Limo hire is not as simple as you think and your limousine rental services, might just take you for quite a ride, if your not very careful. Its therefore quite important that you select a good and reliable limousine service and ensure a smooth and safe ride all the way.

Quite often, you can judge how a limousine service treats their customers through a telephone inquiry. If your call is answered promptly and courteously by a company and if they give you all the important and relevant information without hesitating, you can be assured that they are a good bet.

While looking at web sites of limousine operators, its best to check if they have a fixed line number and a physical contact address. A mobile number or just a vague p.o. box number are signs of poor or fly by night operations.

It's also important to see if the web site of the company whose services you're considering hiring, displays images of their own vehicles. Many companies use pictures of brand new limousines but have cars that are battered and beaten. Its best to physically examine the cars.

There are times when you might come across agents who will tell you that they can secure quotations on your behalf. In such cases, the limousine operators pay for each inquiry they receive or a percentage of the hire value. It means that you will pay a higher price than you would otherwise These brokers often make claims that their limousine operators as "accredited" or "approved". It's best to stay away from such types.

Price is an important determining factor. Note that all limousine operators so not charge the same price. A professional limousine operator generally charges $45 an hour for a minimum of 4 hours for a car like a sedan while a stretch limousine may cost $60. A super stretch limousine may cost o a few dollars more. Even if you have to pay a slightly higher price in order to hire a service from a reputed and established limousine operator, it's always worth it.

It's also important to keep in mind the duration that you will need the limousine for. It generally takes about an hour to prepare a limousine for dispatch. Therefore, most operators ask for a minimum charge or a minimum hire duration of 3 hours or so. This is generally higher during peak periods like Christmas, New Year's Eve etc. The minimum hire charge is most likely to be in the region of £150.

Another important question is reliability. Stretch limousines are expensive to maintain and repair and poor companies often overlook any maintenance or repairs. Hiring from such companies can be quite disastrous. Your limousine may not show up on time or breakdown mid-way on your journey.

Its also important to know how long has the company whose service you plan to hire been in business. If they are well established, they are obviously more reliable than someone who has just started out a few months ago.

Try and find out how many cars the operator has in its fleet. Just in case the one you have hired breaks down, will they send you another one at once.

Is the operator you're planning on selecting situated close to where you need to be picked up from? That will ensure that they reach you on time.

Its also important to know how old the car you will be driving in is. After all, you don't want to show up in a beaten car at your fancy do. Its also sensible to view the car physically, a few days in advance if possible.

Also check what the rental price includes. Does it include VAT, Drinks, Gratuities etc? Don't ever hesitate to as if your chauffeur is licensed, trained and polite.

Does the company have the appropriate private hire insurance? It's best to view it.

It's also quite sensible if you have written confirmation of the price?

Will you be given a booking confirmation with the itinerary and price included?

What are the payment methods they accept? What is the deposit you have to pay and when is the balance due? It's important to know these in advance to avoid confusion later.

A professional limousine operator will be able to answer all your questions satisfactorily and ensure that you have a smooth and comfortable experience.

Although it may appear to be less expensive to limo hire an unlicensed limousine provider, if an accident were to happen and someone in your party were to get hurt, you would have no recourse.

There are several types of limousines available (SUV, stretch limo, party bus, etc.). Choose the type that works best for your occasion, taking into consideration how many are in your party and what your plans are.

In selecting the limousine company, you want to make sure the one you choose is properly licensed and insured. You can ask around to representatives from other companies that regularly use limousine services to find out about various limousine companies’ reputations.

Find out if the company has a contingency plan in case the limousine is in an accident or breaks down. If not, then you have two choices. You either have a backup plan in mind or hire another limousine service that you know does have a contingency plan. Conversely, it may be you that has unforeseen problems, so make sure you know in advance what the company’s cancellation policy is.

You’ll want to know up front whether or not the company accepts credit cards. Once the service has been booked ask for a written confirmation to be faxed or sent in the mail.

Costs can vary based on current demand (such as during prom and wedding seasons). It’s worth checking with your local hotel and airport limousine services because many times you can get a better rate through them.

Another critical action you need to take is to make sure you are getting the car you asked for. Just before the event, arrange to see the car and check it out. Is it clean? Does it smell like cigarette smoke? Are you getting an “older” (interpret as less reliable and less comfortable) limousine? Be sure to have all those problems and questions addressed before the time of pickup.

The cost to rent a limousine can range between £50 and £300. Ask the limousine company what amenities are included in the price. Knowing up front what you are and are not getting eliminates surprises later.

If there are several people in your party, it’s always a good idea to have everyone in your party meet at one location to avoid extra pickup and drop off time. I realize that sometimes this is part of the fun, so use that as a guideline, but realize the cost may go up if the driver has to make extra stops. To avoid any awkward moments between you and the driver, be sure you know the company’s tipping policies. Some encourage it while others don’t. It’s also a very good idea to get the chauffeur’s name and cell phone number to maintain contact and get a hold of them if necessary if the timeline changes and your group needs to be picked up earlier or later.

Policies vary between companies regarding pets. Some allow them while others don’t. If you need to travel with your pet, you’ll want to know this in advance. Also, if you have special needs such as a child seat or handicapped person(s), you’ll want to address this with the company beforehand.

If you plan carefully and ask the right questions while you are still in the selection process, you’ll be more likely to choose the service that best suits your needs and adds a nice touch to whatever event or meeting your are attending.

In the preferred embodiment, the forward doors of the limousine are forward doors manufactured for the four-door version of the production limo hire vehicle. The doors removed from the two-door motor vehicle are modified and are used as the rear doors for the limousine.

A conventional production two-door motor vehicle converted to a four-door limousine by severing the frame of the production motor vehicle near the center of the passenger compartment into a forward frame segment and rear frame segment. The longitudinal roof, floor, and rocker panel extension sections are welded between the frame segments to lengthen the wheel base and the passenger compartment.

Pillars are welded between the roof and the floor of the forward frame on either side of the forward frame segment. Front doors are attached to either side of the frame forward of the pillar and rear doors are attached to either side of the frame rearward of the pillar.

In the preferred embodiment, the forward doors of the limousine are forward doors manufactured for the four-door version of the production motor vehicle. The doors removed from the two-door motor vehicle are modified and are used as the rear doors for the limousine.

The three pairs of doors are positioned to define three seating areas for front, center, and rear seats. Each seat extending transversely fully across the vehicle interior and communicating with the respective pair of doors.

A limo hire construction provides a limousine body having an exterior portion with a roof, floor, and sides and six doors which include three right-hand and three left-hand side doors, each with forward pivotally attached edges. The doors include left and right doors which are positioned in pairs including a forward pair, a center pair, and rear doors.

The center seating includes a base which is anchored to the vehicle chassis floor between the front and rear seats and includes a generally ell-shaped composite seat/seat back assembly which is movably mounted upon the base between a forward facing and a rearward facing position.

The seat and seat back retain the generally ell shape during transition between the front and rear facing positions and a seat mechanis...

1. A limousine construction comprising:
(a) a limousine having an exterior body with forward engine compartment, rear luggage compartment, a roof, floor and sides defining an interior for containing passengers, with six doors including three right and three side doors, each with forward pivotally attached edges, the doors being positioned in pairs including forward, center and rear door pairs;

(b) a plurality of seats including front, center, and rear seats, each extending transversely fully across the vehicle interior each seat having end portions that communicate with door openings of the respective front, center and rear pair of doors, so that passengers can access any of the seats from either side of the vehicle via any of the doors;

(c) the center seat comprising:

(i) a base anchored to the vehicle chassis floor;

(ii) a generally L-shaped composite seat/seat back assembly movably mounted upon the base between a forward facing position in which the seat is in a position closely adjacent the vehicle floor and a rearward facing position in which the seat back is in a position closely adjacent the vehicle floor;

(iii) first and second cushioned seat elements connected with respect to each other in an L configuration;

(iv) a left seat support flange and a right seat support flange that rigidly hold each cushioned seat element with respect to the other,
wherein the seat/seat back retains the generally L shape during transition between the forward and rearward facing positions; and

(d) a moving seat support mechanism including a single left pivot arm and a single right pivot arm, each pivot arm being pivotally mounted at one end portion thereof to the base and being pivotally mounted at the opposite end portion thereof to one of the flanges, the pivot arms comprising means for translating the center seat upwardly with respect to the base during transition between the forward and rearward facing positions.

2. The limousine services construction of claim 1, wherein the support flanges are generally L-shaped.

3. The limousine car construction of claim 1, wherein the pivot arms each have upper end portions that pivotally attach to the center portion of the flanges.

4. The limousine construction of claim 3, wherein the flanges are shaped to conform to a portion of each of the seat element sides.

First of all, if any of your friends or family have rented a limo and have been satisfied or dissatisfied with the service, be sure to take this into consideration.

The limo you arrive and drive off in at your wedding are often decisions that require a lot if time and research. In this article we will go through what you should look for in a limo rental company for the best experience on a wedding day.

If somebody close to either the bride or the groom has a recommendation, this can make the process of choosing a limo service easy and painless. However, if you have no personal recommendations, here is how you should go about conducting your research and what you should be looking for.

First of all, use the Internet. The Internet makes it easy to find all of the limo hire and transportation comapanies in your area. Using a web site like Yahoo! Local or Google Maps should render dozens of results. Once you have found the companies that can be considered possibilities, browse through the company's web site. Most reputable limo rental services have professional web sites with all of the information you need. Look through the web sites and select a few vehicles that you are interested in renting.

Most couples select a simple stretch Lincoln limo, but you can go for the stretch Hummer or Escalade if you are audacious enough. Once you have a list of possible vehicle choices, contact all companies to make sure that they will have the vehicles available for rental on your wedding day and how much it will cost. You should be able to get a limo for under £1000 so you shouldn't need to spend much more than that on a limo rental service. You should also be sure to ask every company for a list of at least a few references that you can contact to get information about the company and the quality of service.

With a business such as a local limousine company, this is the most effective, and often only, way to get information about a company. Once you have compiled all of this information, you need to analyze it to make sure the quote is in your budget and that previous clients have been happy with the service provided.

If you follow the guidelines outlined above, you should be able to find a reputable limousine rental service who can give you the vehicle and service you want at a fair price.