Auto Europe Question

Hi. see this previous thread.....

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/transportation/fyi-psa-autoeurope-ownership-change

Bob provided a good link to a previous thread, and there have been at least a couple more on this Travel Form in the past few weeks. All seem to suggest that people should run, not walk away from doing business with AutoEurope in its current configuration.

I always received good service from AutoEurope, but it appears their level of service has deteriorated since they were bought out by hedge funds. I have no desire to work with AI in the auto rental world.

Enterprise Car Rental has moved into Europe and they remain the best car rental operation out there. Hertz in Europe appears to be American owned. But so many of the European car rental operations we are familiar with are franchises in Europe and they operate under a completely different set of rules--often bad rules.

Time to pick a car rental company to deal directly with.

I've said this elsewhere, but Costco members should always check rental car availability and pricing through Costco Travel. It can save lots of money.

Enterprise Car Rental has moved into Europe and they remain the best car rental operation out there. Hertz in Europe appears to be American owned.

I've rented from both Enterprise and Hertz in Europe and have had good experiences with both.

I've said this elsewhere, but Costco members should always check rental car availability and pricing through Costco Travel.

jphbucks, I I just checked the Costco price to compare it with a quote I got from Celtic Legend for Arnold Clark in GB next year, and the one from Costco was actually slightly higher. Not a lot, but since I love Arnold Clark and I know their quality, I figure that's a safe bet. But having said that, I will start checking that more often, and your post is a good reminder to do that. I have checked in the past, and sometimes I get messages saying that they don't have any places there, which I thought was kind of strange.

I stopped using AutoEurope about 8 years ago. I rent exclusively with SIXT in Europe and I have had remarkably good experiences with them. Several times they have gone out of their way to assist. I always take full insurance coverage and no deductible, so there is no examination of the car upon return, and absolutely no worries. This is not the cheapest option but for me, the peace of mind I get from them is worth the sometimes higher cost. The range of available cars is much greater if you rent directly, not through a broker. I actually rented two cars, in two different locations in Spain, from SIXT over the past month...both were excellent experiences...

I use Enterprise/Alamo through Costco when I’m going to a country where there are Costco’s. It doesn’t serve every country. While the price savings isn’t always that much, the second driver free is a nice benefit, especially when renting for a long period. A second driver is usually 10€ or £10 a day. I’ve always had good luck and service and have rented through Costco travel for travel to Germany, Spain, and the UK.

Too bad, I used Auto Europe numerous times, always with good experience, but the last was three years ago. I guess I'll be looking elsewhere if I want to rent a car in Europe (unlikely at this point).

But so many of the European car rental operations we are familiar with are franchises in Europe and they operate under a completely different set of rules--often bad rules.

Absolutely correct and these are the franchises that end up sending you bills later on for damages, tolls or parking fines months and months after you return home.

While companies like Hertz and others are more expensive, you deal with a US corporate office if anything rears its head in the future.

Debating with a franchise in a European country will lead to them to selling a "supposed" bad debt to a collection agency in the US. If you push for documentation, there will be none. Eventually, when you tell the collection agency to provide documentation and you will pay, 90% of the time they will just stop bothering you and its over because they have no documentation. It is not easy as they will keep pestering you, but as you keep demanding documentation, they eventually fold.

While companies like Hertz and others are more expensive, you deal with a US corporate office if anything rears its head in the future.

Is this true? I am asking because I have read here that despite renting from a company with a US corporate office you still end up dealing with the office in Europe.

Which leads me to the next point, if AutoEurope no longer provides a US phone number of the ability to easily contact someone then they are just another travel service aggregator and there is no point in using them anymore.

Here is a thread with more information about this. From everything I've been hearing, I would not book with Autoeurope at this time. I'm booking directly from this point on, at least till they can show that they are taking care of business the right way.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/transportation/fyi-psa-autoeurope-ownership-change

Years ago I rented from Avis in England and there was a fuel charge added to my bill that shouldn’t have been there. To resolve the issue I needed to deal with UK Avis, not U.S. Avis. Two separate company incorporations/entities.

I have read here that despite renting from a company with a US corporate office you still end up dealing with the office in Europe

AutoEurope has a sister company, Kemwel, both now headquartered in Portland, Maine. I’d once believed Kemwel to be the British version of AutoEurope, but it apparently actually started as a parking garage in New York City in 1905, then branched out into rentals in Germany. According to Wikipedia, Kemwel now leases Peugeot cars, which haven’t been sold in the U.S. for ages. Not sure whether Kemwel offers any better alternative to AutoEurope.

From the current AutoEurope Website:

With roots back to 1954, we've refined our service to make your rental easy, transparent, and supported 24/7.

Hmmm … easy for the customer, or easy for them? And supported … really? And 24/7, really, really???

Is this true? I am asking because I have read here that despite renting from a company with a US corporate office you still end up dealing with the office in Europe.

My experience has been that if you make your reservation thru the US based reservation system, the US corporate services will handle your issue. It did with Hertz and Avis. I have never rented thru Auto Europe which I assume works directly with the European corporate companies of major car rental companies.

This can happen in some hotel situations as well.

My experience has been that if you make your reservation thru the US based reservation system, the US corporate services will handle your issue. It did with Hertz and Avis. I have never rented thru Auto Europe which I assume works directly with the European corporate companies of major car rental companies.

Good to know, thank you.

My issue with renting directly with Avis or Hertz is they don’t tell you the cost of “super cover” until you’re standing there at the counter, for example: “insurance can be purchased at the counter”. I just initiated a test booking to confirm that the language was still present on the checkout screen.

I think I got “taken for a ride” in Lisbon by Avis over the cost of the insurance a few years ago. It’s almost like they can throw whatever number they want at you. At least with AutoEurope the cost was (is?) known up front.

I have a chase sapphire travel card now which includes a lot of insurance. I hope to be able to utilize it to avoid that nonsense the next time I rent a car.

We have a Chase card (although not the Sapphire version), and it provides excellent insurance coverage, which came in very handy with some scratches in the paint in Norway. It’s critical, though, to document any damage - before, during, and after you have the car, any repairs, and communication with the rental office, to help Chase to help you.

If anyone is interested I copied and pasted a summary of recent consumer complaints concerning Auto Europe and they are atrocious. I have also included a link to the actual website if you want to read each individual complaint/review -- there are some real doozies!
(https://auto-europe.pissedconsumer.com/review.html) It is really sad as this was once such a good company to deal with.

Auto Europe Customer Service Overview
AI insights based on reviews
Rating Distribution
94% negative
6% neutral
Auto Europe has a 1.5 star rating from 35 reviews and overall negative sentiment; many Auto Europe reviews cite unreachable customer service and repeated refund requests.

Key Takeaways for Future Customers
Expect email-driven support and limited phone access.
Confirm billing, refunds, and insurance coverage before booking.
Document vouchers and receipts to pursue refunds if needed.

Negative Feedback / Risk Areas
Frequent customer complaints about unreachable customer service and automated-only support.
Billing issues: double charges, withheld refunds, and unclear extra fees.
Hidden terms, misrepresented insurance or excess cover, and supplier cancellations.

Every car rental company gets awful reviews on pissedconsumer. Same everywhere.

I've used Auto Europe a few times; wouldn't do again if there is no live phone help.

Hi all. To the comment above..
"My experience has been that if you make your reservation thru the US based reservation system, the US corporate services will handle your issue. It did with Hertz and Avis."

This is not my experience. I rented from Hertz in Germany; booking through the US Hertz website. When I got unexpected post rental charges on my credit card, I called the Hertz US customer service #. But they would not discuss it; they gave me the email address of the Hertz Europe office, which turned out to be in Ireland. I had to try to get info and resolve via emails, which led to frustrating delays and confusion.

This is not my experience. I rented from Hertz in Germany; booking through the US Hertz website. When I got unexpected post rental charges on my credit card, I called the Hertz US customer service #. But they would not discuss it; they gave me the email address of the Hertz Europe office, which turned out to be in Ireland. I had to try to get info and resolve via emails, which led to frustrating delays and confusion.

At some point it seemingly becomes easier to dispute the charge on your credit card if the vendor is not being responsive. This way you are off the hook for the charge and then each party needs to submit information to resolve the issue. At least this will put some onus on the vendor to participate vs. just stringing you along since they already have your money.