Car rental FAQ: what you need to rent in Chandigarh

You need a valid original Indian driving licence that hasn’t expired, Aadhaar or another government photo ID, and the security deposit in cash or UPI at pickup: Rs 5,000 for a small car, Rs 10,000 for a large one, Rs 25,000 to Rs 60,000 for something premium. Minimum age is 21.

The deposit is only half of what catches people out. Where we can’t publish a number, this page says so.

What documents do you need to rent a self-drive car?

Handed over at pickup, in your own name: your original Indian driving licence, current and not expired, plus Aadhaar or another government photo ID. Not a photograph of the licence on your phone. The original.

We also hold a signed post-dated cheque, returned to you when the car is. That catches more people than anything else here: plenty of drivers under thirty have never owned a chequebook. If that’s you, sort it a day early (not at the kerb with your bags packed).

Does a foreign or international licence work?

Not for self-drive. It has to be an Indian licence, current, and in your hand. An NRI holding a valid Indian licence is fine; a visitor driving on an international permit is not, whatever a forum said about some other city.

If you’re visiting and you want to see Shimla, book a car with a driver instead. A driver, no deposit, and the fare agreed before you travel.

What is the minimum age to rent a car?

21. That is where we start, not where hill driving gets easy. If you passed your test six weeks ago, Chandigarh to Manali after dark is not the trip to learn on. Do the Shimla road in daylight first.

How much is the security deposit?

Rs 5,000 on a small car, Rs 10,000 on a large one, and Rs 25,000 to Rs 60,000 on the premium and luxury 4x4s. Paid at pickup by UPI or cash, on top of the rental. It is not part of the day rate and doesn’t come off your bill.

Most people argue about the wrong number. Knocking Rs 300 a day off a quote is worth very little while Rs 25,000 of your money sits with a company for a week. Ask what the deposit is (and how long it takes to come back) before you compare rates. The fleet runs to 27+ cars (Rs 1,200 a day for a Maruti S-Presso, Rs 45,000 for a Land Rover Defender), and every day rate is on the fleet page.

When do you get the security deposit back?

On the spot, the moment you hand it back, provided the car comes back as it went out and nothing is outstanding against it. Damage or a fine is settled first. The balance follows.

Get that window confirmed in writing when you book. The written version is in the terms of service.

How many kilometres do you get per day?

200 km a day, included on every self-drive rental. If one long driving day is going to blow past it, ask how the allowance is counted across a multi-day booking before you go.

Which sounds generous until you open a map. Chandigarh to Manali is about 310 km each way, so the drive up alone is 110 km past a single day’s allowance. Shimla and back is about 230 km, a full day’s allowance spent on a day trip. Kasauli at 65 km each way is the only one of the three that barely registers.

What happens if you drive more than 200 km a day?

The extra kilometres are charged per km. We don’t publish that rate, so ask for it when you enquire and keep the answer.

If you already know you’ll go well past the allowance every day, say so in the first message and ask for the per-km figure alongside the day rate (in writing, not agreed on a call). And apply that test to everyone you are comparing, not just us.

A rental company that won’t put its excess-kilometre rate in writing before you pay has told you something useful.

Is fuel included in the rental price?

No. Fuel is yours. The car leaves with a certain level in the tank and comes back at that same level; whatever you burn in between, you pay for at the pump.

That is standard for self-drive across India, and it works in your favour on a quiet week. Chauffeured trips are the exception: fuel sits inside the quoted fare.

What is not included in the day rate?

• Fuel
• Tolls
• State taxes, including whatever is charged at a state border
• The security deposit, which is refundable but still has to be available on the day

State taxes matter more than people expect on a hill trip, because the moment you leave Punjab or Haryana you are under another state’s rules. Budget for it separately.

Where do you deliver the car?

Free across Chandigarh, Mohali, Panchkula, Zirakpur and Chandigarh airport. No delivery fee. The rest of Punjab and into Haryana is on request. Ask when you enquire and you’ll get a straight yes or no.

Can you cancel a booking?

Yes, free of charge with more than 48 hours’ notice. Inside 48 hours, the full rental is charged.

That is tighter than the 24-hour window a lot of people assume, so read it before you book a trip that isn’t confirmed. If the plan is shaky, book later and take whatever is left rather than paying for a car you never collect. But understand the trade: on a long weekend, late means the good cars have gone.

What happens if the car is damaged or picks up a fine?

Damage is settled against the deposit. Anything beyond it is settled with us directly. Tell us on the day it happens, not at handover. A dent that turns up as a surprise takes longer to sort out for everybody.

Two charges are fixed and published. Overspeeding above 120 km/h is Rs 2,000, and the cars are GPS monitored, so the speed is on record. The other is a cleaning fee of Rs 250 to Rs 500. That one is for a car returned in an extreme state.

Self-drive or a car with a driver?

Self-drive if you want the car outside your hotel at 6am and no conversation. A driver if the road itself is the hard part.

The two are easy to compare badly. Self-drive is a day rate plus fuel plus tolls, with a deposit held against the car. Chauffeured is one fare agreed before travel, fuel inside it, no deposit at all. Add the fuel and tolls honestly and the gap is usually smaller than people expect; on a Manali or Spiti run with children in the back, you are also not the one reversing on a blind hairpin.

Inside the Tricity, self-drive wins easily.

Can you take the car into Himachal?

Yes. Himachal trips are most of what the long bookings are. Three things to plan for.

1. Kilometres. Manali is about 310 km each way against an allowance of 200 km a day, so the drive up alone goes past a full day’s worth.
2. State taxes at the border, which sit outside your day rate.
3. The car. A hatchback is fine for Shimla or Kasauli. It is the wrong car for Spiti.

If the plan involves Spiti, Chitkul or anything with a real climb, take a proper 4×4 and accept the deposit that comes with it; those are the premium cars. The Rs 1,200 hatchback will technically get up some of those roads. You still want the 4×4.

What does an outstation trip cost?

We don’t publish outstation fares, for the same reason we don’t publish the per-km rate: they move with the route, the car and the days, and an invented number on a blog page helps nobody. Send the route and the dates and the fare is agreed before you travel. Chauffeured fares include fuel; self-drive fares don’t.

When is renting from us the wrong answer?

One trip across town. Sector 17 to the airport once? An auto or a cab beats a day rate plus fuel plus a deposit, and it isn’t close.

A car you need every single day. Stacking daily rates for a month is the expensive way to do it. Ask about the monthly rate instead.

A licence problem. No Indian licence, an expired one, or the licence sitting at home in another city: we can’t hand over a car, and goodwill doesn’t change that. Take a driver, or move the trip.

Anything this page hasn’t covered, ask on WhatsApp at +91 88375 12728 and get the answer written down before you pay a deposit. That applies to us as much as to anyone else.