Sixt car hire charging for existing damage Beware

sharealike

Booked a weeks car hire through a well known European price comparison website. The deal that looked best on price, CDW with excess and fuel policy etc. for a car for two was with a company called Get Your Car. It was also "on airport" rather than off using a shuttle bus. I paid the price comparison website with my credit card online.

Understood I had to allow a reserve on the credit card of 900 (euro) to be made when I arrived at Paphos airport in Cyprus. Voucher to show at the desk on arrival said my hire was with "Get Your Car" so off I went looking for their desk (and logo as seen on the price comparison website) in the arrivals hall. This while my other half collected our luggage and was to join me at their desk. No sign of such a desk but then noticed some words on the voucher said "proceed to Sixt desk". So off I go.

At the desk I hand over Passport, licence, credit card and voucher as its just the normal thing to do. I'm given a contract headed "Get Your Car" and sign to agree to their terms and conditions. No mention of Sixt on the contract. I assume the people behind the desk are agents for many car hire firms and think nothing of it.

I'm told where the car is in the car park and am met by a guy wearing a Sixt logo jumper. We look round the car to agree any pre-existing damage. The guy has previously marked two areas on the out report before I had signed. I pointed out a few more but he declined to add them. Said acceptable. Made me suspicious so I had a good look at the areas he had marked. One of these areas on the front and under the front bumpers air dam was bad with knocks and scrapes all over. Type you see where a car had grounded in a pot hole or been run up a high kerb. I thought nothing of it and happy it was already marked.

We ran about sight seeing and just a week later and around 200 kms returned the car to the airport. Same guy who checked it out was there to do the check in. Straight away he knelt down to look under the front air dam where the out damage had been marked. He said I had caused further damage and would need to fill out a report form. No I have not said I and declined to complete his form. He explained that there was sand and road dirt in the damage under the bumper. I said look at the rest of the cars underside. Its also covered in sand and road dirt and the bumpers paint is flaking off under here because its got at least three coats of paint on it that is not stuck on due to poorly repaired earlier damage. He went off to serve other customers and left me to stew in the hot sun so to speak. They take your in and out flight times so he would know I had a flight to catch that left in about an hour and a half. I walked off to catch it. Confident I had the original check out form marked up and a good few pictures of the many areas of damage under the front air dam should I need to challenge their claims of further damage.

Few days after arriving home I notice the outstanding total on the credit card statement had gone up by just over £200. On checking there was a charge made by Sixt car rental. I had met and dealt with Sixt dressed staff on my travels but my contract was with "Get Your Car" - NOT SIXT. Rang credit card company to explain I had no contract with Sixt. At first they said how did you expect to get a weeks car hire for less than £200. I said you can see the transaction value I made with the European price comparison site a few days earlier. I have a contract with them made online and one with Get Your Car that I made on arrival in Cyprus. They (Sixt) have fraudulently taken money from my account without my knowledge or authority. At the word "fraudulent" the agents tone changed and we went through the fraud reporting process. All transactions were looked at to decide if I accepted them or suspected them as fraud. The £200 charge by Sixt was one for certain but the agent also said there was a reserve made for just over £800 (the 900 euro deposit) which was again in the name of Sixt. Both those two Sixt transactions have now mysteriously gone from my credit card statement.

Now there are two scams here.

Call me suspicious but this seems to be going back the the recently uncovered, but supposedly now addressed scam of charging many renters for the same damage to a hire car. Damage underneath and out of sight that you might not be confident enough to challenge. Sneaky that Sixt are one of the names that signed up to this code of conduct to stop the scam but can now run what looks the same using another company name but pocket the overcharges through their own credit card system.

So my contract for car hire was with Get Your Car but the Sixt staff must have swiped my card through a sixt terminal or similar. I certainly never entered my pin into anything to authorise a transaction. Only authority I gave was in the contract I signed with Get Your Car and have a copy of. No mention of Sixt in that.

Please will you all take care when renting cars. Check who you are contracting with and take pictures of the car to show damage there when you collect. And the same areas when you drop it off.

mgdavid

why did you not take lots of detailed photos of the car before accepting it?

sharealike

I did and always do. Sometimes I have pointed out so much extra damage such as scratched lights and so forth that the agent doing the inspection just writes on the form and that covers the fact the car is old and knocked about. Did not work with this guy because it was going to block his nice little earner at the end. He refused to add all further marks I pointed out.

Trying to show a staff member pictures from either end of your holiday on a small reflective screen in bright sunlight or compare your originals with the car while underneath it is bit awkward. All that in the heat when you have a flight to catch.

Better not to do anything to antagonise them but collect your evidence and politely state that you have not caused any damage in the presence of a witness. Then cool as you can go catch your flight and enjoy the rest of your holiday. Only later once home can you make effective use of your evidence if required at all. Let them go first with evidence and keep your powder dry so to speak.

Thus far I have not needed my evidence. That would likely be a long drawn out process causing no end of stress. I was lucky they messed up with the contract and credit card fraud so at first went straight for the easy win.