My wife and i had a wonderful vacation in Tuscany. We stayed in Cinque Terra. Lucca and Florence. We rented a car fro 8 days of our 10 day stay. The car rental was the only snag in the whole trip. Hertz rental, at the Florence airport, are a shady bunch. We booked our car well in advance from Car Italy. When we arrived, Hertz insisted on a 400 euro deposit cash only. They wouldn't accept a credit card from neither me or my wife. After returning from our trip, we have never received the 140.00 euros we had coming back to us from that deposit. Our advice, DON'T use Car Italy.... But do go to Florence...Ciao
Posted by
Ann Arbor, Mi
3696 posts
Not sure if it had something to do with Car Italy but I have used hertz, budget and Avis at airport. No problems. Just try and book direct and leave out the middleman and do not prepay.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Thanks for sharing your experience. One thing that I have appreciated when booking cars through Auto Europe, although they are middle-men, is that they have recently made an effort to more clearly list what is included (on their printed voucher), as well as what extra fees to expect at pick-up.
Posted by
Louisiana
2 posts
Laura, were you happy with renting through Auto Europe? We are looking at renting a car in Germany and are worried about using them. Thanks
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thanks for the responses from you all. It's kinda funny that our credit cards worked everywhere on our Italy trip except the Hertz desk. My wife knows a little Italian. They knew a little English. Car Italy, out of New Jersey, hasn't helped at all. They act like they don't know a thing when we've contacted them. I'm afraid that you live and learn. We will never book through Car Italy again.