Europcar - a foul experience
I rented a a car from Europcar @ Luton airport last week and feel i have received poor customer service from them - see below - but am I being fair to expect a little more from them?
The problem
I didn’t need to use the windscreen washer til the 2nd day, but when we did ....... .................the cockpit filled with the most odious smell, the closest I can describe is a 1980’s vintage stink bomb. Should you not have been at school in the 70's / 80's then think rotten eggs x 1000.
My wife and mother retched, I had to pull very rapidly to the hard shoulder and my daughter (5 years old) was immediately and violently sick.
After I called them to complain, Europcar changed the car at a local-ish location while I had to wait 55 mins for them to get their computer to work, while my family stood waiting.
Europcar's response
I have subsequently complained to their MD and the reply is:
“Before a vehicle leaves a Station our Operations team have devised a series of ‘Ready for Rent’ checks which every vehicle must undergo before it is released for rental. One of these checks is for correctly working windscreen washer of the vehicle. The station has confirmed these were checked prior to the rental and no unusual smell was noted.
At Europcar we consider the safety and comfort of our customers to be of the greatest importance. The Station has said that the vehicle was checked, but apologise that you suffered vehicle problems. After a vehicle has checked out all subsequent mechanical or electrical faults is not the liability of Europcar.”
What to do?
While I appreciate that Europcar should base their facts upon what their staff tell them, it would appear that someone somewhere within Europcar has been a little naughty, and someone else has been more than a little negligent. Neither was I was aware til receiving their mail that my car had been upgraded to a Quashquai, nor that it was an offer of apology or compensation.
Certainly, having to drive to Leeds Bradford Airport in order to change the car, and my family having to wait failed to leave a very satisfying feeling.
Moreover, having specifically chosen a class of car which met my humble space requirements, I can report that the upgrade most certainly failed to compensate for cleaning up my daughters vomit as a result of Europcar's negligence.
Should I expect more of Europcar?
The problem
I didn’t need to use the windscreen washer til the 2nd day, but when we did ....... .................the cockpit filled with the most odious smell, the closest I can describe is a 1980’s vintage stink bomb. Should you not have been at school in the 70's / 80's then think rotten eggs x 1000.
My wife and mother retched, I had to pull very rapidly to the hard shoulder and my daughter (5 years old) was immediately and violently sick.
After I called them to complain, Europcar changed the car at a local-ish location while I had to wait 55 mins for them to get their computer to work, while my family stood waiting.
Europcar's response
I have subsequently complained to their MD and the reply is:
“Before a vehicle leaves a Station our Operations team have devised a series of ‘Ready for Rent’ checks which every vehicle must undergo before it is released for rental. One of these checks is for correctly working windscreen washer of the vehicle. The station has confirmed these were checked prior to the rental and no unusual smell was noted.
At Europcar we consider the safety and comfort of our customers to be of the greatest importance. The Station has said that the vehicle was checked, but apologise that you suffered vehicle problems. After a vehicle has checked out all subsequent mechanical or electrical faults is not the liability of Europcar.”
What to do?
While I appreciate that Europcar should base their facts upon what their staff tell them, it would appear that someone somewhere within Europcar has been a little naughty, and someone else has been more than a little negligent. Neither was I was aware til receiving their mail that my car had been upgraded to a Quashquai, nor that it was an offer of apology or compensation.
Certainly, having to drive to Leeds Bradford Airport in order to change the car, and my family having to wait failed to leave a very satisfying feeling.
Moreover, having specifically chosen a class of car which met my humble space requirements, I can report that the upgrade most certainly failed to compensate for cleaning up my daughters vomit as a result of Europcar's negligence.
Should I expect more of Europcar?
Wise beneath my years
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Comments
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What do you want to do? You complained, they acknowledged your complaint. Move on with your life and don't use Europcar again. If you feel very strongly, write a bad review on numerous review sites.0
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What resolution are you looking for?
My number one piece of advice when complaining is to know what resolution you want to resolve the issue. It makes the whole process so much easier.0 -
It's a typical problem in the Summer. Winter strength screenwash contains enough alcohol to kill the bugs off. Probably if the car was sat in the warm (not too hot, not too cold) for some time with the washers not used from one week to the next, the bottle will be breeding all sorts of bacteria. A quick squirt from the water in the pipes may not have revealed anything untoward.
I remember hiring cars and vans in Spain, you'd get down the road, and the washer water would always stink of very smelly drains as soon as you tried to clear the bugs off the windscreen.
I say you've made your point - move on!0 -
They gave you a new car, yes its a bit annoying but its hardly the end of the world.
Far better things to worry about.0 -
I have found Europcar to be OK, nothing fantastic. Had to drag the rep out of her cabin to acknowledge some bodywork damage and record it before I drove out. But they never checked the car in at the end . Mind you this was Spain.You scullion! You rampallian! You fustilarian! I’ll tickle your catastrophe (Henry IV part 2)0
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Do you want money from them? Everyone who complains wants money. You won't get it.0
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He could sue to get his petrol money for taking it back to the depot.straighttalker wrote: »Do you want money from them? Everyone who complains wants money. You won't get it.0 -
Thanks for all the replies, I appreciate the reality checkWise beneath my years0
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is my cup halve full or halve empty?
no point crying over spilled milkWhen you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you. Nietzsche
Please note that at no point during this work was the kettle ever put out of commission and no chavs were harmed during the making of this post.0
This discussion has been closed.
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