I am visiting Italy for the first time in May and am planning to rent a car for use in Tuscany only. I was initially looking at booking direct with Hertz or Europcar. I usually book hotels, car rentals, etc directly from the provider rather than through a consolidator. In general, I find it easier to resolve any issues that may arise when booking direct. However, based on discussions on both this and other travel forums, it sounds like Auto Europe may be better to deal with on customer service issues than dealing directly with the rental car company. Cost aside - what do you think of the customer service quality of Auto Europe vs Hertz or Europcar? Thanks!
I think you're better off going direct since you're dealing with some of the majors. Auto Europe is reputable but it's still a broker and the contract will be between you and the actual car rental company. Some renters seem to like AutoEurope for the better rates on insurance coverage, but read the terms if that's of interest as there are still exclusions.
I have never rented directly in Europe, but have rented through Auto Europe 10 times. The process is simple and straight forward. A couple of things that I keep in mind: You can keep checking back on the price of your rental. If the price drops, you can get the difference refunded. Two years ago I saved almost $80 doing this. You can also check the prices on Autoeurope.eu v.s. the .com site. I rented through the .eu site in 2022 and saved a considerable amount. I just rented through the .eu site about 2 weeks ago and again saved. Both times there has been no problem renting through the .eu site.
I have used AutoEurope and had no issues.
I also suggest trying the different sites, .com, .eu, .it, etc. I once rented a car for Hawaii from AutoEurope.ca which was way cheaper than any other site (cf. other autoeurope.xxx, Costsco, discounthawaiicarrental.com). I telephoned AutoEurope to make sure it was not a mistake. The rep advised me that the different autoeurope sites operate somewhat independently and may book large volumes of cars to offer at low prices to different markets. Good luck.
Personally, I usually look on Auto Europe, but also on Europcar, and usually wind up booking direct with Europcar each time. For whatever reason, no real difference in price, and I can use the Europcar app. Europcar service has always been great, I suppose it varies wildly with location, but no hard sell for more insurance or extras, easy pickups, easy returns. But I have also had great service with Avis and Hertz.
It pays to shop around, especially if you have memberships or affiliations with companies like Costco, AAA, USAA, etc.
That said, for the past 30 years of international travel I've hardly ever found a deal to beat what's offered on AutoEurope, especially once I factor in the cost of vehicle insurance ... which you'll certainly need to do when renting in Italy. AE does an excellent job of laying out the various insurance options, and the cost of their zero deductible coverage is really hard to beat - especially for the peace of mind involved.
I've always found the cost of the insurance cover, when dealing directly with any of the rental car companies, to be spectacularly overpriced.
Using your credit card coverage in Italy may be an option if you hold one of the premium cards that actually provide coverage there, but after diving into the procedures required to settle a claim I decided that I preferred the simplicity of dealing with Auto Europe, and I've always found their customer service to be responsive.
I rented a car via Auto Europe that used Europcar and had a very bad experience. It was at London Heathrow airport and the car that I had booked was not available and no other car that size had a navigation system. Their charge for a GPS was outrageous, so I had to upgrade one level and wound up pay double what I had booked for.
I have rented from Budget and Hertz in Europe and never had any problems.
Personally, I would recommend using an American rental company.
I’ve rented from Hertz and Europecar direct, no complaints. I finally used Autoeurope because everyone raves about it, but I’ll probably return to direct next time. Nothing major to complain about but some minor quibbles.
I’ve used AutoEurope in the last 10 years, but previously I was going direct. I had no problems either way but always opted for ZERO DEDUCTIBLE coverage in both circumstances. I have had minor scratches and minor dents discovered upon rental return which would have costed me quite a bit of money out of pocket (but hopefully covered by the credit card insurance), but with the full coverage the attendant just noted them and waived me good bye with no consequences for me. So, I recommend that when you compare prices between AutoEurope and direct, you compare apples to apples. Make sure you are comparing prices with the same exact level of coverage, because insurance coverage costs just as much as the rental fee itself.
We’ve rented through Avis twice in the past few years and had no issues. On the first trip, the Avis associate called me a couple days before pickup to pitch the “zero deductible” option, which we took. Apparently, if you don’t take it they’ll make sure some damage magically appears that will cost something less than the deductible to repair!