Europcar .... Don't be tempted!

I foolishly didn't consult the online reviews before choosing Europcar for a rental in Italy a few months back. Boy do I regret that!

The pickup in Naples was fine. All good with the car and no problems during the 4 day hire. But when I returned the vehicle on time to Naples Airport the return agent claimed damage in the form of a scratch to the left front wheel guard that: 1) Didn't occur while the car was in my care and 2) Was so minor that it could have been wiped off with polish in 10 seconds.

The female return agent took photos of the claimed damage then produced a blank form that she waved at me and insisted I sign. Although it was in Italian it looked to me like some kind of acknowledgement so I refused. However, she repeatedly insisted in broken English "You have insurance. No cost to you." So, although this smelt to me like an insurance ****, I had a plane to catch and had to go, so I signed the form but only after writing across it that no damage occurred to the vehicle while it was in my possession.

So, all was good until I received a charge to my Amex account 24 hours later for Euros 91.50 as a "Damage Administration Fee".

As soon as I returned to Australia I got onto Europcar (Australia) who had issued the invoice and Amex and after an investigation Europcar Australia emailed me confirming that they had investigated the matter and as it appeared the damage was pre-existing and as the demand that I sign a blank form was against company protocol, the Euro 91.50 charge would be reversed, and it was.

So, again, all was good until a month or so later I received another debit to my Amex Card from Europcar Italy for Euros 166.64 for "rectifying" the damage Europcar had acknowledged I hadn't caused.

This charge is now in dispute with both Amex and Europcar. Having been an Amex member for more than 30 years, I'm less than impressed with their performance in this matter as well (since they certainly haven’t acted to protect their cardholder’s interests) but it all starts with Europcar Italy who, their conduct here suggests, are out and out ********s.

This may be an isolated event (It was Italy, after all, and Naples in particular) but experience has taught me that organisations don't try to sting customers like this unless this kind of conduct is condoned at the top - or unless the Licensor has lost control of its Licensees. For people with this kind of mindset, goodwill and trust mean nothing... there's always another sucker and it’s all about how much you can milk the customer or insurance company for and get away with. Just on that front, I tracked down the company on whose "quote" the repair bill was based. It isn't a repairer. It's a company that operates from a low value residential unit in the Rome suburb of Lazio, 230 km from Naples (where the car was returned), but nevertheless miraculously managed to do an inspection of the "damage" and provide a "repair quote" to Europcar within 48 hours of my return of the vehicle… This is a well-oiled machine: make no mistake about it.

Europcar Australia - who assisted in getting the first charge reversed - have now gone into hiding and won't respond to my requests for further assistance in getting this obviously ********** second charge reversed - which is disappointing since in the initial intervention they momentarily demonstrated some level of integrity and customer concern. So, at this point I'm battling on, on my own.

However, I will continue to do so (including to the European Commission if necessary) since at the end of the day it's not the cost involved that's the issue, it's the principle of the matter. And the fact that if people like us don't tell others about this kind of experience and do something about it, the ********s are just going to keep getting away with this kind of sleazy, greedy, short-sighted and unacceptable conduct.