Is it really safe to book a car by paying only one dollar first. I asked myself this question too. That day I was on QEEQ and I saw cars in St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. There was a small automatic car from Budget. A Toyota Yaris or same group. It looked fine for me. I planned to go there in early July. I would arrive around July 3 in the afternoon. I wanted to pick up the car that day around 5 pm and keep it for a few days then return it around noon on July 8. On the page I saw this thing called One-Dollar Freeze. It said I only need to pay 1 dollar first to lock the car and the rest will be charged before the trip starts and there is no interest. I asked myself what if they cannot charge the rest later. Will it be awkward at the counter. I felt a bit nervous. But the price looked good and I was flying from the US and my credit card limit was a bit tight these days. I did not want to put a big amount on the card too early. My friend next to me joked and said you can just spend 1 dollar to test the water. I laughed and said okay maybe it is just a cheap lesson. I clicked book and it asked me to pay 1 dollar. That moment felt very easy. I did not have that stress of a big payment. After the payment I got a confirmation email. I felt a bit more calm but I still worried maybe later the car rental desk would say there is no record or they would ask me to pay some strange extra money. When I arrived in St Thomas the air was a bit humid and the sea wind was on my face. I pulled my suitcase and walked to the Budget counter. In my head I was thinking maybe they will say I did not pay enough. The staff asked my name. I told him and watched him click on the computer. Those few seconds felt long. In my mind I kept saying please no problem. He looked up and asked if I booked in advance. Then he asked for my documents. I gave him my license and my credit card. He said the booking was already in the system and they just needed to charge the rest of the amount. I paused for a second and asked so the 1 dollar before is already counted right. He smiled and said yes that was just the first small payment. In that moment I really relaxed. I could feel that this way of paying only 1 dollar first is very helpful for someone like me who travels from another country. I did not have to put the full rental cost on my card weeks before and then worry about exchange rate or other costs. I am always careful with my credit card. When I see a big number on the bill I feel a bit stressed. This time I only saw 1 dollar at the start. It was almost nothing. During the whole process I did not see any strange fee. The rest of the money was charged automatically some time before I picked up the car. When I got to the counter the staff just needed to confirm things and do some standard local steps. For me it felt like I first saved my spot and then paid when the trip was close. It felt like holding a seat and paying the full ticket later. The process felt simple for me and the people there spoke in normal words. When I drove the little Yaris around the island I thought about the booking. I felt that if I had to pay everything at once at the start I might think for many more days. I might even miss this car. This way gave me more room to decide and my credit card did not feel so heavy. It made me feel more free and less tense.
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