Quick Summary:
- Check the breakdown for “concession recovery” and “facility charge” line items.
- Look for fees calculated per day, plus a separate maximum cap.
- Confirm whether taxes apply to surcharges, not just the base rate.
- Compare quotes using the same pickup location, airport versus off-airport.
Orlando airport pricing can look confusing because the headline daily rate is rarely the whole story. When you collect a car hire vehicle at an airport location, the supplier may pass on charges related to operating on airport property. These often appear as airport concession fees and facility charges. They are not the same as optional extras, and they can materially change the total you pay.
This guide shows you exactly where these surcharges tend to appear in an Orlando car hire quote, how they are calculated, and how to compare totals like for like before you commit to anything.
If you are specifically looking at Orlando International Airport pickup, it helps to start from a clear airport context such as car hire at Orlando MCO, because airport rules and charge names are often consistent across suppliers operating there.
What “airport concession” and “facility” fees actually mean
An airport concession fee is typically a charge the rental company collects to recover the cost of doing business at the airport, such as airport access, concession agreements, or percentage-of-revenue payments owed to the airport authority. You might see it labelled as “Concession Recovery Fee”, “Airport Concession Fee”, “Airport Surcharge”, or similar.
A facility fee, sometimes called a “Customer Facility Charge” or “Facility Charge”, is commonly used to fund airport transport infrastructure, rental car centre facilities, shuttles, or terminal access systems. At major airports, these are often set or influenced by the airport authority and applied consistently to rentals picked up on airport property.
Both fee types are usually mandatory for airport pickups. The key is that they can be presented in different ways depending on the quote format, currency display, and how the supplier splits base rate versus charges.
Where these fees show up in an Orlando car hire quote
Most quotes present pricing in two layers, a summary total and a detailed breakdown. The summary is where people get caught out, because the big number may be “estimated” or may exclude some items until checkout. To spot airport surcharges early, open the full breakdown and scan for these common locations.
1) A line item under “Taxes and Fees”
Many systems group airport concession and facility charges under a single “Taxes and Fees” section. That makes them easy to miss because they sit beside sales tax. Look for any lines that reference “airport”, “concession”, “facility”, “customer facility”, “CFC”, or “recovery”. If the quote only shows a combined figure, expand the section if possible.
2) A separate “Location Surcharge” or “Pickup Fee”
Some quotes do not mention the airport explicitly. Instead, they list a “Location Service Charge”, “Premium Location Fee”, or “Pickup/Drop-off Surcharge”. In Orlando, an airport pickup is a premium location compared with many off-airport sites, so this is a common place for concession-style charges to hide in plain sight.
3) In the prepayment terms rather than the price box
On some platforms, the first screen shows the base rate and inclusions, while mandatory fees are described in the terms such as “payable at counter” or “local charges”. This is particularly important if the quote says “estimated total” or “excludes local fees”. Always open the pricing terms and search within the page for “facility”, “airport”, and “concession”.
4) Rolled into the “Total” without naming
Occasionally you will see a total that is higher than base plus tax, but the breakdown does not name each component. That can happen when the system bundles charges. In that case, compare an airport pickup total with a non-airport pickup quote from the same dates and car group. If the difference is consistent, you are likely seeing bundled airport surcharges.
When you are comparing Orlando International Airport versus a specific airport terminal pickup flow, it can help to view a dedicated page such as Orlando MCO car rental to keep the pickup location consistent in your checks.
How airport fees are calculated, per day, percentage, or capped
Airport charges are not always flat. Understanding the calculation method helps you spot whether two quotes are genuinely comparable.
Per-day charges
Facility charges are often per day. A quote might show something like “X per day, max Y per rental”. If you only look at a single day rate, you might underestimate the effect on a 10 to 14 day holiday.
Percentage-based charges
Concession recovery is often a percentage of the rental charges, sometimes applied to the base rate and sometimes to a wider set of items. That means a higher base rate can also produce a higher concession fee. If two suppliers show different base rates, the concession fee can differ even if the percentage is similar.
Caps and minimums
Some fees have caps, meaning longer rentals stop accumulating the fee after a certain point. Others have minimums, meaning short rentals pay a higher effective rate. In the breakdown, look for wording like “max”, “cap”, or “minimum”. If the quote does not show this, check the terms section for the detailed rule.
Taxes can apply to surcharges, so check the order of operations
In Florida, taxes and surcharges can interact. A common mistake is to assume sales tax applies only to the base rate. Depending on how the supplier and location apply taxes, the taxable amount may include some mandatory fees.
To catch this, look for two clues in the breakdown:
1) Tax line appears unusually high versus the base rate
If tax looks higher than you would expect based on the headline rate, it may be calculated on base plus surcharges.
2) Wording like “taxes on fees” or “taxable surcharges”
Some systems explicitly state that certain fees are taxable. This is a good sign the breakdown is detailed and helps you compare fairly across providers.
Common labels you can search for in the breakdown
Terminology varies by supplier and booking flow. When reviewing an Orlando car hire quote, scan for these labels or close variations:
Airport Concession Fee, Concession Recovery Fee, Airport Surcharge, Airport Fee, Facility Charge, Customer Facility Charge, CFC, Location Service Charge, Premium Location Fee, Transportation Fee, Tourism Fee, Recovery Fee.
If you are comparing suppliers at the same airport, keeping your filters consistent helps. For example, you might compare results for the same dates and pickup time on car hire in Orlando MCO so you are not mixing airport and non-airport inventories.
How to compare like-for-like totals before you commit
To compare properly, you want to align three things: pickup location, payment model, and what is included in the displayed total.
Match the pickup and return location type
Make sure both quotes are airport pickups, or both are off-airport. Mixing these is the biggest reason travellers think one quote is “cheaper” when it is simply missing airport charges.
Separate mandatory fees from optional extras
Airport concession and facility charges are mandatory at airport locations. Optional extras include additional drivers, sat nav, toll packages, child seats, and upgrades. If one quote bundles optional extras into the total and another does not, the comparison will be distorted. Focus first on base rate plus mandatory fees plus taxes.
Check whether fees are “pay now” or “pay at counter”
Some quotes show a prepay amount and a pay-at-counter amount. Airport fees are sometimes in the latter. If you only compare prepay totals, you may miss a significant chunk of the cost. Add both parts to get the real expected total.
Confirm the car group is genuinely equivalent
Comparing an intermediate saloon to a compact, or a two wheel drive SUV to a larger model, changes both the base rate and any percentage-based concession fee. If your trip needs space for luggage and theme-park runs, you may be looking at SUVs, in which case a consistent category page such as SUV hire near Disney Orlando MCO helps keep comparisons grounded in the same general vehicle type.
Red flags that suggest airport fees are not fully shown yet
Not every quote is equally transparent at first glance. Treat these as prompts to dig deeper into the terms and breakdown.
“Estimated total” with no expandable fee list
If you cannot see separate line items, assume there may be additional mandatory charges until proven otherwise.
Very low daily rate paired with vague “fees may apply” text
Low rates can be legitimate in quieter periods, but vague disclaimers mean you need to identify what is not included.
No mention of airport anywhere despite MCO pickup
If your pickup is clearly Orlando International Airport yet the quote contains no airport or facility wording, the charges may be bundled, delayed to checkout, or shown only in counter-pay terms.
Inconsistent currency or VAT style expectations
UK travellers are used to VAT-inclusive pricing at home. US pricing is often tax-and-fee layered. That difference alone can make a quote feel incomplete, so rely on the itemised breakdown rather than intuition.
A simple checklist you can use on any Orlando quote
Use this quick scan method before you decide a quote is the best value:
1) Open the full price breakdown
Do not rely on the headline daily rate.
2) Search for key terms
Look for concession, facility, CFC, airport, location, recovery.
3) Identify the calculation type
Per day, percentage, cap, or a bundled line.
4) Add prepay plus pay-at-counter amounts
If both exist, your comparison number is their sum.
5) Recheck taxes
Confirm whether tax is applied to fees, not only the base rate.
Once you have done that, you will be comparing like for like, and airport fees stop being a surprise. The goal is not to avoid legitimate charges, but to make sure two quotes are being measured on the same basis, especially when Orlando airport pickup is involved.
FAQ
What is an airport concession fee on an Orlando car hire quote?
It is a mandatory charge collected by the rental company to recover costs of operating at the airport, often shown as “concession recovery” or an airport surcharge.
Is a customer facility charge the same as an airport concession fee?
No. A facility charge, often labelled CFC, is typically a per-day fee linked to airport rental facilities and transport systems, while concession fees relate to airport access or revenue agreements.
Why do two MCO airport quotes show different facility or concession fees?
Fees can differ because of different calculation bases, such as percentage versus flat per-day, different caps, or because one quote bundles the fees into a single line.
How can I tell if airport fees are included or payable at the counter?
Check whether the quote splits “pay now” and “pay at counter” amounts, then read the fee breakdown or terms for airport and facility wording under counter-pay items.
Do taxes apply to airport concession and facility fees in Orlando?
Often, yes. Some taxes may be calculated on the base rate plus certain mandatory fees, so compare totals using the complete itemised breakdown.
