Puglia by Car Rental agency

The rental company was very recently founded (end of 2024), but so far the reviews are stellar.
Regarding renting a large car, I presume you are renting a van for 6 people. That generally costs more than 3 times the amount of 3 economy cars, so, check the price differential for renting 2 compact cars, as you might save that way. Obviously I'm assuming there are at least two people willing to drive.
Recently, in the past couple of years, I've been to Puglia with a large station wagon (4 adults) and a compact SUV (2 adults). It's not nail biting as roads can accommodate vans and even larger vehicles. It might be more challenging if you need to parallel park as it will be harder to find a space for a longer vehicle (I had that problem in Lecce with the long station wagon I had last July). Some underground parking structures also tend to have small stalls, so you need to be careful negotiating the small spaces so that you don't hit some pillars. Outdoor parking lots, with perpendicular parking will present no problem, and there are several of those in all the towns you are likely to visit.
To me the biggest challenge might be to accommodate everybody's luggage. I don't know about the cargo space you will have in your van, but 6 people will require at least 6 carry on size bags plus personal item (back pack). So if the strategy of renting 2 smaller compacts doesn't work for you, make sure you don't pack too many suitcases.
I usually use www.autoeurope.com (a broker) to rent in Europe. Check them out to see their pricing. Be aware that if you choose insurance coverage with deductible, the deductibles might be high (at least 1,000€). A zero deductible coverage generally costs up to $10 more a day. You cannot decline insurance in Italy, but you can choose to have full zero deductible coverage or not.

I always rent from SIXT in Italy. Just rented from them two months ago and will do so again in May.
We rent a car that I imagine is medium sized..not a tiny compact and not a full-sized car. (Think BMW 300 series)

I had no trouble driving--in fact, I find driving in Puglia to be a breeze except in the narrow streets of a historic district. So we, also, try to park on streets leading up to the historic core, or in a lot if one is nearby. I've had no trouble doing this on many recent trips to italy with the same-sized car.

You cannot decline insurance in Italy, but you can choose to have full zero deductible coverage or not.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but I would have to take issue with the sentence above, and hope to further clarify what I assume Roberto probably intended:

It's true that one can not rent a car (legally) in Italy with no insurance whatsoever. So it's certainly true that one cannot decline ALL insurance - because by law, some insurance is included with all rentals (it's rolled in to the rental price and can't be separated). But there's plenty of additional insurance that you will be offered which absolutely IS optional or supplemental (or whatever you want to call it), and you are free to decline those.

There's a lot of confusion (and misinformation) around one subject this relates to: the insurance that's typically provided by some (but not all) credit cards, which provides coverage if you meet some requirements. The requirements typically include two critical things: 1) you pay for the rental using the card (one that provides the insurance ), AND 2) you must decline all optional insurance that's offered by the rental agency. Note that word in bold: all optional insurance. Of course, you can not decline any mandatory insurance that's included (because it's mandatory). This language has caused many people to mistakenly believe (and repeat the myth) that the insurance provided by a credit card "is not valid" in Italy (which is nonsense). The same myth is repeated often (including right here) about Ireland, and it's equally untrue there.

Note that you must investigate and understand what the requirements are for any insurance provided by a credit card - don't just assume that you have a card, it's gonna save you if you drive a Lamborghini off a cliff. My card works for me and I use it often for this. You need to find out from your card guys' insurance people, give them a call and find out the requirements (which usually include: no Lamborghinis). Listen for the phrase, "you must decline all optional insurance that's offered."

The fact is, you can indeed "decline" coverage that's optional - even in Italy (and in Ireland). For many, for the provided insurance from many credit cards, you just need to decline what you CAN decline, and that allows the card's insurance to cover you (but check with them, don't take my word for it).

Sorry for being pedantic, but this issue comes up regularly and it's one that's easily misunderstood. I hope the above clarifies it.

And to answer the OP's questions directly: I have no experience with the company in question, but I did rent a car In Bari this past September-October and drove it all around Puglia for several weeks before returning it back to Bari. Sure, small cars are generally better in most of Europe, but even with a tiny car, stay out of the old historic centers. We rented some kind of Jeep (Avenger? Vindicator? Impaler? something aggressive like that) which was not tiny but merely compact-ish. My experience was that driving through Puglia was 99% easy and relaxing, and 1% nail-biting. You can greatly reduce the nail-biting part by following the oft-repeated common sense tips: stay out of the old historic centers, be on guard for ZTLs, expect speed-trap cameras, let the crazy people drive quickly past you as they hurry to a grisly death, and zero driving after drinking.

Hope some of that helps.

Yes, you can decline the 'optional' insurance you will be offered, which often entails zero deductibles. I usually buy zero deductible through AutoEurope so they don't ask me if I want optional insurance (I think AutoEurope gets that no deductible coverage through the rental company anyhow).

I have rented on my own or with AutoEurope also without the xtra zero deductible (and declined the optional insurance that they will offer at pick up in that case). You can do that, but make sure that your credit card covers it in case of damage because the deductible is 1,000 to 2000 euro, and they ding you for the most minor scratch. It happened to me twice, but fortunately in both occasions I had the full deductible coverage, so they mentioned it to me but also told me not to worry about it because I was fully covered.

Regarding renting cars in Italy, Jeep is indeed a very popular brand in Italy. Incidentally the largest (and only) Jeep plant in Europe is indeed near Puglia (in Basilicata). The models made there are Compass, Renegade, and Avenger (I guess Jeep likes scary names), which are popular also among rental car companies. I can tell you that none of them are adequate for 6 people. Their are compact SUVs, and their cargo space is barely sufficient for 4 people packing light (Compass is a bit better). However I suggest that, if you can and if the price is right, you indeed try to rent 2 cars. More likely than not it will be less expensive than one van for 6 people, also they will be easier to park.

Puglia doesn't have the plethora of speed cameras as Tuscany does, but there are some, and for sure all towns have ZTL in the historical centers. Random police stops are also possible, even if you haven't committed any infraction.

Read the articles below, if you have never driven in Italy.
Use Waze or GoogleMaps. Both have speed camera alerts, but for some reason I noticed that Waze is more accurate at reporting all, even though Waze is also owned by Google, maybe because all Italians use Waze religiously (and contribute to the reporting).

https://www.autoeurope.eu/travel-blog/what-are-ztl-zones-in-italy/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_signs_in_Italy