Carwiz - Car rental scam

NoTripsToRomaniaAnymore

We brought the car back in an excellent condition. We even went for a car wash before, because we expected problems with Carwiz in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, after we read the more than 500 Carwiz customer reviews on Trustpilot. The scam spectrum reported there ranges from extra cash grabbing for cleaning to damage scams.

Unfortunately, we were ripped off as well - just like these other customers, only in our case the Carwiz employee cashed in 1100 Euros, mostly for two scratches: a scratch that was there before and a nearly invisible scratch, both at bumper level and below, i.e. in parts where tourists don't make too many photos. 

We will now try to get the money back from our credit card provider, but I will definitely not take Carwiz anymore, nor the broker - VIPCars - who keeps dealing with Carwiz, despite hundreds of scam reports in Trustpilot.

missfashionvsbeauty

NoTripsToRomaniaAnymore said:

We brought the car back in an excellent condition. We even went for a car wash before, because we expected problems with Carwiz in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, after we read the more than 500 Carwiz customer reviews on Trustpilot. The scam spectrum reported there ranges from extra cash grabbing for cleaning to damage scams.

Unfortunately, we were ripped off as well - just like these other customers, only in our case the Carwiz employee cashed in 1100 Euros, mostly for two scratches: a scratch that was there before and a nearly invisible scratch, both at bumper level and below, i.e. in parts where tourists don't make too many photos. 

We will now try to get the money back from our credit card provider, but I will definitely not take Carwiz anymore, nor the broker - VIPCars - who keeps dealing with Carwiz, despite hundreds of scam reports in Trustpilot.

I had a similar experience as you. Here's mine below; 


🚫 WARNING: Do NOT Use CarWiz Zante – 1000% Avoid This Company

I would 1000% advise people not to use CarWiz in Zante. My experience with them was truly awful and left me feeling shaken and intimidated.

They met me at the airport and took me, a solo traveller, to a nearby minibus. From the very start, the man working for the company was unfriendly and rude. I had a large suitcase, and instead of offering to help, he simply opened the back of the van and walked off, what kind of gentleman does that? I later realised it was because he was far from a gentleman.

When we arrived at the CarWiz office just down the road from the airport, it was the same story, no offer to help with my luggage (which would have been nice). But once inside, things went from bad to worse.

He began aggressively trying to upsell me extra “super” insurance** even though I explained I had already purchased insurance through EasyJet. He didn’t like that and started screaming in my face, shouting about what would happen if I got even the smallest scratch on the car, how much it would cost, and other threats. His behaviour became increasingly hostile, to the point that if there hadn’t been a family in the building, I would have been genuinely scared for my safety as a woman travelling alone.

I stood my ground and refused to buy the extra insurance. He then took me to the car and continued his bullying tactics while I filmed around and underneath the vehicle, documenting every mark. He clearly didn’t like that and tried to put me off, saying, “Why are you taking pictures of small marks? We don’t look for that.” This was just minutes after yelling that I’d be charged for even the tiniest scratch if I didn’t take his insurance! The contradiction was ridiculous and manipulative.

I have never felt so intimidated in my life. His behaviour left me visibly shaken and upset.

On my second day, I went on TripAdvisor because I couldn’t stop thinking about the experience, and sure enough, I found hundreds of similar complaints about this company: “Call the police,” “Scammers,” “They stole my money,” and many more. That’s when I realised what I was dealing with.

I decided to freeze my credit card to stop the €500 deposit from being taken because I knew I’d never see that money again. I even contacted EasyJet to ask why on earth they are promoting this company.

The car itself was an absolute death trap, it had a burnt-out clutch, smoked throughout the holiday, and struggled on hills to the point where I feared for my safety driving it. I eventually asked someone I met on holiday to drive me in their hire car instead because the CarWiz car was simply unsafe.

In my opinion, CarWiz Zante are aggressive, nasty, and professional con artists. They intimidate customers, scam people out of money, and put safety at risk.

If you’ve already booked with them, freeze or block your credit card immediately before the deposit is taken, I had to completely change mine to stop them.

If you’ve already fallen victim to their behaviour, report them to whoever you booked through (e.g., EasyJet).
These people should not be allowed to continue threatening and scamming travellers.

Used them from 12/10/25.