Intermediate

Intermediate is the middle of the Florida range and the point at which a hire car stops being a compromise. It carries 5 seats, 4 doors, an automatic gearbox and air conditioning, like every class here, and 2 large cases with 2 smaller bags behind them.

Two large cases is the number that changes the conversation at home. It covers two adults packing properly, or two adults and two children who share cases, which is how a great many UK families actually travel. The car also stops feeling small on the motorway, which you notice the first time you sit on I-4 at rush hour with everybody aboard.

Typical models are the Toyota Corolla and the Hyundai Elantra. Both are conventional saloons with a decent boot, a cabin that seats three across the back without complaint on short journeys, and enough insulation that conversation at 70mph does not mean raising your voice. Booking is by class rather than by model, so expect that footprint rather than that badge.

Cost sits in a useful place. An intermediate uses fractionally more fuel than a compact and fits the same parking bays, so the daily running difference across a fortnight is small. What you are buying is the case you would otherwise have left on the landing at home, which is why this is the class most families settle on once they have priced the alternatives.

Families of four staying two weeks are the group this class was effectively built around. Two adults, two children, a fortnight of clothes and a daily run between a villa or a hotel and a park gate is exactly the load an intermediate handles without anyone having to think about it.

Couples who want space rather than the lowest price also land here, particularly anyone planning to cover distance. Orlando to Naples across Alligator Alley, Orlando to St Augustine, Orlando to the Keys and back are all long days at the wheel, and the extra cabin width and quieter cruise are worth real money over a fortnight.

Three generations travelling together are where the class starts to strain. Five adults fit legally and physically, and the middle rear seat is fine for the twenty minutes from Kissimmee to Magic Kingdom. It is not fine for three hours to Fort Myers, and the luggage for five adults is beyond the boot.

Two child seats plus an older sibling is the other configuration that needs thought. An intermediate rear bench takes two seats and a slim third passenger, and it will not take three restraint systems side by side. Families with three children under six generally need a full size SUV or a seven seater instead.

Groups who want one car rather than two are better served further up the range. Splitting a party of seven across an intermediate and a compact costs more than a single seven seater and doubles the parking, the tolls and the navigation problems, so the arithmetic almost never favours it.

Florida car hire is sold in two tiers and understanding which one you are looking at is the difference between a fair comparison and a misleading one. A basic rate buys the car plus the legal minimum. An inclusive rate adds the protections, the mileage terms and the extras most UK customers assume are already there.

Items that move between tiers are consistent even though the numbers are not. Collision damage protection, the liability cover American law requires, unlimited mileage and an additional driver allowance are the four to check line by line. The excess that applies behind any protection is set per supplier and per rate, so we confirm yours in writing on the booking rather than publishing a figure that would be wrong for half our customers.

Fuel policy on an intermediate is almost always full to full, which suits a two week hire with a lot of short journeys. Fill up within a few miles of the return road and keep the receipt until your final invoice has settled.

Toll billing sits outside the rate under every supplier. The charges come back to your card after the holiday, generally with an administration fee for each day you used a toll road, unless you opted for a Visitor Toll Pass at Orlando International instead.

Child seats, satellite navigation, additional drivers beyond the included allowance and one way drop charges are all priced separately. Satellite navigation is the one worth skipping, because a phone with offline maps does a better job for nothing. Ask us to itemise everything else against the booking so the figure you approve before you fly is the figure you pay.

Florida requires a crash tested, federally approved child restraint for every child aged 5 or under. Birth through age 3 must use a separate carrier or an integrated child seat. Ages 4 and 5 may use a separate carrier, an integrated seat or a booster. A seat belt is sufficient in law from age 6.

Age based wording is the part that surprises UK parents, because the rules at home are built on height and weight. A six year old who would still be in a high back booster in Britain meets Florida law in a seat belt alone. Meeting the law and doing the sensible thing are not the same, and most families keep their usual arrangement.

Two seats fit comfortably across the rear bench of an intermediate. A rear facing infant seat behind the front passenger will push that seat forward, so put the tallest adult behind the driver and expect the front passenger to give up some legroom. Three restraints side by side do not fit in this class.

Hiring seats through the supplier is charged per seat per day and needs to be on the booking rather than requested on arrival. Branches run out on busy changeover Saturdays, and you cannot legally drive a child under six away without the right restraint.

Bringing your own is the alternative and works well for a two week trip. Airlines carry child seats free of charge on transatlantic routes, UK seats fit American belt systems in most cases, and a seat your child already sleeps in is worth a lot on the drive from the airport. Fit it in the garage under the lights rather than in a lay-by on the Beachline.