car rental damage charge - unsubstantiated

guyboertje

Hope someone can help.

Europcar Car Rental Damages charge.
Rented car in Spain, returned without damage, no check done by Europcar staff, charged CC for damages 505 GBP several days later.
I contacted Europcar UK asking for evidence (photos, repair shop invoice, etc), they contacted Europcar Spain.
I have only received an assertion that damage was found from Spain via UK.
I have been charged for a service I did not consume and seemingly have not been proven to have consumed.
Europcar UK have gone silent.

I have contacted Barclaycard and have the payment flagged as disputed. They have sent back an innocuous reply.

What can I do next?

For me this is exactly the same as Sky charging me for box office movies that they simply SAY I watched. Equally applies to Phone calls, Oyster, Store Cards. In all cases one agrees to pay for services consumed.

As I understand it the company must be able and willing to prove that you consumed the service.

Alan_Bowen

The difficulty is that you returned the car and did not ask them to check for any damage. You may not have damaged the car but if damage was found the next morning and you were the last person to drive it, the contract usually makes you responsible. I rent from Europcar around 15 times a year and after trying Hertz, Avis and Budget I have reached the conclusion they are one of the best. That is not to say they are right, you are of course entitled to a full explanation of the damage claimed, do you have a witness who saw you park the car without damage, was it outside office hours or did you just drop it and catch a flight? As much as they need to show the damage, you need to show it wasn't caused by you

guyboertje

There is something seriously wrong with this. Having to prove I did no damage is like proving to the phone company that I did not make the calls that they have charged for.

Their General T & C s state that their employees must inspect the car at check-out and check-in.

Agreeing to pay for damage is not the same as agreeing to pay for alleged damage.

What about the contract period? A start date/time and a stop date/time. They are quick to charge for late returns because they need to extend the contract to the late return time. If damage is caused outside of the contract period by a third party (luggage trolley, suitcase) and they have not checked the car at the end of the contract period then it must be wrong to hold the previous customer liable.

Sailor1983

Hi,

Firstly, please read my thread about my experience with Europcar where I was overcharged 480 pounds.

I'm not sure where you live but there has been something of an expose on the dubious and illegal practices of Europcar throughout Europe in the UK press recently. The Sunday Times Travel section is running the piece which has now run for 3 weeks. The latest instalment was today! The website is pay to view unfortunately but you can pay 1 pound for a days access and you can see the articles on the site. I STRONGLY URGE YOU TO DO SO.

There appears to be something of a scam going on a local level with many of the outlets that Europcar operate. Unfortunately, most of these outlets are a franchise and operate as a law unto themselves. Clearly, at the local level the operators are taking advantage of their customers.

I sent my story to the Times and they forwarded my complaint to the highest levels of the company. I have now received an apology and refund. I will send you the addresses I have in a private massage.

PLEASE CHECK the series of Europcar articles on the SUNDAY TIMES website. It will be worth your while.
:cool:

dickydonkin

Just had an awful experience with Thrifty Car Rental (Los Angeles Airport) - truly awful company - avoid at all costs. They will attempt to rob you at any opportunity - well they tried anyway - without success.

Regarding the OP's situation - although asking the obvious, was no insurance purchased for accidental damage? I know I always pay for LDW when renting in the US which in my mind is vital, although I have never hired a car in Europe so I don't know what options are available.

zagfles

dpassmore wrote: »

Just had an awful experience with Thrifty Car Rental (Los Angeles Airport) - truly awful company - avoid at all costs. They will attempt to rob you at any opportunity - well they tried anyway - without success.

Regarding the OP's situation - although asking the obvious, was no insurance purchased for accidental damage? I know I always pay for LDW when renting in the US which in my mind is vital, although I have never hired a car in Europe so I don't know what options are available.

In Europe CDW (which is the same thing as LDW I think) is almost always included in the rental price, BUT there is usually a large excess of something like 500-1000 euros. They usually try to flog you a "Super CDW" at the desk when you pick up the car to cover the excess, but at a rip-off price, so most people don't bother.

You can get specialist insurance to cover the excess at a fraction of the price you'll be quoted at the desk eg from insurance4carhire

budgetflyer

Now we all have digital cameras, possibly one solution would be to take extensive photos of the car on return. Hassle I know, but an extra layer of protection in the minefield of renting a car.

guyboertje

In the future, when I rent cars, I will be photographing the car at check-out and check-in. I will also be taking a photo of the documents that I sign. I have good grounds to believe that Europcar Menorca staff tampered with the check-in doc by adding a stamp over my signature in which I authorise them to charge for damage found.

However, all advice about what I should have done while well meant and well received, does not move this situation forward.

I have found that there is a EU wide Consumer Centre network, funded by the EU, whose remit is to aid and intervene when EU citizen customers have been unfairly treated. I have opened a case with them.

If anyone knows the name of the head of Europcar UK Customer Services or the European head, please list here

melb

the name of someone at europcar was given in the sunday times article mentioned in another thread on this forum. you will have to pay £1 to read it online or someone might remember his name and post it on here.