Whether you’re booking a compact or a convertible, why not supercharge your Velocity Points on car hire?
Every dollar spent on car hire can net up to six Velocity Points. At that rate, for every $1,300 you spend with Dollar, Europcar, Hertz, SIXT or Thrifty, you could be getting enough points for a free Virgin Australia flight!
The prospect gets even sweeter when paying for those bills using a points-earning credit card. This allows you to pocket points twice: once from the credit card transaction, and again from the rental company.
Here’s how you can stock up Velocity Points whenever – and wherever – you hit the road.
Book Europcar car hire and earn Velocity Points
Earning Velocity Points on car hire is easy with Europcar.
Just quote your Velocity Frequent Flyer membership number when you book through the Europcar website. Alternatively, you can present your Velocity membership card or provide your frequent flyer number when collecting the vehicle.
The number of points you’ll earn depends on where you’re hiring a car. Your Velocity Frequent Flyer status also plays a part – as does how much you spend.
| Earn Velocity Points with Europcar | Velocity Red | Velocity Silver | Velocity Gold | Velocity Platinum |
| Bookings in Australia and New Zealand | 3 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 4.5 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 5.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 6 Velocity Points per $1 spent |
| Other overseas bookings | 800 Velocity Points | 1,200 Velocity Points | 1,400 Velocity Points | 1,600 Velocity Points |
If your Velocity Points haven’t arrived within a few weeks of returning your car, you may wish to follow that up.
Europcar provides a simple online form for this. Simply include your name, Velocity number and contact details, as well as your Rental Agreement Number from the booking. You can do this up to three months after your rental return date.
Spend Velocity Points on Europcar car hire
Along with earning Velocity Points, you can also spend Velocity Points on car hire with Europcar.
Your options for doing this are much more narrow, as it’s only possible when using the Cartrawler website. Velocity’s Car Rental Rewards also work like a ‘points plus pay’, in that the number of points required is based on the dollars they’re offsetting.
In car rental quotes obtained by Point Hacks, we found each Velocity Point fetching just shy of 0.7 cents each. That’s far less than the value we currently place on each Velocity Point, being 1.90 cents.
When taking this path, you’ll need to spend at least 4,000 Velocity Points. That currently nets $27.96 in value, reducing the amount of cash needed for your reservation. On a $427.74 rental we quoted, you’d need a grand sum of 61,200 Velocity Points to reduce the cash component down to $0.
That’s not great value. Roughly the same number of Velocity Points (62,000, to be precise) could instead unlock up to four Business Class flights with Virgin Australia. Would you rather fly at the pointy end four times, or save a few hundred dollars on your next car reservation?
Take note as well – there’s no flexibility on these points-based bookings. If you change or cancel a reservation, you’ll lose all the points you’ve spent. Our tip? Stick with dollars when you drive!
Match your Velocity status to Europcar Privilege
Are you a Velocity Gold or Velocity Platinum frequent flyer? Then you can opt-in for complimentary status in the Europcar Privilege Club loyalty program.
This is valid for at least 12 months from the time of your boost. After that, you’ll need to retain your Europcar status in the usual way – by hiring cars regularly.
Velocity Gold is your ticket to Europcar Privilege Executive status. Enjoy free one-category car upgrades, a $30 discount coupon after your fifth rental, the ability to earn free weekend rentals and more.
On the other hand, Velocity Platinum gets you to Europcar Privilege Elite status. Your Europcar car hire upgrades then become double-category: that is, an upgrade from the car you booked to two categories above, subject to availability. Five rentals nets a higher $5 discount coupon, among other perks.
If you’re not already enrolled, head to the My Benefits page of the Velocity website to get started.
Book Hertz car hire and earn Velocity Points
As another of Virgin Australia’s car hire partners, you can also collect Velocity Points with Hertz.
Earning rates for Velocity Red members recently increased at Hertz. So here’s what you’ll now take home after every booking.
| Earn Velocity Points with Hertz | Velocity Red | Velocity Silver | Velocity Gold | Velocity Platinum |
| Bookings in Australia and New Zealand | 4 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 4.5 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 5.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 6 Velocity Points per $1 spent |
| Other overseas bookings | 800 Velocity Points | 1,200 Velocity Points | 1,400 Velocity Points | 1,600 Velocity Points |
Despite Velocity Red moving from 3 to 4 Velocity Points per $1 spent, the rewards offered to higher-tiered Velocity members are unchanged.
Whatever your status, just be sure to give Hertz your Velocity Frequent Flyer number. This can be done via the Hertz website when making a new reservation.
Following a recent Hertz hire car booking on Kangaroo Island, my Velocity Points appeared around 1.5 weeks after the vehicle was returned. That’s not long at all – especially when you consider that some online shopping orders can take months to deliver your points.
Match your Velocity status to Hertz Gold Plus Rewards
Also mirroring Europcar, your Velocity Gold or Platinum status can also bring car hire advantages with Hertz.
But choose wisely: you’ll need to select between elite status with Hertz, or with Europcar. Unfortunately, you can’t have both!
Choose Hertz, and Velocity Gold members can ascend to the Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Five Star tier. Its biggest perk proves to be single-category car hire upgrades. Hey, it’s a start!
If you’re instead among the Velocity Platinum ranks, parlay that status into Hertz Gold Plus Rewards President’s Circle membership instead. Perks begin with guaranteed upgrades, and continue with a dedicated customer assistance line.
To enrol in your year of elite Hertz status, visit the My Benefits page of the Velocity website.
Book Dollar car hire and earn Velocity Points
Beyond Velocity’s two closest car hire partners, a new addition is Dollar. While there’s no status matching opportunities as with the brands already detailed, booking with Dollar can still grow your balance of Velocity Points.
The rewards you can earn with Dollar are similar to the other brands, as below:
| Earn Velocity Points with Dollar | Velocity Red | Velocity Silver | Velocity Gold | Velocity Platinum |
| Bookings in Australia and New Zealand | 3 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 4.5 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 5.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 6 Velocity Points per $1 spent |
| Other overseas bookings | 800 Velocity Points | 1,200 Velocity Points | 1,400 Velocity Points | 1,600 Velocity Points |
With more than 600 car rental locations across 53 countries, just provide your Velocity Frequent Flyer number when you book to be rewarded. If you forget to link that membership number at first, just provide your details when you collect your car.
Book SIXT car hire and earn Velocity Points
Velocity’s other new car hire partner is SIXT – and, you guessed it, it’s another option for earning Velocity Points.
Keeping up with the pack, Velocity members receive competitive rewards at SIXT, as below.
| Earn Velocity Points with SIXT | Velocity Red | Velocity Silver | Velocity Gold | Velocity Platinum |
| Bookings in Australia and New Zealand | 3 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 4.5 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 5.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 6 Velocity Points per $1 spent |
| Other overseas bookings | 800 Velocity Points | 1,200 Velocity Points | 1,400 Velocity Points | 1,600 Velocity Points |
SIXT claims more than 2,000 rental locations across over 100 countries worldwide. Among them, the company now has around 160 locations in Australia alone, across major airports and further afield.
Just note, only bookings made directly through the SIXT website are eligible to earn Velocity Points.
Book Thrifty car hire and earn Velocity Points
One of Velocity’s long-standing car rental partners, Thrifty provides yet another avenue for earning Velocity Points on car hire.
The number of Velocity Points awarded with Thrifty matches what’s earned with Dollar, Europcar and SIXT. So here’s a recap:
| Earn Velocity Points with Thrifty | Velocity Red | Velocity Silver | Velocity Gold | Velocity Platinum |
| Bookings in Australia and New Zealand | 3 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 4.5 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 5.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent | 6 Velocity Points per $1 spent |
| Other overseas bookings | 800 Velocity Points | 1,200 Velocity Points | 1,400 Velocity Points | 1,600 Velocity Points |
Just enter your Velocity number on the Thrifty website to earn Velocity Points when you book. There’s no need to be a member of Thrifty’s Blue Chip rewards program to earn Velocity Points.
Still, Blue Chip membership may be beneficial – especially if you’ll be regularly hiring cars with Thrifty. Blue Chip members get a 15% cash discount on every rental, for starters. You can also add your spouse or domestic partner as an authorised additional driver. When hiring a Thrifty vehicle, this means they’ll be able to drive it too, at no extra charge.
Summing up
It’s incredibly easy to build your balance of Velocity Points on the road. Whether you’re hiring cars with Dollar, Europcar, Hertz, SIXT or Thrifty, be sure to attach your Velocity Frequent Flyer number to earn points.
That’s especially worthwhile for Velocity Silver, Gold and Platinum members. Whichever company you choose, your airline status unlocks extra rewards on the ground.
When spending those Velocity Points though, flights and upgrades to Business Class remain a much better way to go!
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On my most recent Hertz rental, my Velocity Points landed nine calendar days (seven business days) after I returned the vehicle.
With Thrifty, it was four calendar days (two business days) after returning the car.
Any status bonus owned (bonus points for being Velocity Silver or above) also comes through at the same time as the ‘main’ serve of points, just as a different line item with Velocity.