HIGH POINT — Rental car rates, a frequent cause of complaints among High Point marketgoers, are headed south for the October show.

International Home Furnishings Market Authority President Brian Casey said eight car rental companies at Piedmont Triad International Airport have agreed to offer special “market rates” that are well below what attendees have paid in recent years.

In several instances, he said, companies have dropped rates by about 50%.

“We have been able to dramatically reduce the cost of rental cars for the upcoming market,” Casey told the Market Authority’s board of directors last week.

He said his staff was able to negotiate the reductions by speaking with the corporate staffs of the car rental companies. Several attempts to work with the local franchise owners proved unproductive, Casey said.

The eight companies — Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, National, Thrifty and Triangle — have established discount codes exclusively for market attendees. The codes must be used when calling the rental company’s toll-free number to make a reservation.

All but one of the eight companies, for example, is offering full-size, four-door cars at daily rates of $64.96 or less. The lowest is $49. Weekly rates for those same cars range from $212.99 to $389.96.

The rates don’t include a variety of taxes and fees, which add about 26% to each rental car bill.

In recent years, full-size cars had been renting for $70 to $90 per day and $450 to $500 or more per week during market.

For a complete list of rates, discount codes and toll-free reservations numbers, click here.