Europcar Are Exploiting Customers

Rental Agreement No.: 2075622009

I pre-booked a small van for a day hire via the internet from Europcar UK Ltd at a quoted 40.25 euros to be collected 19.09.09 from their Etoile Foch depot in Paris France, this quote subsequently morphed into a total of 109.71 euros with CDW insurance and other sundry extra charges and insurances, but not to worry you live and learn.

I was sent to pick up and check the vehicle from reception unaccompanied, the sheet detailed no panel damage and only one small scratch, the reality however was somewhat different with dents, scratches and other defects which took me twenty minutes to list, after which back to reception to get the damage verified and counter-signed.

The van was returned after six hours and the hire desk assistant after having the vehicle checked informed me that everything was O.K. and bade me “au revoir”, I insisted that before I was prepared to go anywhere I required a printed final invoice and also return of the credit card authorisation slip for the security deposit of 700.00 euros, which he had told me at the time of the hire would not be processed and would be destroyed after the vehicle had been brought back in the same condition as it originally had left the agency, he point blank refused my request for return of the slip but did eventually and after a great deal of fuss on my part print out a final invoice, and again insisted that the security deposit would not be processed.

Over three weeks later I now find that a total of 809.71 euros has been taken from my credit card account for a six hour hire of a small van, and Europcar, their central office and the Paris depot are ignoring all communication.

I have informed my credit card issuer of the unauthorized charge in respect of the security deposit, which according to Europcar`s own terms and conditions is refunded at the termination of the hire, I am currently taking advice on possible civil and / or criminal proceedings against this company along with reporting them to the Office of Fair Trading and European Trading Standards.

Europcar

Too bad I read the negative reviews for Europcar AFTER finding out the hard way that they are run by con artists! I rented a car through holidayautos.com, paid upfront, and picked up the car in Malaga, Spain with no problem. The car was fine, clean. I drove to Madrid where I had arranged to drop it off at the airport before catching a flight. The drive took longer than planned so by the time my husband and I arrived to the airport we were pressed for time to catch our flight. Of course there was no attendant in the office, so I had to wait 5-10 minutes before turning in the key. The man asked me if there was any damage, which there wasn’t, and I told him that we didn’t have time to fill up the tank was all. So he took my credit card and made me sign a sheet. I noticed that there was a total of 155 Euros and I asked him why. In my nervous, rushed state I didn’t realize that I was trusting him to be honest and didn’t quite understand his Spanish, but I gathered that I would only be charged the amount for gas. He gave me the slip and said that was it. When I returned to the U.S. I received a credit card statement with 260 Euros worth of charges! I called Europcar and they said they were charging me for damages! What damages??????? They said that when I signed the slip I was authorizing them to survey the vehicle and charge me for any damages that they could muster up! Now my credit card company can’t do anything because I naively signed the form. What about the remaining 105 Euros, I asked. They claimed that they have a signature for that as well! They are going to try to claim it is for gas, but hopefully I can prove to VISA that the gas should be included in the 155 Euros. Obviously the lesson I learned is to never trust anyone even if it means miss my flight? I had never had a rental company claim damages that weren’t there, but Europcar took advantage of me and did. Now that I am out to ruin their reputation, I realize that they already have a bad one! I’m not the only one they have scammed. So, if you or someone you know is thinking of renting from Europcar, DON’T! It’s not worth the cheaper rates because you will end up paying more! Summary: Europcar is run by con artists who find a way to charge you for fake damages