My hire car in Spain was perfect... until I got a £75 bill
C.A. writes: We picked up a Fiat Tipo hire car from Avis at Girona Airport in Spain. It was the best such pickup we have ever had, with no pressure to take out excess insurance when I explained we already had it. As usual, the car came with a full tank of petrol and I was asked to sign a form in Spanish agreeing to return it with a full tank. I did all this and returned the car with a full tank, but my next credit card bill showed a payment of €84 (about £75), apparently for windscreen protection. Avis says I signed for this, even though I was told I was signing for petrol.
WHEN you contacted Avis and explained that you knew nothing about a windscreen protection charge, the car hire firm apologised and offered you a voucher for €60 towards your next rental. You turned this down as you have no current plans that would require a hire car. I asked Avis to comment and a spokesman told me: ‘Customer service is a top priority for us and this includes providing advised you to study this before signing the top page in Spanish, it could not be sure that staff followed this procedure. Hence the apology and the offer of a voucher.
So, let me add a few words of my own for Avis: Es legal, pero no es justicia. It’s legal, but it’s not justice. maximum clarity around charges. Wherever possible, overseas rental paperwork is provided in the customer’s preferred language as well as the local language, to avoid any misunderstandings and to provide our customers with complete transparency around their booking.’
But this says nothing about what actually happened to you. I pressed Avis and it then added that while a separate, unsigned page of the rental agreement is indeed in English, and counter staff at the airport should have