MESSAGE CENTER

Kira Lueders, Kensington

THE SMART WAY to rent a car in Europe (except Ireland) is to book and pay with a Platinum MasterCard or Visa, and then the insurance is included by the card issuer. This only works in foreign countries, as domestic rental is covered by the renter's car insurance.

It is important for travelers from the United States to know this, to avoid a large unnecessary expense.

Michael Jakob, Fairfax

KNOW WHAT KIND of gas your car takes. Some take lead-free, others diesel, and while there is supposed to be a sticker on the steering wheel and across the gas-tank flap indicating which, it isn't always there.

A few years ago we were not told that our rental (from Hertz, in central Paris at the Gare du Nord) took diesel. We drove a couple of hundred miles south, filled it with lead-free and got about 30 miles farther before the car refused to budge -- in the parking lot of a gigantic supermarket, after we'd filled it with a week's worth of groceries, about 20 miles short of our rental cottage. After many phone calls, I had to take an expensive taxi ride to Toulouse, the nearest Hertz office with a car available, to get another car.

Our mishap stole time from our vacation, cost us money and involved much subsequent correspondence. Be sure to ask.

Josephine Woll, Chevy Chase

Write us: Washington Post Travel section, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071. Fax: 202-912-3609. E-mail: travel@washpost.com. Provide your full name, town of residence and daytime telephone number. Letters are subject to editing for length and clarity.

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