Van hire: compare quotes and prices

Separate load space from payload

Compare more than cubic metres. Your longest item must fit through the opening and inside the loading area. Wheel arches, internal height and side doors can restrict usable space. A tail lift may help with heavy items, but does not automatically mean the vehicle has a high available payload.

Volume and weight are separate limits. Books, tiles or tools can exhaust the permitted payload before the van looks full. Confirm the actual vehicle’s payload and internal dimensions, as different versions of a model may vary.

Plan the full hire period and return

A hire day can mean fixed opening hours or 24 hours. Include collection, loading, all journeys, unloading, refuelling and return. Half-day hire only saves money if the available window is genuinely sufficient.

Returning to a different depot requires an expressly offered one-way hire. It is not available from every company or for every vehicle class. Compare its fee with the cost and time of driving back. Agree evening collection, out-of-hours key return and late-return rules beforehand.

Calculate hire prices with your mileage

One published tariff from a hire company in Tagelswangen lists CHF 195 per day for a particular van, including 100 km, then CHF 1 per additional kilometre. Assuming 150 km, hire and mileage come to CHF 245. The corresponding terms also require an insurance contribution of CHF 39 per hire period: a total of CHF 284 including VAT, excluding fuel and any other services. Here the hire day runs from 07:30 to 17:00, rather than for 24 hours. This is an individual tariff example, not a Swiss average or a binding Quoti price.

Hourly rates and larger or unlimited mileage packages also exist. Compare the same duration and complete route, including vehicle return. A deposit is initially a security amount rather than a final hire charge, but you still need to have the funds available.

Check licence, cover and vehicle condition

Category B generally covers motor vehicles with a total permitted weight up to 3500 kg. This is not the amount of cargo you may load. Your licence, the vehicle and any restrictions must be compatible. Hire companies may set additional age and driving-experience conditions.

Clarify authorised drivers, excess and excluded damage. Vehicle insurance does not automatically cover the goods inside. At collection, record existing damage, fuel or battery level and supplied accessories. Check the agreed cleanliness and energy requirements before returning the vehicle.

Compare insurance contribution, excess and deposit separately. Paying a contribution does not automatically reduce the excess to zero; a deposit does not automatically cap your liability at that amount. Also establish whether the security amount is charged or blocked on a card and how it is released.

Record collection and return clearly

Inspect the van with the hire company before departure and have discrepancies added to the handover record. Photos supplement that record; report damage directly and keep the confirmation.

• Vehicle and accessories. Check visible existing damage, the load compartment, mileage, fuel or battery level and supplied accessories.
• Operation and load. Ask for an explanation of unfamiliar controls and any tail lift. The load must remain secured during sudden braking or evasive manoeuvres; use suitable restraints rather than elastic luggage cords.
• Return. Record condition, mileage and energy level, return all accessories and obtain confirmation of the return time. For key boxes, agree beforehand when hire and responsibility end and when inspection takes place.

Arrange equipment and foreign travel

A hired van cannot automatically be taken abroad. Some companies permit particular countries; others prohibit foreign travel. State all destination and transit countries and obtain confirmation of permission and required documents. For an international move, the goods’ customs formalities are a separate matter.

Ask for straps, blankets, a trolley or tail lift if required. Check vehicle height and access at loading locations. Van hire normally means a vehicle you drive yourself; a driver and loading staff are separate services.

Information that makes hire quotes comparable

State collection and return locations, date and times, the complete route, items, largest dimensions and any known approximate weight. If you cannot reliably estimate cubic capacity, a list and measurements allow an initial assessment; the hire company confirms a suitable vehicle.

Example: “I would like to hire a van on a Saturday from 08:00 to 17:00, collecting and returning it in Winterthur. I expect about 150 km in total within Switzerland. The load is 20 moving boxes, a sofa measuring 210 × 90 × 85 cm and a dismantled table. The total weight is not yet known. Please confirm internal dimensions, door opening and available payload, and separately list basic hire, excess mileage, mandatory contributions, excess and deposit. I need straps and blankets, but no driver or loading staff.”