vendor

Our carefully selected vendor in Canada is Fraserway RV Rentals. The prices and policies presented on the IdeaMerge Website match those of Fraserway. You aren't paying extra by going through IdeaMerge — and if a special IdeaMerge discount applies, you're paying less. What's more, IdeaMerge acts for you as an accessible and responsive resource and, if necessary, as an advocate. We are on your side. But with a foot firmly in vendor's camp as well, we carefully manage expectations so that the entire process is maximally enjoyable for all involved.

currency

Our motorhome and campervan rental rates (apart from any special IdeaMerge discount) and policies match those of our vendor and therefore the rates are calculated in Canada Dollars (CAD). This means we do not inflate our rates to cover ourselves against the threat of our home currency, the US Dollar (USD), declining versus the CAD.

Moreover, we do not impose a credit card transaction fee. And we do not truncate the exchange rate (which is another way companies can favor themselves). Furthermore, we use the minimal retail exchange rate — alias the "credit card" exchange rate (as published on www.oanda.com) — to change from the vendor's currency into our currency (USD) for actual charging. Finally we present all this math in the detailed confirmation voucher that we e-mail to you soon after booking the rental. … In these and other ways we carefully save our clients from suffering hidden costs.

reservation

In accord with the automobile rental industry standard, reservations may be made for a vendor's particular vehicle category (what we might call a vendor's "group") only, not for a specific vehicle. Which is to say, although the various images, model numbers and vehicle specifications presented throughout the IdeaMerge motorhome rental pages — especially on the vehicle-specification pages — are carefully selected to accurately and precisely indicate the vehicle that you will get, the vehicle model (and layout) you get might not be identical to what is indicated by said information. In the very unlikely event that a vehicle in the reserved category is not available upon the pick-up date, the rental company reserves the right to substitute a comparable or larger vehicle with the same equipment and the capacity to accommodate the number persons you have delineated (in terms of, say, adults and children) as being in your party. In this case there will be no additional charge for a larger vehicle. However, the higher ancillary costs associated with a larger vehicle — such as ferry charges, tolls, and fueling costs — are to be borne by the customer.

Of course IdeaMerge will not charge your credit card unless the vendor you select does have availability in the particular vehicle category you select. After you place a complete online reservation request with IdeaMerge (i.e. including your credit card details), IdeaMerge will straightaway query the vendor. If a vehicle in the selected vehicle category of that selected vendor is indeed have available, we will immediately book the rental with that vendor and charge your card — binding you per the cancellation policy noted below. Either way, we will then inform you as soon as possible, often within an hour but most certainly within 24 hours (or perhaps 48 hours if you enter the reservation request on a Friday or Saturday, since the booking facilities of some vendors are closed on weekends).

The minimum duration for a rental is 7 nights.

downpayment

balance

cancellation fees

changes

A change may entail a change fee, the amount of which is usually modest/nominal yet is generally commensurate with the degree to which the change compromises the vendor's ability to rent out the vehicle. In most cases one booking change order may be placed free of charge, and a CAD 30 (+ tax) change fee applies to all subsequent booking modifications made prior to the pick-up day (i.e. made via IdeaMerge to reservation requests that have already been booked).

Refunds are not offered for early return of the rental vehicle.

If after the rental has commenced the client wants to change drop-off location, the client should first obtain authorization from the vendor and ascertain the additional charge that would apply.

If after the rental has commenced the client wants to extend the duration of the rental, the client should obtain authorization from the vendor. Failure to obtain such authorization will result in a CAD 30 per hour penalty.

taxes

The total tax consists of a federal component (GST) and a provincial component (PST, which is sometimes zero) and as such it is determined according to the pick-up location. These taxes apply to all the rental costs except the cost of the Collision Damage Reduction (CDR).

pick-up & return constraints

The depots are open for pick-up Monday–Saturday, 9 am to 3 pm. They are open for standard return Monday–Saturday, 9 am to 12 noon, i.e. mornings. A non-standard pick-up time is not possible. A considerably non-standard return time (after 1 pm, let's say) entails an extra night's worth of cost. The IdeaMerge software accounts for such a non-standard. The depots are closed on Sundays and on certain holidays, which are accounted for by our online reservation software. A fee of CAD 30 per hour applies to late return of the vehicle. General hours of operation are 8:30 am to 5 pm Monday–Friday, 8:30 am to 4 pm on Saturday.

Shuttle transfer is offered until 1 pm free of charge from/to the relevant airport, airport area hotels, and city hotels (except in Toronto city). Sorry, but at Vancouver transfer is not provided from/to the ferry terminals.

The vendor provides free storage of luggage at the rental depot (but at the client's risk).

At Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto there is no room for customers to park their cars on the depot grounds, although acceptable street parking is available nearby. At Halifax and Whitehorse there is limited room on the depot grounds for customers to park a car for the duration of a motorhome rental; clients should contact the depot in advance to learn whether such room is available.

A thorough explanation and demonstration of the rental vehicle will be provided upon pick-up. This orientation, together with completion of the relevant paperwork, requires approximately one hour.

security deposit

return

Because the vehicles are delivered with a full tank of gasoline or diesel fuel, they should be returned with a full tank of such fuel; otherwise the client will be charged for the absent fuel. This rule is not true of the propane (LPG) tanks: the client paid the vendor to originally to fill these tanks and therefore the client will not be charged if the these tanks are not full upon return.

All the vehicles must be clean inside when returned. This cleanliness applies to the kitchen, bathroom, and living areas. A charge of CAD 40 per hour for cleaning will be applied to those vehicles returned with an interior that is not reasonably clean. Likewise the vehicle should be returned with empty gray-water and toilet-waste-water (alias black-water) tanks. Those tanks that require dumping by the vendor's staff entail a CAD 25 service charge to the client. The exterior of the vehicle need not be especially clean; just clean enough to facilitate the inspection of the vehicle. However, the vendor recommends that clients who have traveled in the north country do subsequently wash the vehicle prior to returning it, this to avoid delaying the return procedure.

what's included

All our Canada rentals include liability (i.e. third party) insurance up to a maximum of CAD 5,000,000.00 for any bodily injury and property damage liaibility claims arising from the operation or use of the rental vehicle. The rentals also include collision and comprehensive insurance inhering a deductible (a.k.a. excess; applicable per claim/occurrence not per rental) of CAD 7500. The term comprehensive above signifies accidental damage due to vandalism, fire, theft, break-in, and weather, as well as animal impact, accidental damage to tires and windows, and towing and recovery costs.

There is no charge for additional drivers.

All the vehicles have automatic transmission, cruise control, stove burners, sink, refrigerator, freezer, furnace, toilet, and 110 V hook-up. Also included are the initial water, propane (LPG) and toilet-chemical fills, biodegradable toilet paper, and rubber gloves, as well as stylized maps, brochures and postcards. (The vendor even pays the postage on the complimentary cards if they are mailed from their office.)

None of the vehicles have an awning.

age and license(s)

The minimum age limit for most of IdeaMerge's motorhome and campervan rentals is only 21 years. There is no maximum age limit. Upon pick-up the vendor requires of the client merely a resident-country drivers license. But if said license is not primarily or secondarily (i.e. in parallel) written in English, the vendor suggests that the client carry an international drivers permit (IDP). (Regarding such permits, see the country listings posted on the New Zealand Automobile Association's Website.) Basically an IDP is a means by which police in a foreign country can know — in terms of translations in nearly a dozen different languages — that your domestic driver's license is indeed recognized as being valid by the proper authorities in your country. (See the excellent article at Drivers.com.) The local office of your auto club (AA, AA, RAC, ADAC, etc.) sells IDPs for about US$10. If you need an IDP, take your license, two passport-sized photos and the requisite cash to the club office. (Though for about US$6 the club may snap Polaroid photos for you.) If you plan to operate a motorcycle, be sure to have the auto club certify your qualification to do so. Web searches will bring up a host of Websites selling documents that conform to the model delineated in annex 10 of the United Nations Convention on Road Traffic (1949); but according to Article 24 of that convention, a truly valid IDP is one which is "issued .. by the competent authority of another Contracting State or subdivision thereof, or by an association duly empowered by such authority ...."

Good news: In Canada the standard domestic drivers licenses of foreign states are, in connection with foreign tourists, considered equal to a standard Canadian drivers license. Therefore the foreign drivers license allows the holder to drive the same range of vehicle types as does a Canadian license. This means, for instance, that the 3500 kg permissible-weight constraint that applies to European Union licenses in Europe is effectively raised in Canada to match the Canadian standards, which are invariably so high that all the vehicles represented on IdeaMerge's Canada "Rates & Reservations" page may be driven by a standard-European-drivers-licensed client. (See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driver's_license and, say, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_Driving_Licence_codes.)

breakdown

If a mechanical breakdown of the vehicle renders it inoperable for the 12 consecutive working hours after the client initially informs the vendor about the breakdown, the client will be reimbursed in relation to (a) the daily rental rate or (b) expenses for hotel rooms and car rental. Receipts, of course, are required in these respects. The term breakdown as used above does not refer to the vehicle's air conditioning, refrigerator, microwave, slide-out functionality, radio, and cruise control, among other functionalities not essential to travel.

For repairs exceeding CAD 50, the customer must call the vendor to get authorization. Non-authorized repairs over CAD 50 will not be reimbursed. Again, receipts must be presented for reimbursement to occur.

The motorhome rental agreement is a contract between you the rental client (i.e. the renter, the client, the customer, the tenant) and the vendor (i.e. the rental company, the supplier) and of course involves the customer in certain responsibilities relative to the vehicle. These responsibilities are analogous but far from identical to those typically associated with a car rental. Motorhome rental customers typically bear more such responsibilities than do car rental customers. The nature of the motorhome rental industry is such that replacement motorhomes are usually not guaranteed (although in many cases a replacement motorhome may be effected), as is the case with this vendor and virtually every motorhome rental company. Instead timely service of the rental motorhome is guaranteed and in this case so are limited reimbursements. The customer remains responsible for returning the motorhome to the rental depot, as contracted, unless relieved of this responsibility by the rental company (i.e. the vendor).

accident

In the event of an accident, the customer must obtain a local police report as provided by the attending police officer investigating the accident. An accident report form is supplied in the vehicle. The client should notify the vendor about the accident as soon as possible. The vendor will in turn process the credit card security deposit (i.e. what was otherwise just an imprint) and hold those funds until the motor vehicle insurance company determines responsibility for the accident. If the motor vehicle insurance company notifies the vendor that the renter is not at fault, the vendor will reimburse the security deposit to the client immediately after receiving said notification from the motor vehicle insurance company.

On the aforementioned accident report form the client should make a full, written report including the other party's name, address, phone number and driver's license information. The client should submit that form to the vendor upon returning the vehicle. All documents relating to the accident should include a police report number or other pertinent identifying number. Insurance coverage may be void if these measures are not performed.

See our "Insurance, etc" page for details concerning the included insurance.

exclusions

restrictions

allowances

Yes, the vendor does permit travel to Alaska, the Yukon, Nunavut and the NW Territories — if the client declares such intention with the booking. However, the vendor will not deliver the largest two vehicles to these regions, even if such is a replacement vehicle for a rental which commenced elsewhere. Indeed, the vendor generally recommends that these two vehicles not be used for such northern travel.

Pets are allowed by request only, and the vendor charges a CAD 100 fee in connection with each pet allowed.

Smoking is generlly allowed. In other words, the vendor associates no specific fines with smoking. But the vendor does ask clients to please smoke outside the vehicle rather than inside it.

warning

Although motor travel in North America is not generally considered prohibitively dangerous, there are, of course, associated risks — including death. For quantitative measures of these risks, please see the Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT) http://www.asirt.org.

a slight disclaimer