Goldcar rental - experiences?

scragend

I went to Gran Canaria for five days a couple of weeks ago and hired a car online through AutoEurope; the rental firm it allocated was Goldcar. I didn't read any reviews of Goldcar before I went - maybe I should have done!

I knew in advance that I would have to pay Goldcar for a tank of fuel at their own prices (€52 for a 35 litre tank - would have cost €35 at the pump), so although it is a bit of a rip off I have no issue with that as I was aware of it in advance and I made sure I took the car back empty (the range on the computer had gone down so far it stopped registering!).

However, when I picked the car up at the airport it was a complete shed. There was a dent on the front wing, a wheel trim was missing, the car was scratched to b*****y and the inside was filthy. I went straight back to the desk to point all this out to them but all they would say was "It's OK sir, we have checked it". Apparently they don't issue damage sheets so there wasn't much else I could do. Another flight had just come in and there was a big queue at the desk so I took them at their word, took the keys and left.

I have found out today that they have charged my credit card another £25. No idea what this was for; I declined the optional insurance to cover glass/wheels etc. which would have been €30, and I caused no damage to the car. Reading through various reviews it appears I have got off lightly - €150 seems to be the going rate for unexpected charges!

I have contacted Goldcar to find out what the charge was for but I'm not hopeful of getting a reply. One to avoid in future; I think from now on I will go for "proper" hire car companies even though they might be a bit more expensive.

Just wondered if anyone else had had any Goldcar experiences?

melb

quite a few people i think - just do a search on this forum and plenty will come up - including mine!

scragend

Yes, it definitely seems like I got off lightly!