The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
It’s time for the car hire industry to turn a corner
It should be so simple; such a stress-free run-of-themill part of a holiday. Yet I hear more complaints from readers about car hire companies than about any other single issue. And that is despite the fact that in 2015 the Competition and Markets Authority (formerly the Office of Fair Trading) carried out a review of car hire in the UK and in Europe and ordered rental companies to clean up their act.
So what is going wrong? Why are readers still having bad experiences, and what more needs to be done to sort the issue?
First, the background. The CMA investigation, held in tandem with its European counterparts, looked at the online price transparency, terms and conditions and general behaviour of rental companies, including five of the major players – Hertz, AvisBudget, Europcar, Enterprise and Sixt – which provide two thirds of the rentals in Britain and the EU.
Overall, however, it was Spanish car rental firms that turned out to be the worst offenders: the CMA and its Spanish equivalent discovered major infringements in 32 of the 100 businesses so far checked, and the process is continuing.
Following the publication of the report, in July 2015, car rental companies were given six months to shape up. They were told to provide transparent pricing, give prominent links to a new “key facts” document and to the supplier’s terms and conditions, explain the full extent of liability and waiver cover, and offer a full-to-full fuel option. These latter two points stemmed from high charges for insurance top-ups, and for refuelling cars. Another issue was unaccountable, post-rental charges for accidental damage. The report also said that when damage did occur, customers were to be sent evidence of it and how the repair cost had been calculated, and have the opportunity to challenge it before their credit card was debited.
Since then, my own research has confirmed a marked improvement in the level of information and price transparency provided by the five major players on their websites. There are still issues with some UK brokers, but the CMA has since been working with them to follow suit. Overall, the UK vehicle rental trade association, the BVRLA, which has 270 members,embers, and its European counterpart, , Leaseurope, now have more robust obust codes of conduct and provide mediation services for customers. mers. But it’s certainly not game over.er. Some of the old issues are still entrenchednched and car rental suppliers – or att least the companies that operate the e local franchises – continue to think up new revenue earners.
The biggest bugbear continuesnues to be aggressive sales tactics used d by staff at the pick-up desk to sell l damage waiver cover – that’s insurance e to cover the excess you will have e to pay if you damage the car in any way. The policies sold by the rental desk k often cost more than the rental itself f and turn a bargain into a rip-off.
Savvy customers who are awareware of these high charges, and whoo have bought much cheaper stand-alonelone excess reimbursement policies s from insurers, still find themselves being manipulated into paying g up for the rental outlet’s insurance. They are told their own insurance does not provide adequate cover, and that they will be on their own if they have an accident or their car breaks down. If that doesn’t work, the agent’s next ruse is to claim that the credit card handed over as security for the €1,200 depositt has been declined. The only solution, the agent will claim, is for the customer to buy their ir top-up cover after all. Readers s who contact their bank in such h situations have found that the charge was never presented. Funny that.
Those tenacious enough to overcome these hurdles can find nd that this battle of wills recommencesmences on returning the car. The agentnt will ask “Did you buy our insurance?” ce?”
Despite demands to clean up their act, rental companies continue to find d new ways to separate you from your money, says Gill Charlton