UK Europcar Car Hire query

bery_451

Hello a relative of mine booked/reserved a Tesla last month to be picked up tomorrow for their Tesla car that includes the free supercharging deal.

What is this Online Check-In that Europcar is sending the email links for to everyone who reserved? They send this link a day before collection. Their website says its quicker than checking-in at the desk however if you check-in online in advance before collecting the car then does that mean the hirer agrees with the car given and the condition of the car before even seeing the car meaning more liabilities that will fall on the hirer?

Lastly if Europcar cannot give the hirer the Tesla the hirer reserved and the only reason the hirer reserved the Tesla in the 1st place was for the free supercharging inclusive deal only with Teslas then if Europcar gives an alternative car no Tesla then who is liable for the fuel/charging costs? If Europcar still insists the hirer is liable for these costs then can the hirer cancel the booking reservation & get their full refund back on the day of collection or claim on the section 75 of their credit card if Europcar refuses to refund in full?

Cheers,

eskbanker

Most car hire bookings don't guarantee availability of a specific model, but if they're advertising a deal including free charging then yes, failure to provide that would be a breach of contract.

bery_451

eskbanker said:

Most car hire bookings don't guarantee availability of a specific model, but if they're advertising a deal including free charging then yes, failure to provide that would be a breach of contract.

Okay what do you advise for him to do next, shall I tell him to complete the online check-in now for tomorrow pick up? He already bought & paid for Excess policy recommended by MSE on this site. If Europcar breach the contract tomorrow then will the hirer get refunded in full tomorrow and what about the excess policy cover, can that be cancelled & refunded too?

eskbanker

bery_451 said:

eskbanker said:

Most car hire bookings don't guarantee availability of a specific model, but if they're advertising a deal including free charging then yes, failure to provide that would be a breach of contract.

Okay what do you advise for him to do next, shall I tell him to complete the online check-in now for tomorrow pick up? He already bought & paid for Excess policy recommended by MSE on this site. If Europcar breach the contract tomorrow then will the hirer get refunded in full tomorrow and what about the excess policy cover, can that be cancelled & refunded too?

The online check-in will presumably just be to register driving licence and contact details, etc, in order to save time at the desk, so there's nothing to be lost in doing so - it clearly can't be taken to accept the condition of the vehicle when unknown and unseen.

I'd say it's extremely unlikely that any breach of contract would result in an immediate refund, and Europcar wouldn't be on the hook for someone else's standalone excess policy.

There's no harm in being prepared but it's probably best turning up with an expectation that he'll get what he paid for, but if that's not the case then asking politely but firmly for them to stick to what was agreed.

bery_451

eskbanker said:

bery_451 said:

eskbanker said:

Most car hire bookings don't guarantee availability of a specific model, but if they're advertising a deal including free charging then yes, failure to provide that would be a breach of contract.

Okay what do you advise for him to do next, shall I tell him to complete the online check-in now for tomorrow pick up? He already bought & paid for Excess policy recommended by MSE on this site. If Europcar breach the contract tomorrow then will the hirer get refunded in full tomorrow and what about the excess policy cover, can that be cancelled & refunded too?

The online check-in will presumably just be to register driving licence and contact details, etc, in order to save time at the desk, so there's nothing to be lost in doing so - it clearly can't be taken to accept the condition of the vehicle when unknown and unseen.

I'd say it's extremely unlikely that any breach of contract would result in an immediate refund, and Europcar wouldn't be on the hook for someone else's standalone excess policy.

There's no harm in being prepared but it's probably best turning up with an expectation that he'll get what he paid for, but if that's not the case then asking politely but firmly for them to stick to what was agreed.

Sorry what you meant by Europcar wouldn't be on the hook for someone else's standalone excess policy? You mean they have the legal right and can refuse to rent out the car because of this? Also If Europcar breach the contract then will the Standalone Excess policy provider refund the policy premium or he will lose out on this?

Lastly he be happy to accept a alternative vehicle if the tesla is not available if Europcar cover the charging or fuel costs to compensate the free supercharging. Do you think Europcar will do this or you think he end up disputing on them?

eskbanker

bery_451 said:

Sorry what you meant by Europcar wouldn't be on the hook for someone else's standalone excess policy? You mean they have the legal right and can refuse to rent out the car because of this? Also If Europcar breach the contract then will the Standalone Excess policy provider refund the policy premium or he will lose out on this?

I mean that if the Europcar rental didn't go ahead for whatever reason, that doesn't affect the standalone excess policy, i.e. Europcar wouldn't be liable to refund it and it's probably unlikely that the provider would either, but he should check the policy terms.

bery_451 said:
Lastly he be happy to accept a alternative vehicle if the tesla is not available if Europcar cover the charging or fuel costs to compensate the free supercharging. Do you think Europcar will do this or you think he end up disputing on them?

No idea - to what extent is the inclusive charging clearly promised within the confirmed booking?

bery_451

eskbanker said:

bery_451 said:

Sorry what you meant by Europcar wouldn't be on the hook for someone else's standalone excess policy? You mean they have the legal right and can refuse to rent out the car because of this? Also If Europcar breach the contract then will the Standalone Excess policy provider refund the policy premium or he will lose out on this?

I mean that if the Europcar rental didn't go ahead for whatever reason, that doesn't affect the standalone excess policy, i.e. Europcar wouldn't be liable to refund it and it's probably unlikely that the provider would either, but he should check the policy terms.

bery_451 said:
Lastly he be happy to accept a alternative vehicle if the tesla is not available if Europcar cover the charging or fuel costs to compensate the free supercharging. Do you think Europcar will do this or you think he end up disputing on them?

No idea - to what extent is the inclusive charging clearly promised within the confirmed booking?

Yes it says in the booking Inclusive Tesla Supercharging. So if Europcar breach on this then he still liable for losses on the standalone excess policy? He don't know why he should lose out Europcar breaching on their end you know what I mean.

eskbanker

bery_451 said:
So if Europcar breach on this then he still liable for losses on the standalone excess policy? He don't know why he should lose out Europcar breaching on their end you know what I mean.

I'm not sure there's much value in continuing to hypothesise about something that may be a complete non-issue, but the point is that it's unlikely to be viable to link Europcar contractually to an unrelated third party arrangement, i.e. one they've had no say in.

Alan_Bowen

I don't think there is any risk, all car rental companies have discovered the demand for electric cars is much lower than they anticipated, mainly due to concerns over charging points. Tesla does offer free charging at their own points but in all my driving I have only come across them at a service station on the M3, I would be far more concerned about the ability to charge than the risk the car isn't available. 

bery_451

Alan_Bowen said:

I don't think there is any risk, all car rental companies have discovered the demand for electric cars is much lower than they anticipated, mainly due to concerns over charging points. Tesla does offer free charging at their own points but in all my driving I have only come across them at a service station on the M3, I would be far more concerned about the ability to charge than the risk the car isn't available. 

So you saying there's a lack of tesla superchargers in this country or if there is then they are mostly out of order not working?

Alan_Bowen

No, I have no idea whether they are working as I don't drive a Tesla, I am suggesting it might make sense to see if there are any in the vicinity where the car is being driven. If there are none, then the fact they are free to use is of no use whatsoever