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Travel Tag

It’s great to be back out and about again, isn’t it? But before you step beyond the confines of your state or national borders, it pays to do some homework.

Not only will a little planning save you a lot of money, it could also save you a few headaches at your destination. After all, holidays are supposed to be relaxing, not stressful.

Are you planning to travel interstate over the summer holidays? There’s a good chance you might also want to get car rental, at least for a few days.

And while there are plenty of great deals to be had, there are some car rental traps you should know about before handing over your deposit. Otherwise, that deal that seemed too good to be true most certainly will be.

Australians are big travellers — at least we were before Covid hit. Now that we’re getting back out on the road and into the air again, should we protect our hard-earned money with travel insurance?

Some people might say that travel insurance is a waste of money. After all, what are the chances that something will actually happen to you while you’re on holiday? But the truth is, anything can happen when you’re away from home. And if something does go wrong, travel insurance can be a life saver. But is it really worth the extra expense? And how has Covid changed things?

​​Mandie Cowley was driving with her daughter on a busy regional highway in Victoria when her Hyundai started losing power.

“The only place I could pull over was on a bend and there was a lot of trucks. I was absolutely petrified that a truck was going to come up behind me and hit the car,” she said.

Michael Steele’s son, still a P-plater, was driving his Dad’s car at a similar high speed on a country highway in Queensland when it made a grinding sound.

​​"And it just came to a halt, nothing was working. He was very lucky to get it to the side of the road,” Michael said.

​​Nina Persin’s partner was driving at 100kmh on the Pacific Motorway, in south-east Queensland, roads still slippery from the floods, when his engine seized up.

“There was no warning light, nothing,” she said. “When the engine seized, the brakes stopped working, as did the steering wheel. My partner had huge difficulties steering the car away from the right-hand lane, avoiding the trucks on the road, towards the left lane.

“I don’t even want to imagine what could have happened."

For many of us, cars are our second most expensive investment after our home. So it's only right to want some peace of mind when it comes to buying one.

Enter: the car warranty. In Australia, most new cars come with a manufacturer's warranty. That warranty covers you for a set period of time, usually three years. But in recent times, we've seen an increase in the number of brands offering longer warranties. Up to 10 years in some cases. It's a persuasive marketing tool.

If you hear the words “recall” and your car make and model in the same sentence, it can send you into a spin. That's probably because car recall is almost always associated with negative thoughts, such as danger, the potential for accidents, and maybe even expensive repairs.

But are car recalls always bad? Is there ever a good time for a manufacturer to announce a recall?

J.R.R. Tolkien once wrote, "Not all who wander are lost." But if your wander is booked with Qantas, you could be. That is if your flight was cancelled and you opted for a travel credit instead of a refund.

Complaints about Qantas have been mounting on social media since Australia's borders reopened and people have been trying to use their flight credits. According to some reports, it has been almost impossible to get through to the airline, let alone redeem the credits.