Or Similar: What Does It Mean?

Understanding "or similar" when booking a car rental

Every car shown in search results is labelled "or similar". The car pictured is an example of the category. The makes and models within a category can differ in:

• passenger seating
• luggage capacity
• equipment
• engine size

Rental companies update their fleets regularly, and cars move between branches and cities. So the car you collect may not be the make and model you saw when you booked. It will normally be from the category you booked. If none are available, the rental company will usually provide a car of similar size or one from the next available category.

Rental companies don't guarantee a particular make, model or colour for a booking, so DriveNow can't either. Not every vehicle is available at every location, and we can't track a rental company's fleet movements.

What this means for you

• Check the seats and bag capacity listed for the category, not the features of the pictured model. Our luggage guide explains how to read bag capacity.
• If you need navigation, don't rely on the pictured model having a built-in GPS, because it isn't guaranteed. Where it's offered, you can request a GPS unit as an optional extra.
• If the car at the counter isn't what you expected, see different vehicle than expected for what to check before you drive away.

Next steps

• Types of vehicles: what each category usually offers

Part of Before You Book in the Car Hire Handbook.