Section 75 vs Chargeback

dax42

Dear all,

We rented a car from Avis on holiday in Israel recently, that my partner had pre-booked and pre-paid. When we collected the car, they asked for a credit card (which is normal procedure) and I provided mine. When I checked my statement, I found out I had been charged as well.

We contacted Avis UK and they promised to try to get in touch with Avis Israel to sort it out. Another call two weeks later they said they didn't get anywhere and we should just ask our bank to reverse the charges on the credit card.

I have a MasterCard from Aqua. Given the above scenario, is it better to claim under Section 75 (I was charged more than £100) or go for chargeback? I'm concerned that if I try Section 75 first, the time for chargeback will have expired by the time I have a decision/ response from Aqua.

Any advice? Thanks!

eco_warrior

This is a simple chargeback so that's all you need ask for in this situation.


For any dispute the bank or CC company should take the appropriate course of action for the customer. Generally speaking they will look at the chargeback option first as this is clawing back the money for the customer rather than giving it to them themselves. If there is no chargeback available they should then consider S75, but historically some banks wouldn't review under S75 unless the customer pressed them to. Its not really an option these days, least it shouldn't be.

YorkshireBoy

Were you charged exactly the same amount as your partner had been charged (not Sterling, but the local currency), or some other amount?

dax42

Thanks for your replies.

I was charged a different amount, slightly more. The original (first) amount was actually for only £99, but then I got charged more like £125. To be honest I don't think this was for charges for faults with the car or similar, as it was charged the day I returned the car, they didn't mention anything and we also had no incidents...

eco_warrior

In my experience car hire disputes tend to fit into 1 of 3 scenarios:


If you are charged on the day you collected the car this is usually a deposit or agreed additional costs (upselling) which is often insurance. If this was signed for you probably wont be able to get the money back. Deposits should be returned so can be disputed (even if withheld for damage etc.)


If you are charged on the day the car is returned this is usually for damages, missing items or cleaning. If these haven't been agreed to at the time then they can be successfully disputed.


If you are charged some time after the car hire had ended this is usually tolls or fine as they can take a while to get through the system. The cost is then charged to the CC that was given when the car was collect. These usually cant be disputed (at least successfully)

18cc

Do you have an email address for the office in Israel so you can ask ask them? Alternatively call them - justcall for example have an access number where you can call Israel for 3p/min

Terry_Towelling

Section 75 is a provision in law that allows a debtor to hold a linked money-lender equally liable with a supplier for situations where there has been a breach of contract. Not sure that has happened with the payment in Israel.

Your CC company can help you by requesting evidence from the car hire co's bankers to support these extra charges (if that's what they are) or you can ask them to consider raising a Chargeback for 'Paid by Other Means'. You will need to provide evidence of the payment by other means and evidence that such payment was passed on to the car hire company in Israel.

So, your partner will need to get in touch with the party that took the prepayment and obtain evidence that the monies were indeed passed on to the car hire company. If it turns out the money was not passed on then (depending on exactly what you signed at the Israeli location) your dispute may end up being against the 'agent' in the UK.

Because I have no idea how the prepayment was made, it is not possible to advise exactly how to proceed if that were the case.

dax42

Thanks for the advice everyone!

I was charged on the day the car was returned, but there was no mention or agreement for any additional charges. I will try to contact the Israel office to see what they say.

Regarding going to the bank though, it seems like people here are suggesting the bank would try a chargeback first. I understood that chargeback is done by MasterCard though, not the bank itself. Would the bank contact MasterCard for me, then? Should I use the chargeback form letter that MSE has here? Do I need to send it by post or could I just email it to them?

[Deleted User]

The bank wil do the chargeback.

Contact them any way you want. Phone would be easiest.

Terry_Towelling

Your bank is the one that does the chargeback. They process it through Visa/MasterCard processing systems and on to the car hire Co's bankers and thence onto the company itself.

You need to check very carefully what you signed in Israel (ideally you check it before you sign it) because car hire companies have T&Cs in small print and you are agreeing to those when you sign.

You will almost certainly find that you've agreed to have your card billed for any additional charges that come to light after termination of the rental. Such charges may include, fuel, fines, damage, local taxes and failure of an agent to pass on a pre-payment - that is why I suggested it may be the UK agent at fault.

You might also find that the prepayment only included basic daily rental and not insurance, mileage, CDW, PAI and whatever else you requested and signed for when taking the car.

If the charges are for extras like damage, fines, local taxes etc the car rental firm has to provide evidence of these when they make the charges. If they fail to do so, your bank can ask for the evidence. If you disagree with any extras evidenced by the rental firm (e.g damage) but have signed the rental agreement agreeing to accept them, you will need to take that up with the hire company.

Disputing damage is often a big issue because renters never bother to ask the rental company to inspect and approve the vehicle upon return. If they did, they'd get an inspection report showing the vehicle was in the same condition as when hired out.

All that said, it is most probable that the rental company has either overlooked or not received the prepayment, so you need evidence of that prepayment and what it included.

eco_warrior

“If you disagree with any extras evidenced by the rental firm (e.g damage) but have signed the rental agreement agreeing to accept them, you will need to take that up with the hire company.”

This isn’t correct TT. Damage charges must be authorised by the cardholder at the point the damage claim arises which is the point the vehicle is returned. Car hire companies can’t just use the pre-authorisation to cover damage costs. Not sure if this is a rule that’s changed over the years but there are specific chargebacks for it.