Hire Car cons

Hire cars are a great benefit to holiday makers but we have all heard horror stories of excess charges.

One trick increasingly being seen in Spain is a mad rule that charges you if you fail to return the car with an EMPTY fuel tank. The 'refuelling charge' can be twice as much as it would cost to fill it yourself.

They also charge for non-existent bumps, invisible scratches, and generally make up any additional cost they can think of if they can get away with it.

Don't believe me? Well, don't take my word for it. Instead listen to the The UK European Consumer Centre (UK ECC) who received 30% more complaints this year about sharp practices in the hire car sector.

Rotten Hire Contracts

Initial competetive quotes for hire often end up costing at least double the quoted price due to contracts riddled with obscure fees hidden in convoluted language, or worse, in foreign languages that the person hiring the car cannot read.

Car Insurance Scam

Another sneaky trick is the excess insurance waiver scam. The excess on the mandatory insurance often runs to many hundreds of pounds, but drivers are allowed to cut this excess to zero by paying an 'excess reduction' fee.

Unfair fees

The age related fee is a rotten one for younger and older drivers who are asked to pay an additional £5 to £10 per day purely because of their age. This is not insurance, because it goes directly to the hire company.

Damage to hire car

This is the scam most people know about and is best avoided by photographing every scratch and bump on every body panel in great detail. Make sure that inspections are signed both when you pick up and give back the car. Do not leave the country without the hire company giving you a signed doc saying the car was returned in good order. If you fail to do this unscrupulous hire companies are very likely to add a charge and charge your credit card and there will be little you can do about it.