Beware - Goldcar Car Rentals Spain

nickcc · 17 March 2017 at 11:45AM

I'd keep my eye on your credit card transactions just in case they try to charge you again.

Tonanti216 · 22 March 2017 at 11:48AM

Every horror story on here is 100% accurate is all I can say, given my one and only time I encountered them.

All I can say is be warned!

OK, the rental costs are on the face of it competitive but a word of warning. Be prepared for some strong arm tactics from a once friendly sales agent who, when you decline their additional insurance, becomes a towering monster. Taking advice form moneysavingsexpert.com I purchased the additional insurance to cover all the stuff Goldcars don't cover and was met with a degree of aggression that could lead you to part with cash just to escape the torrent of lies designed to scare you into buying from them. Also, be warned that if unavoidably you can't return the car with a full tank there is a 50 euro "fine" on top of the cost of the top up of fuel. I did mean to ask if it was possible to pay for the fuel up front (which some companies offer) but was so taken aback by the trashing of my Allianze additional and lower cost insurance that I forgot to ask the 7 feet tall bloke on the other side of the counter - he was 5'7" sitting down! Also they "block" 1100 euros on your card for damage etc. so it's important you get the cover for that in advance and at a proper rate, not their massively expensive rate. Other than that the car was great, nearly new and not a thing wrong about it. Good Luck!

2catsandcounting · 22 March 2017 at 9:25PM

So glad I found this thread, i had booked with them through Holiday Autos for Malaga in June, just looked to see how much cancelling and re-booking will cost me... Free cancellation and found a car through Avis for £15 less than GoldCar were charging me

nickcc · 23 March 2017 at 9:10AM

2catsandcounting wrote: »

So glad I found this thread, i had booked with them through Holiday Autos for Malaga in June, just looked to see how much cancelling and re-booking will cost me... Free cancellation and found a car through Avis for £15 less than GoldCar were charging me

When you get to Malaga just look at the enormous queue for Goldcar.

If you can use the Avis fast track side of their office, situated on the left and just a door, this will stop you having to queue as during peak times the Avis queue can be very long. Make sure you get the full/full fuel and be sure to fill up at the airport petrol station, you will need to show the receipt for the fuel when you return the car.

mikejwatson99 · 24 March 2017 at 3:55PM

I have also been stung by Goldcar. They are a bunch of con merchants.
I booked the car with RentalCars.com in the UK and paid for it in advance including full insurance protection and full to full fuel. .

Goldcar have charged me for the following items:
Cobertura Super
Smart Return
Mega Relax Cover

I was not offered any of these items, the only item that I took was the offer of a GPS satnav device.

I did sign the contract but thought this was just a confirmation of the cost I had already paid to Rentalcars and an agreement to rent the car.

I then found subsequently that an amount of 40e had been taken from my credit card without authorisation. This was eventually tracked down to being for damage to the GPS. I strongly deny that there was any damage and Goldcar then said it was due to a missing charger. I was convinced that the charger had been returned in the pouch with the GPS and even if it hadn’t it would be in the car.

I complained originally to Rentalcars but they said they were unable to help and I was advised to pick the problem up with Goldcar.

They are also stating that they will not budge from their position.

I would be very dubious about using Goldcar - a company that operates such dubious tactics and makes charges against customers credit cards without authorisation.

sarahl500 · 28 March 2017 at 6:40PM

I have just had my own bad experience with Gold Car. I returned from a trip to Fuerteventura this weekend and booked a car to hire with Gold car via holiday autos.

When we arrived at the airport the service at the customer service desk was really slow - taking up to an hour or more to get served with only 2 people in front of us. When i finally did get served i presented my online check in code and every thing seemed to go smoothly. I was asked to pay the 1100 euro excess as expected and handed over my passport and driving licence. Then the lady spend about 15 - 20 mins or more working on paperwork which i thought was a little odd as i has already checked in online. I was asked to sign an electronic pad and was never shown a copy of the hire agreement before the agreement was printed. As i had checked in online i thought that the terms i had agreed to online would remain the same. i was then handed the agreement which was folded up within another document and didn't think anything there was anything to be concerned about.

It was only on my return on checking my credit card statement that i realised something was wrong. Instead of taking the 1100 euro deposit as expected i had in fact been changed for 'super relaxed insurance' at £150 - triple the cost of renting the car for the week. I was never asked about this or informed they had charged me for it. I had even taken out excess insurance with AXA for £19 at the time of booking so clearly i had no intention of paying for extra insurance at the rental desk that i had no need for. I always refuse the extra insurance when hiring cars - but its hard to refused when you are not being told you are being signed up for it.

I have contacted Gold car regarding this mis-selling and they simply state i must have agreed to the extra insurance cover and refused to refund the amount. I have taken up a dispute via my credit car company and hope the matter can be resolved via this means.

I have used Gold car previously and had no issues. Maybe there are just bad eggs within the organisation and people trying to rip you off. But clearly if anything does go wrong Gold car do not want to know. Sufficed to say i will be avoiding Gold car and be much more vigilant in future!

I have since found an article in the guardian 'Beware Goldcar – the hire firm that sells cover customers don't want - dated 11th september 2016' (the site wont let me post a link) - its seems i am not alone in being charged for 'super relaxed insurance' without the sales agent mentioning anything about it. I would recommend to avoid Gold Car entirely.

buntyboy · 6 April 2017 at 11:22AM

Hidden and excessive charges, incompetence, delays, queues, chaos, disappointment. I could go on but if you've used gold car you will probably know the score. Malaga (AGP) yesterday 40 minx wait at hire counter then the hidden charges €258 of them! Next the 2 hour wait in the fume filled multi storey car park waiting for keys, which didn't arrive. We eventually managed to cancel and booked with Hertz full tank, full insurance, additional driver and all sorted in 10 mins keys in hand. Would never use Goldcar again and am surprised Expedia and others have them on their sites

Tess_In_The_City · 11 April 2017 at 9:53PM

BEWARE GOLDCAR ITALY (Bari Airport)

We've just returned from Italy, having made a Goldcar rental through Rentalcars.

At Bari Airport the fuel business seems to have been resolved - we were told the tank was full and were asked to return it full, which was no problem.
However the insurance scam is certainly still in place. We were pushed very hard by a (very nice) saleswoman to buy extensive and expensive insurance including - incredibly - insurance against their own car breaking down. We refused.
The car was ostensibly an upgrade. However there was no manual, the on-screen instructions were in Slovenian and neither the heating nor the windscreen demister worked - not much fun on a cold, rainy night.
If you're on a budget and are tempted to use these guys, be very careful:
- Don't take their insurance (or else go with someone else who will doubtless be cheaper).
- Check the car closely before leaving - we found a couple of minor dents and scratches on the body which weren't marked on the diagram and insisted these were added before leaving the airport.
- At Bari, don't rely on their map to find the place again. Use a good online mapping device or else photograph the rental place turning on the way out - you'll never find it on the way back!

Good luck!

RtG_3 · 18 April 2017 at 1:38PM

I’ve been hiring cars in Alicante for the last year, maybe 7/8 times so far. Some thoughts on the process in general and Goldcar in particular.
What we all have to understand, despite all the advertised internet prices, no company can afford to rent you a car for €5 / 6 a day. It would be financial suicide and is an unsustainable business model. The reality is that it they need to charge around €150 a week or so, which is more like the true cost. The problem is that none of the hire car companies want to be the first to admit this and thus appear very expensive on an internet search and attract no bookings. Accordingly, the model that everyone uses is this: Advertise the car at a ridiculous cheap price and then make this up to a realistic price by adding extras. The extras are generally a payment to buy insurance to cover the “excess” on the insurance policy and charging more money for fuel / Sat Navs / child seats etc. The car hire companies thus need to pressure you into buying extra insurance or they are losing money on the deal. You can get around this by buying a UK policy to protect this excess for around £35 a year. In order to deter you from doing this, they will all ask for a deposit to be held on your credit card of around €1500. Of course, not everyone can afford this and thus have to buy the excess. In reality though, if this applies to you, console yourself with the thought that all you are doing is paying the true rate of hiring a car for a week. One tip though, don’t book the insurance when you book the car, pay for it when you collect the car or you will end up paying twice. Make sure you take your own sat nav and baby seat if you can too. In addition, make sure you book the “full to full” fuel policy and fill it up just before you bring the car back, to avoid paying €100 or so for a tank of fuel.
So back to Goldcar. Their latest scam, if you didn’t take their insurance, is to falsely claim you have damaged the car and levy a €200 charge against you. They have done this twice to me now and needless to say I don’t use them anymore. In addition, strange other charges were put on my credit card by Goldcar “central”. The credit card companies are very good at dealing with them when you lodge a dispute, they have a bad reputation there too, it just takes a long time. So whoever you hire with, be aware of the extra charges coming your way, take lots of photos when picking up and dropping off the car, pick a “full to full” fuel policy. Oh and avoid Goldcar!

NiftyDigits · 18 April 2017 at 2:27PM

RtG wrote: »

I’ve been hiring cars in Alicante for the last year, maybe 7/8 times so far. Some thoughts on the process in general and Goldcar in particular.
What we all have to understand, despite all the advertised internet prices, no company can afford to rent you a car for €5 / 6 a day. It would be financial suicide and is an unsustainable business model. The reality is that it they need to charge around €150 a week or so, which is more like the true cost. The problem is that none of the hire car companies want to be the first to admit this and thus appear very expensive on an internet search and attract no bookings. Accordingly, the model that everyone uses is this: Advertise the car at a ridiculous cheap price and then make this up to a realistic price by adding extras. The extras are generally a payment to buy insurance to cover the “excess” on the insurance policy and charging more money for fuel / Sat Navs / child seats etc. The car hire companies thus need to pressure you into buying extra insurance or they are losing money on the deal. You can get around this by buying a UK policy to protect this excess for around £35 a year. In order to deter you from doing this, they will all ask for a deposit to be held on your credit card of around €1500. Of course, not everyone can afford this and thus have to buy the excess. In reality though, if this applies to you, console yourself with the thought that all you are doing is paying the true rate of hiring a car for a week. One tip though, don’t book the insurance when you book the car, pay for it when you collect the car or you will end up paying twice. Make sure you take your own sat nav and baby seat if you can too. In addition, make sure you book the “full to full” fuel policy and fill it up just before you bring the car back, to avoid paying €100 or so for a tank of fuel.
So back to Goldcar. Their latest scam, if you didn’t take their insurance, is to falsely claim you have damaged the car and levy a €200 charge against you. They have done this twice to me now and needless to say I don’t use them anymore. In addition, strange other charges were put on my credit card by Goldcar “central”. The credit card companies are very good at dealing with them when you lodge a dispute, they have a bad reputation there too, it just takes a long time. So whoever you hire with, be aware of the extra charges coming your way, take lots of photos when picking up and dropping off the car, pick a “full to full” fuel policy. Oh and avoid Goldcar!

Not all hire car companies behave in that manner. Mostly the ones that have ridiculously low headline prices

Beware - Goldcar Car Rentals Spain

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