CarTrawler/EasyJet Car Hire

Linda_Donnas

We recently hired a car booked through CarTrawler/EasyJet and provided by Avis. All was fine until when we got home I noticed a EURO 6.62 charge on my credit card. I queried this with Avis, as this was who the charge was from. They said it was the remaining balance of my car hire. 

In October 22 I paid EURO 400.91 to CarTrawler/EasyJet this is shown on the voucher provided

In August only EURO 386.09 was sent to Avis by CarTrawler/EasyJet requiring me to pay the balance of EURO 6.62 This is shown on the invoice provided by Avis.

I contacted CarTrawler/Easyjet and asked for the  EURO 21.44 to be paid back to me (407.53 paid by me minus 386.09 sent to Avis via a voucher)

There customer service initially said this was a local charge - the invoice does not back this up. They then said it was something I agreed at the rental desk and they had no way of checking this out. We have had 3 emails back and forth (and I am expecting a 4th) in which they refuse to accept the evidence I have provided.

I am stubborn enough to take this to small claims and like the template provided by Citizens Advice but do not think the Consumer rights Act is correct. What would be a more appropriate legal source? Or do you think because I signed at the desk I am not owed anything?

Caz3121

Linda_Donnas said:

In October 22 I paid EURO 400.91 to CarTrawler/EasyJet this is shown on the voucher provided

In August only EURO 386.09 was sent to Avis by CarTrawler/EasyJet requiring me to pay the balance of EURO 6.62 This is shown on the invoice provided by Avis.

I contacted CarTrawler/Easyjet and asked for the  EURO 21.44 to be paid back to me (407.53 paid by me minus 386.09 sent to Avis via a voucher)

your post is a little confusing...you say you paid €400.91....where does €407.53 come into it?
would you not be asking for refund of the €6.62 balance?

Linda_Donnas

Caz3121 said

your post is a little confusing...you say you paid €400.91....where does €407.53 come into it?
would you not be asking for refund of the €6.62 balance?

Apologies, the total for the car hire was €392.71. The total I originally paid was €400.91 ( in October 22). Car trawler sent €386.09. That is why I was charged an additional €6.62. Total paid was  €407.53

SiliconChip

While it may seem an injustice any attempt to use the courts to recover EUR 6 would probably be rejected under de minimis rules, and the cost of seeking legal advice would vastly outweigh the debt, so I think you would be best to swear under your breath and forget about it.

Linda_Donnas

SiliconChip said:

While it may seem an injustice any attempt to use the courts to recover EUR 6 would probably be rejected under de minimis rules, and the cost of seeking legal advice would vastly outweigh the debt, so I think you would be best to swear under your breath and forget about it.

The total claim would be €21.44 would that still fall under that rule?

tightauldgit

Linda_Donnas said:

SiliconChip said:

While it may seem an injustice any attempt to use the courts to recover EUR 6 would probably be rejected under de minimis rules, and the cost of seeking legal advice would vastly outweigh the debt, so I think you would be best to swear under your breath and forget about it.

The total claim would be €21.44 would that still fall under that rule?

Are the companies UK based? I don't think there is a minimum amount you can claim for but bear in mind the court fees will be £35 (which you can try to recover in your claim). 

Its slightly confusing to work out what actually happened - did you sign for something extra when you picked up the car? 

From what I can see you agreed to pay 400EUR for the car and actually paid 406EUR? So your claim would only be for 6EUR. 

I dont really understand why the middleman sent the hire company less than you paid but maybe that reflects what they actually charged? I would certainly expect that they take some cut/admin fee for the booking. 

sheramber

Car trawler are based in Dublin.

Linda_Donnas

tightauldgit said:

Linda_Donnas said:

SiliconChip said:

While it may seem an injustice any attempt to use the courts to recover EUR 6 would probably be rejected under de minimis rules, and the cost of seeking legal advice would vastly outweigh the debt, so I think you would be best to swear under your breath and forget about it.

The total claim would be €21.44 would that still fall under that rule?

Are the companies UK based? I don't think there is a minimum amount you can claim for but bear in mind the court fees will be £35 (which you can try to recover in your claim). 

Its slightly confusing to work out what actually happened - did you sign for something extra when you picked up the car? 

From what I can see you agreed to pay 400EUR for the car and actually paid 406EUR? So your claim would only be for 6EUR. 

I dont really understand why the middleman sent the hire company less than you paid but maybe that reflects what they actually charged? I would certainly expect that they take some cut/admin fee for the booking. 

They have offices in London.

What appears to have happened is they have not transferred the full amount I paid to Avis. The voucher says I have nothing further to pay.

By not transferring the full amount, I was charged the remainder. The €21.66 is the 407.53 ( 400.91+6.62)paid by me minus 386.09 sent to Avis 

What are the legal grounds I have in this situation? It does not seem the consumer act covers this?

Caz3121

Linda_Donnas said:

By not transferring the full amount, I was charged the remainder. The €21.66 is the 407.53 ( 400.91+6.62)paid by me minus 386.09 sent to Avis 

It is not uncommon for third parties to have their own booking fees on top of the supplier's fees. You agree to pay €400.91 for the rental and it sounds like Carcrawler should have transferred €392.71 to Avis...if that had happened, would you be trying to claim the €8.20 back?

You agreed to pay €400.91 for the booking and ended up paying €407.53 so paid €6.62 more than you had expected to be charged.

tightauldgit

Linda_Donnas said:

tightauldgit said:

Linda_Donnas said:

SiliconChip said:

While it may seem an injustice any attempt to use the courts to recover EUR 6 would probably be rejected under de minimis rules, and the cost of seeking legal advice would vastly outweigh the debt, so I think you would be best to swear under your breath and forget about it.

The total claim would be €21.44 would that still fall under that rule?

Are the companies UK based? I don't think there is a minimum amount you can claim for but bear in mind the court fees will be £35 (which you can try to recover in your claim). 

Its slightly confusing to work out what actually happened - did you sign for something extra when you picked up the car? 

From what I can see you agreed to pay 400EUR for the car and actually paid 406EUR? So your claim would only be for 6EUR. 

I dont really understand why the middleman sent the hire company less than you paid but maybe that reflects what they actually charged? I would certainly expect that they take some cut/admin fee for the booking. 

They have offices in London.

What appears to have happened is they have not transferred the full amount I paid to Avis. The voucher says I have nothing further to pay.

By not transferring the full amount, I was charged the remainder. The €21.66 is the 407.53 ( 400.91+6.62)paid by me minus 386.09 sent to Avis 

What are the legal grounds I have in this situation? It does not seem the consumer act covers this?

That doesn't seem to be what has happened though as the shortfall in the transfer and the amount you have been charged are different amounts. And as you agreed to pay 400Eur anyway you can only claim for additional losses which wiuld only be the extra 6 EUR you had to pay. 

Legally you would be able to sue to recover the extra money but for 6 EUR are you honestly going to go to court? It'll cost you more to get to the court building probably. 

brianposter

This is where the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading regulations come in. You claim the 6  euros plus a multiple of the contract value.

The first thing you need to do is work out who has made the mistake (often Avis) by making formal complaints to both parties.