Tricks like compulsory petrol and excess waivers making it 'almost impossible' to compare car hire deals
Many top car hire companies are failing to disclose additional costs up front making it ‘almost impossible’ for drivers to find the best deal, according to a consumer watchdog.
Extra charges for a compulsory tank of petrol, the cost of excess payments on insurance policies, and the waiver policy to avoid these charges, are routinely withheld until late in the booking process, Which? has claimed.
Which? made the accusation after its researchers attempted to rent cars in Spain – one of the most popular destinations for British holidaymakers to hire vehicles – from 10 major hire companies and broker websites.
Car hire hell: Which? wants charges to be clearer for those who rent a car after its Spanish investigationAt the end of the booking process, it said, researchers were not satisfied that they knew the total price in 53 per cent of the bookings.
The watchdog made 120 visits in February 2013 to five car hire firms - Alamo, Avis, Enterprise, Europcar and Hertz. It did the same with five brokers - Argus Car Hire, Auto Europe, CarHire3000, Economy Car Hire, and Holiday Autos.
Its investigation found that 75 per cent of those who had to pay a compulsory cost for a full tank of fuel in addition to the hire price did not know how much they would need to pay when they picked up the car.
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More than one in five did not know the amount of excess they would need to pay in the event of damage to the car, and 44 per cent did not know the cost of the optional excess waiver to reduce this amount.
All of this information is vital to those hiring a car, as these extra payments can add more than £100 to the cost of a week's rental.
The research also found that half did not know if the excess waiver covered them for damage to tyres, the windscreen or underneath the vehicle.
It is a principle of European and UK law that essential information such as compulsory and other significant charges must be clearly stated at the point of purchase – and Which? points out that some of the companies are failing to do so.
Smaller companies topped a customer satisfaction survey of car hire firms by the consumer group, with Canary Islands-based Auto Reisen beating more well-known names with a score of 89 per cent.
Goldcar was bottom of the table with a customer score of 42 per cent.
Thrifty and Enterprise took second and third place respectively, while Europcar and Budget rounded up the bottom three.
Economy Car Hire topped the broker table of ratings with 78 per cent, with Argus Car Hire rooted at the bottom scoring 52 per cent.
Which? said it would be sharing details of its investigation with the companies to encourage them to make improvements, and had also written to Avis, Dollar and Enterprise ‘to remind them of their legal obligations’.
It is calling for all car hire companies and brokers to clearly show all the fees and extra charges on their websites during the booking process, including the amount of excess, the cost of excess waiver and what it covers, the cost of compulsory fuel and the company's fuel policy as well as the cost of all optional extras like satnavs and additional drivers.
Richard Lloyd, executive director of Which?, said: ‘The car hire industry is taking customers for a ride by hitting them with sneaky charges not included in the headline price.
‘Not being upfront about the total cost makes it almost impossible to shop around for the best deal and leaves people on tight budgets paying more than they planned. Car hire companies must be more transparent and upfront about their fees so people can make an informed choice.’
ARGUS CAR HIRE AND GOLDCAR NO STRANGERS TO CRITICISM Comment by This is Money motoring correspondent Lee BoyceThe two companies that finished bottom of the customer satisfaction survey have been in the firing line from This is Money previously.
Back in September 2012, Goldcar - which came bottom of the car hire firm satisfaction table - was investigated by Money Mail reporter Dan Hyde after he received complaints from holidaymakers in Spain.
Families were arriving at Spanish airports being told they could only drive away their hire car if they paid another €100 for insurance.
The comments section of the article was flooded with readers who had similar experiences of Goldcar. You can read the full story here.
Earlier this year, I investigated hires made through broker Argus Car Hire. Argus finished bottom of the Which? broker hire satisfaction table.
A businessman was left waiting for almost two months for €2,000 taken from his account without permission after Argus failed to chase up a partner hire firm that has been the subject of a string of customer complaints.
This is Money reader, Nick White, a 50 year-old from Yorkshire, booked a car for a karting trip with his son to Faro, Portugal, through Argus. After sifting through a handful of quotes, he went for a deal at €53.03 a week.
Only once the booking confirmation came through was he told the name of the firm he was using - International Car Hire. This left him unable to research the firm. Had he done so he would have seen a TripAdvisor thread with dozens of complaints from people who had similar problems.
After This is Money stepped in, the money was refunded, although Argus didn’t respond to any questions we put to it. You can read the full story here.
