Car hire can be such a rip off unless you ask
November 2nd, 2008 by GregOK that title doesn’t make much sense so I will try to explain.
As you know I visited Spain for the past few days and I had to hire a car. The agreement was pick up car with a full tank of fuel and return it empty and this appeared to be the norm with most hire companies. When you collect the car you are charged for the full tank (€80 on this occasion) on fuel on top of the actual car hire. That’s all simple enough and no problems there.
Now I was only in spain for 4 and a half days, I only really hired the car to get me to and from the airport as it worked out cheaper than a taxi and I knew if I attempted public transport I would have probably ended up in Germany or somewhere.
By the time I returned the car I had used a quarter of a tank of fuel, so I had paid well over the top, 4 times the going rate, for the fuel I had used, now that is a rip off as they will top the car up and then charge the next person for the fuel I have already paid for. In a cheeky manner I informed the young lady at the hire desk that I had only used a small amount of fuel and she checked the fuel guage.
To my surprise she returned and said, I should have returned the car on empty but if I had filled it up before returning she would have refunded the full payment. She then went on and said although it’s not easy to know exactly how much fuel I had used she will only charge me for half a tank, and credit €40 back to my card.
Now I am not saying this would happen everytime, I suppose it depends on the hire company, the mood which the person serving you is in etc and the way in which you come accross but it’s worth asking every time. I would not personally risk filling the car up before I return it though incase they say ’sorry you should have returned it empty’.
This may not work either when the location of the car is not near the car hire desk as is the situation with many hire companies at airports, ie you pay for the car then collect and return it yourself from/to a car park
somewhere at the airport.
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Does it perhaps depend on the country? The reason I ask is that I have always been given the choice of filling it up myself or paying for a tankful at a good rate. My experience is limited I admit to a few times and always at Southampton Airport. As I never do use a full tank, I always fill up myself and safe a fair amount.
Yes, you could be right, when I have hired a car/van here in the UK I have collected it full and had to return it full which from a customers point of view must be the better way of doing it.
I have not hired anything here for a while but assume it is still the same.
at least she only charged you half right?
Hi.
Here in Portugal, most car hires work different. You rent the car with full tank but you have to return it full too.
At least they returned you some money for the gas.
A good Monday. Mizé.