Car Hire in Spain

[fred]

OK I know this is a hornets nest but here goes.

We usually get to Spain once a year and my preferred hire company is Argus. I've just found them very reliable and have never had grief from any of the hire companies they use.

This year they don't have the car I want (from Santiago de Compestela Airport) so I'm forced to look elsewhere. So how does one pick a reliable company. They all appear to have glowing recommendations from satisfied users.

Any bright ideas on how to vet them ?

I'm au fait with the usual traps re fuel and insurance excesses etc. I always fully check the car over for any damage before taking it away and get any damage noted. Get my own excess cover before I go etc. What else should I be aware of ?

[DerbyBorn]

I would be interested to know more about your excess cover. Never heard of this before.

[fred]

Very common

for one

[JoeJoe]

or

All the other comparison websites have it as well.

[Adrian]

You're not _forced_ to. You're clearly choosing to prioritise the car above the company.

Talk to them, see if they'll give you an upgrade for the same price, or if there's something in a lower group that might be acceptable. Stress your loyalty.

[Michael Chare]

I usually book cars via Auto-Europe and I check them for damage when I get them.

Some hirers will let a spouse drive without paying a supplement. I don't normally insure the excess, I just present my credit card when I collect the car. I accept that there is some risk.

I was surprised to find that Auto Europe (I think) would offer me cars that looked quite reasonable till I discovered that there was no 3rd party insurance, though the car itself was insured. Also when I came to pay I discovered that there was an additional early morning collection and return fee despite my having entered the early time on first screen.

Driver age was another issue to check.

You have to check exactly what is being provided.

[fred]

Ay but I've heard repeated stories of people having their credit card hit for damages after they have returned home. I always make a point of having the car signed off when I return it. A reputable company will do that anyway.

[Andrew Gabriel]

I had one like this with Avis in South Africa. After return, billing and payment, they canceled the contract and refunded it, followed by creating a new fake contract in which the car was supposedly involved in a crash on return, and billed for repairing it. After spending a couple of days trying to sort it out from this end, I gave up, as I'd already spent more time on it than the money, and my company just paid it. It was probably an insurance fraud running between the local Avis franchise and a repairer, or the franchise staff damaged the car a couple of days after return, and looked on it as a way to cover their tracks. It left a bad taste and Avis didn't get any more rentals from me for next few years.