Car hire, it's finally happened. - Page 4

UKHandyMan4Hire wrote on Tue Jul 2, 2019 10:30am:

Hi Kenbo and welcome to a world that is riddled with Scams, you have lived a charmed life to make it this far without such an incident! 

However, this is where the fun begins! From here on in I speak with experience and success, NOT supposition and hearsay.

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So, you will make a claim on your annual policy - that's quite easy, a few forms to complete etc. If it is a UK based company then it should be straight forward enough.

Next, I take it you paid for the hire by a credit/debit card of some description (please tell me you did, not many pay cash?!) You did? WINNER!

You need to contact your bank issuing the credit card. When you speak to someone advise them that you wish to make "A claim under section 75 of the consumer credit act" (CCA 1974 if you need to review it) Ah but, the car company is Spanish... YES BUT... you made payment with your UK bank card!

Under the terms of the consumer credit act the car hire company should do the following:

1) Provide you with three quotations for the work to be completed

2) Give you the chance to take the vehicle away and have the opportunity to get a quote or have the damage repaired

3) Demonstrate that vehicle DO get repaired.

I can tell you without asking that the company will fail on all three counts, so basically they are in breach of the CCA1974. You will have more forms to fill in, copies of documents to be sent etc, then wait... you WILL win.

So how do they get away with it? Well, people are typically, inherently lazy, so it's a numbers game. There are many scams these people run. I have posted on here as well as trip advisor and when I finally pull my finger out and finish it, I am doing a Guide to Car Hire, which I hope will assist others.

For anyone else reading this for future reference, as well as the Section 75 part which is important, other known scams include, but are not limited to:

Checking door locks with the keys NOT just the remote. Broken locks = €€€ (Who checks locks with keys these days?!)

Not issuing a warning triangle and/or high vis - charge you on return (It is the law they provide you with them but if you drive away without them... it's your problem!)

Damaged rims/alloys on the INSIDE of a wheel! 

Telling you to ignore a scratch or dent etc smaller than a certain size - make a note of EVERYTHING you see

They don't record everything you point out - CHECK what they issue you with against what you noted

They give you a blank sheet and you have to note everything!  Then they swap your info on to another sheet and they keep and dispose of your original, give you the copy, which they happened to miss one or two items on (Goldcar speciality!)

Make you inspect the car between parked cars or in a dark area... move it out! Get some light! Do not be fooled by their games.

My all time favourite - tell you 3 weeks later they found damage and charge you! (Dickmanns Special!) Thankfully in my case, my video and photo evidence exposed their lies. I presented myself and asked for their complaint forms and made them do a merry dance through the complaint process! I was close to going for a Denuncia for fraud, but had a long time in the UK planned I so couldn't be bothered!

The list goes on!

Ultimately. Keep copious notes, make notes of names and conversations, keep every scrap of paper. If they take some paper off you then take a photo of it. Video the car (inside and out) as well as photo specific problems. Read advice on Trip Advisor and Forums to make yourself aware of the scams.

Hope it helps! 

Let me know how you get on with your section 75 claim 

Kk54 wrote on Wed Jul 3, 2019 11:08pm:

We used Centauro in the past and they are awful, we had endless problems on the lines you have described. Before we bought our car in Spain, for last 2 years we used Wiber, who are honest, NICE, straightforward and reasonably priced. Really worth going to the ground floor, where the buses stop, w...

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...alk 150 yards to the left where their pick up mini bus stops. They are always there, we never had to wait. Their place is 5 mins away from the airport. I cannot recommend them highly enough. You can book them on line, just like any other car rental!