gas.

  RV gas tanks are usually full at the time of RV pick-up, you just need to ensure that you fill-up the RV gas before you return the RV otherwise you may end up paying about $5/gallon of unfilled gas.       Tip: Don’t top up the RV, as gas is filling up, sit on the driver seat and stop as soon as the indicator is at F (full). This may save you about 2-3 gallons of gas money.

7. Late Return Fee – Could be up to $100/hour!

  RV drop off times is usually 3 PM. If you are running late then you may end up paying from $25/hour for CruiseAmerica.com or up to $100 per hour for local RV rental companies.   Tip: Always plan ahead and if necessary book for an extra day to avoid this late fee and the stress of driving fast to return the RV on time.  

8. Cleaning Charges – Could be up to $100.

  If you do not return the RV in the same clean condition as you picked up then you may end up paying an additional charge of up to $100 for cleaning.  

Final Advice – Discuss All charges at the time of pick up and return.

  Discuss all potential RV post-trip charges at the time of RV pick up. Document all charges & related information (e.g. - number of excess miles) at time of RV return.     Have more questions? Send an email to us at Support@RVRentalGuru.com We have helped many first time RV renters and will be happy to answer your questions on this or any other RV Rental topics.