Expat Living Singapore – July 2019

LIFE & FAMILY

80 JULY 2019

Anybody who knows me or who reads Expat Living has

heard about my crappy car. Heck, I complained about it

so much that people in Antarctica have probably heard

about it, too. It was just plain bad.

After I got rid of it, my boss put me on her

ComfortDelGro Rent-A-Carrental so I could lug

around my video equipment whenever I have a work-

related shoot. And let me tell you, I’m never buying

another car again. Rental is the way to go. When the

little engine light came on last week, they came and

picked the car up from me, fixed it and had it back

to me in a jiffy! Far better than messing with repairs

myself. I could have even gotten a free replacement car

while it was in the shop.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Here are some

other great things about the rental option.

#1

Money

Let’s face it, owning a car here is expensive,

and you generally have to plop down 40 percent up

front. Gulp. By the way, if you’re wondering why it’s

so expensive, it’s all thanks to something called the

Certificate of Entitlement (COE), which lets you own a

vehicle in Singapore for ten years. The COE system has

been around since 1990 to control road usage and limit

car ownership on our land-scarce island. COE prices go

up and down based on a lot of complicated factors, but

when the prices are trending north, it’s often

more economical to

rent than buy.

Want to make your life simpler?

Renting a car may be the answer.

For more info, reach out to

[email protected]

or call 6882 0882.

Which car?

It will depend

on you and your

family’s needs,

but Japanese

models are

especially

reliable;

ComfortDelGro

recommends

the Nissan

X-Trail, Mitsubishi

Outlander and

Mazda 3.

#2

Convenience

If you rent or lease a car, you don’t have to worry

about road tax, insurance, depreciation or maintenance.

If my car were to break down or I was in an accident, for

example, ComfortDelGro’s emergency roadside assistance

is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Like I said,

they’ll pick up the car for servicing, or their trained mobile

car doctors (I love that they’re called doctors!) make house

calls, giving advice and services to keep your vehicle in

tip-top condition. It’s all part of your rental package. It’s

a heck of a lot less stressful compared to owning a car.

#3

Less Hassle

Do you like to haggle with car sales people? Me

neither. I always walk away with buyer’s remorse, thinking

I got ripped off. Leasing isn’t like that. And when you’re

ready to get rid of the car, you just turn it back in. No

selling it. And no junking the car if the COE runs out. It’s

just a whole lot easier and more straightforward.

#4

Choices

ComfortDelGro offers daily, monthly and

long-term rental for brand new and used models –

everything from economy to luxury, MPVs, SUVs and

more, which you can test drive right at your doorstep

if you rent long-term. You can rent commercial

vehicles, too. Generally, the longer the lease, the

lower the monthly price. If you want to upgrade or

switch to a different car after your contract expires,

just transfer your deposit to the new one and top

up if you need to.

#5

Road Trips

So maybe you don’t need a long-term rental. No

worries. You can rent a car just for a day. And you can

even take it to Malaysia, as long as you tell your

rental agent. Insurance coverage on the usage

in Malaysia will be included in the overall

package.

BY MELINDA MURPHY

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