WARNING: HERTZ Europe Cashflow Problems?

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

NiftyDigits wrote: »

I have highlighted in bold a statement you have made.
It is quite unusual these days to have a Full/Full policy via an agent.

Tell me about it - we searched several websites and they offer alternative deals on the same car - one deal is a full tank and you must use it or lose it, another is full-full, another has additional driver as extra, ours had free additional driver AND full-full so as you go on to say, it wasn't the cheapest, but it was the cheapest for us because we bought no additional insurance but the additional driver aspect enabled us to use an annual insurance policy that covered us both.

That said, it could still be a ticket of some kind.

None that was lawfully applied. A scam between police and rental office maybe ? Is 135 euros typical for an Italian ticket?

Let us know the result...without the sensationalism.

We already know there wasn't a good reason because they did not notify me of their intention to debit. In the absence of a good reason, you won't be expecting me to play it down, now will you?

WTFH

TurnUpForTheBooks wrote: »

Tell me about it - we searched several websites and they offer alternative deals on the same car - one deal is a full tank and you must use it or lose it, another is full-full, another has additional driver as extra, ours had free additional driver AND full-full so as you go on to say, it wasn't the cheapest, but it was the cheapest for us because we bought no additional insurance but the additional driver aspect enabled us to use an annual insurance policy that covered us both.

Hold on, earlier you said you couldn't remember what you booked, now suddenly you know the exact details.

TurnUpForTheBooks wrote: »

None that was lawfully applied. A scam between police and rental office maybe ?

So, how do tickets get applied by the Italian police? My knowledge of Italy is quite limited. I only go there 2-3 times a year and know that the police have 360 days to raise the ticket, but hey oh, you must know a different version of Italian law.

Perhaps you drove through a ZTL in Milan.

But I suspect your opinion is that it is now a scam by the police, after all we know the Italian government is in financial trouble and maybe they needed the extra cash to pay for their Christmas party.

...ah well, 8 weeks to my next trip to Turin. Want me to ask when I'm there?

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

WTFH wrote: »

me wrote:

Tell me about it - we searched several websites and they offer alternative deals on the same car - one deal is a full tank and you must use it or lose it, another is full-full, another has additional driver as extra, ours had free additional driver AND full-full so as you go on to say, it wasn't the cheapest, but it was the cheapest for us because we bought no additional insurance but the additional driver aspect enabled us to use an annual insurance policy that covered us both.

Hold on, earlier you said you couldn't remember what you booked, now suddenly you know the exact details.

Yes so ? Are you suggesting that my re-focussed recollections are in some way an indication that I am a lesser human being than you? You have asked a lot of questions and I have answered in order to lend as much clarity as I can to this incident and you have now appointed yourself as some kind of judge of my character ? You carry on your love affair with Hertz and I'll continue to hire cars with caution and look forward to my money back from the bank.

So, how do tickets get applied by the Italian police? My knowledge of Italy is quite limited. I only go there 2-3 times a year and know that the police have 360 days to raise the ticket, but hey oh, you must know a different version of Italian law.

I know that Hertz are not the law, so if they get a ticket they can tell me.

Perhaps you drove through a ZTL in Milan.

135 euros? I think not, especially since we used the metro to get into Central Milan!

But I suspect your opinion is that it is now a scam by the police, after all we know the Italian government is in financial trouble and maybe they needed the extra cash to pay for their Christmas party.

...ah well, 8 weeks to my next trip to Turin. Want me to ask when I'm there?

Sarcasm too ... I am sure you are great to do business with.

Me? I'm difficult, so don't debit my bank account without telling me why and perhaps I might even make a recommendation if everything else works out fine.

Next excuse ?

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

Interesting development today, and yet more interesting!

The bank have decided to stop the card and reissue it. What are the chances of pure coincidence that a card used only a handful of times in Italy including as a guarantee at a Hertz company desk (Firefly) then gets used for a suspected fraudulent transaction at Hertz Italy ?

For balance I should say that the same card was used to purchase the original hire online via Holiday Autos. So I suppose any overly smart insider fraudster could muddy the water a bit by using the card again for hire from the same hire group in the same country.

I wonder if we shall get told the full story now. Banks don't like telling the full story on fraud.

WTFH

TurnUpForTheBooks wrote: »

I wonder if we shall get told the full story now. Banks don't like telling the full story on fraud.

Yes, will be very interesting to hear the full story. Oh, I see you have now gone from having no idea who you rented off to knowing it was HA. So we are hearing a little bit more of the story. It appears the OP doesn't like telling the full story either!

(I don't work for Hertz or any of their companies, and I rarely use them for car rental)

TurnUpForTheBooks_2

WTFH wrote: »

Yes, will be very interesting to hear the full story. Oh, I see you have now gone from having no idea who you rented off to knowing it was HA. So we are hearing a little bit more of the story. It appears the OP doesn't like telling the full story either!

WTFH, you are no longer posting in any public interest. You are being mischievous and we don't need mischief on these forums, and I don't need you questioning my motives. Yours are now truly open to question by anyone willing to read the whole thread. You appointed yourself as a an experienced super knowledgeable car hirer and judge and jury on this thread from the outset, so unless you have something of public interest to post, then perhaps now is the time to butt out.

When I started this thread I had forgotten which agent we used, or exactly which fuel deal we'd opted for, and it was not particularly relevant for me to go trawling through old emails to discover it. I was confident in the usual special care I take in these matters to know that I had satisfied any deal I had decided upon. I don't do deals lightly or ignorantly any more than you do WTFH. I was clear about which hire desk at Bergamo we collected and returned the car to and clear that no money was owed.

The name of the agency has become marginally relevant because yesterday I reported the bank were now treating the AUTONOLEGGIO HERTZ transaction as suspected fraud and of course the agency has the original card details and someone there might be in a position to cause a fraudulent debit to go through against the Italian Hertz account as a kind of smoke-screened semi-linked transaction.

I consider that it is more likely that the card details on file with the Firefly desk have in fact been used again, but that is pure conjecture and I have not pressed otherwise. It is no longer my concern. The 135 euros is no longer for my account.

The fact is that from the start of this thread where I questioned HERTZ motives in debiting an unexpected 135 euros over three months beyond a no problems hire and exactly a day before their year end, I am now adding to that the fact that the bank now considers the transaction as fraud and has not told me who they suspect, nor do I imagine they will ever do so.

So you can drop all criticism of my motives please. My motives in starting the thread were purely to warn consumers based on my experience. They can make of it what they will but it serves no public or consumer interest for readers to be led by a mischief-maker into questioning my evidence, especially now the bank investigative team is not questioning it. I imagine Hertz will now be investigating it and if there is any direct link to the Firefly car-hire file with my name on it then no doubt they will be writing to explain what happened.

Until then, we may wonder whether they may or may not be a wholly blameless victim of the same fraud. Right now, in the absence of further information it would appear that they still hold the illicit 135 euros, and that I can forget the matter as soon as the new card arrives.