Car rental reviews/opinions

I’m not familiar with Economy Car Rentals. If, by Kemel, you’re referring to Kemwel, Kemwel is a sister company to AutoEurope, and both are based out of Maine. A recent post on this Forum talked about problems a poster had recently had with AutoEurope, and how it was recently taken over by new corporate ownership, and was being unresponsive to the poster. It sounded like, if there was ever a reason to use AutoEurope in the past, it should be avoided now.

We’ve had good experiences (and the best prices) booking directly through major car rental companies, including Europcar, which is based in France, and that’s who we used on our France trip in 2024. A consolidator like Kemwel (or AutoEurope, at least in the past) can compare prices of several rental companies all at one time, but we’ve usually gotten a better price going through the actual car rental company. It takes more time and effort to research individual prices from Europcar, and Hertz, and Sixt, and Avis, etc., but your extra effort could save you money and headaches with your rental.

You can also check the price booking through SNCF. They partner with Budget and Avis and you get a 15% discount with a train ticket and a Carte Advantage.
https://www.location-voiture.sncf-connect.com/Ma-Location-de-Voiture-Avis-avec-billet-de-train---SNCF-Connect?_gl=1*137svob*_gcl_au*MjAwOTkyNTkwNi4xNzg5NzE3ODU2

Hi,

We’ve used and have been very happy with our rentals through Gemut.com on our last five trips to Europe. Their pricing is very good, Their personal customer service is extraordinary. They will act on your behalf, be the liaison, if anything goes wrong.

Example… upon returning our rental to Munich airport (12/2024), we were told we put a scrape on the lower front bumper. (No, I didn’t take great photos of the rental at pickup, my mistake). I’m sure we didn’t, as I’m very careful.

Point is, I sent a photo and my explanation via email to Gemut. A week later it was confirmed I’m not responsible. Instead of fighting the rental co., I sent one email to Andy Bestor at Gemut. Done.

I usually use Europcar. I find they have the best rates and the most flexible pick up drop off options.

I have also used Sixt with success, but still prefer Europcar.

I've rented from Europcar a couple of times in the past, and they can be good, but the last occasion, I rented from them in Devon, England, and when I went to pick up the car, the agent was extremely pushy trying to upsell the car, basically telling me that I was a fool if I didn't upgrade to a sturdier and bigger car. I declined. And when I returned the car at the allotted time, following their instructions to pull into the lot and leave it with the keys in a slot, the lot was closed and locked up. I had to wait for about 20 minutes before someone finally showed up.

We have used Europcar and Avis in France with no problems. Autoeurope's website does have a convenient feature for anyone over 70, even if you don't want to book with them. You can enter the driver's age and the website will indicate which rental companies are OK with drivers of that age.

I use Costco Travel for rental cars whenever possible. Seldom find better pricing from another broker or from the agencies directly.

It's a while ago now but I used EconomyCarRentals in Athens and everything worked as it should.

I once had an issue with Europcar trying to foist off an inferior car on me from the class I'd rented in Nice. Luckily it was through AutoEurope and a call to them soon put the snooty counter agent in her place!