autoeurope and Hertz - is "no deductible" rate really true when you pick up the car?

We were recently screwed by Hertz in Europe and wound up paying $200 MORE for a rental than we were told. I will never use them again. Also, we were rear-ended by a woman and Hertz was very uncooperative in helping us deal with the situation and left us to deal with it. This is why almost always use the trains and metro in France.

To get a good rate on the super-CDW, paying in advance through AutoEurope is the way to go. Don't let them ask you for any extra at the counter.

I used Autoeurope to rent a car with 0 deductible (Full insurance) this past October in France. The car rental company was actually Europcar, but it was clear to the rental agent that we had full coverage. She even mentioned this when she said we should check the car for damage before leaving and then said - oh I forgot, you have full coverage so you don't need to worry about this.

I don't know what the situation is at Hertz, but I think this is fairly common, so you should not have to worry about paying anything for this when you get to the counter. The voucher you have from Autoeurope is pretty explicit about what you have paid for.

This is why almost always use the trains and metro in France.

Believe me, I want to as well! And I'm trying to plan my trip out so the number of days I use a car is minimized. But I want to go to Normandy and Brittany. The RS guide and Rough Guide both recommend a car for reaching many of the sites.

I've never had any problem dealing with AutoEurope--and have got Hertz cars in Italy. In that country, CDW is mandatory however the price is much more reasonable than other places. They did try to hit us up with personal property theft insurance that we rejected.

In most places, I turn down the CDW insurance. I'm covered on my personal car insurance in the U.S. and my credit card has physical damage insurance (secondary to my personal auto insurance policy.) I just don't see any reason to pay twice for coverage.

If you're comparing AutoEurope or any other rental consolidator to Hertz, you should first join Hertz' frequent renter program (for free.) Although I'm retired 6 yrs., my old company Hertz Gold Club gives me a big discount--as the employee of a large company that rented exclusively with Hertz.

I agree that the Auto Europe vouchers are pretty explicit. You can put through your online reservation without entering a credit card, get the voucher to review by email, then call back with a credit card number or any questions, and again review the final voucher that they send you.

As a consolidator Autoeurope negotiated the prices months ago, gambling that they'll get the cars rented out, so that's why it's such a better deal. I've always used them with no problem. Note on insurance: fyi tires and windshields are never covered even on the 0-deductible insurance. There is one other item that isn't covered, but I forget what it is.