Europcar South Africa Anmeldelser 

Beware: car GPS and telemetry are linked to driver's personal details! Security-wise this is a disaster: all Europcar staff can now see how many sex shops ypou have visited, where the two blonde chicks who rented the cabrio are and where the guy with his €20.000 camera gear is spending the night tonight. In South Africa, that is very, very unpleasant. We were also outraged by the system of sending text messages when the car is logged as speeding. First of all for legal reasons: in Europe it is plain illegal to link telemetry to passenger data and in the US it is the subject of a number of lawsuits that are not looking good for the rental companies. I appreciate that cars in SA need to be logged, what with the crime rate, but not so in-your-face please and linked to personal data only in case of a crime. Then there's the consequences for traffic security of sending super-intimidating text messages after each perceived offense. After our first text message (which was correct, I had missed one speed limiting sign) we made it a sport to check the accuracy of the system. Three of the other four messages were inaccurate (such as speeding at 100 in an 80-zone when there was no 80-zone anywhere close). The underlying map is totally flawed. (Well, the whole country is flawed, so how would anyone expect the map to be accurate.) The net result is that you are driving as if you have your hysterical aunt Betty in the passenger seat. And that is downright dangerous in traffic. I noticed that by the time I reached Cape Town, 80% of my driving attention was aimed at making sure I spotted all the speed limit signs. Never, ever Europcar in South Africa again.

Europcar is getting more worse .. until now they are tracking you and watching speed limits + sending you sms for your driving.

Europcar that’s my privacy!!! Pls respect my privacy and stop tracking your customers, to bother them with sms.

A disappointing experience. Overcharged and under performed.
Always pre-book your hire car online prior to pick up. I learned the hard way.
Hertz were much more helpful and more reasonably priced compared to Europcar South Africa.

Extremely ekspensive. No service available when we delivered the car back in Hoedspruit. Tried to claim a damage of the inside of the car. Paid for an unuseable GPS. Takes days to get the deposit back.

Europcar is the worst car rental company. After we handed the car back and the attendant said everything was fine, they phoned a day later to tell us we had damaged the car and wanted R6000. It has been 6 months, and we are still trying to resolve this. Useless. Do not use this company!

A few things that soured our recent experience with Europcar in South Africa...

1. Your 'holding deposit' is taken in full from your credit card at the time of rental. This is contra Europcar's official policy that state that holding deposits are merely 'blocked' on your card for 25 days, but never taken. Result is extra interest charges from your credit card company and a significant amount that is no longer available to spend on your card.

Advice: Check your card at the time of rental and query any holding deposit debit before taking the keys.

2. You're very unlikely to receive the car you've booked.

Advice: Kick up a fuss and demand a vehicle that more closely matches what you paid for (or an upgrade)

3. Onboard telemetrics is likely going to text you with warning messages for exceeding the speed limit even if the actual roadsigns say you're within the limit.

Advice: Stay below the actual speed limit. You're on holiday. No need to rush anywhere anyway.

4. They WILL find damage when you return the car, no matter how small.

Advice: Double check the car at pickup (pics/ video) and ALWAYS take full insurance when renting in South Africa.

5. MORE charges. Expect a 'Document Administration Fee' which - according to their T&C's - is deducted from your card to "... cover various expenses (including but not limited to storage fees of original documents reflected in the Rental Agreement.)"

Advice: Shop around for a more reasonable and competitive hire company.

Paid for 6 weeks via Trailfinders UK and got a good reception at Cape Town Airport. Realised the 'on hold' deposit from my credit card was a withdrawal and then a month later done again. Home in UK a month and credit card company and Trailfinders are attempting to get my money back. Are they a fraudulent company or what on earth is going on. I'm told I'm not alone but the crooks are not on the streets but in their offices.

Fraud! Car returned in perfect condition, accepted in person by the Europcar rep and then a month later I get a bill for a damaged windscreen along with made up quote and fake document with my detail. Do not use them! They will charge your deposit and excess from your credit card and then never return it. i.e. it will cost you 3 times what you expected to pay.

Hired a car via UK agent Holiday Autos. Our contract said we would have a 'hold' on our credit card of approx £378 in case of damage. The supplier Europcars confirmed at the rental desk that the amount was a 'hold' not a charge. Without telling us they then put through a charge of £520 on the day of collection. If I hadn't checked my bank statement, I wouldn't have known. They didn't contact me at all about the charge and I had to contact them to ask for the return of my money after I noticed, and they have ignored my request for bank charge expenses. They have not provided any explanation of why they took the money in contradiction to the contract, or why it far exceeded the damage amount in my contract. They have not even offered an apology. Please be aware that this company will take a damage deposit from your account arbitrarily deciding what that amount will be and overriding any booking contract you have with your 3rd party agent. They will lie to your face at the desk when asked (Mr Jongisizwe) and confirm it is a hold whilst happily charging your account with any amount they feel like as you stand there unknowingly before them at the desk. CHECK YOUR ACCOUNT BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE OFFICE IT WILL BE TOO LATE BY THEN BUT AT LEAST YOU CAN HAVE YOUR SAY. My booking reference ZA652724040

agent Andrew mthanda giving me a damaged rental car
Rental Agreement No **********20 -I would like to lodge a complaint against europcar and their agent Andrew mthanda

What happened is that I returned that car today and the other agent said he says a home job was done in front when Andrew marked rear and they said they will lodge a claim against me and I disputed because it means Andrew gave me a damaged vehicle and now I must be liable for their damages mind you these agents drive these vehicles before handing them to us.
europcar proceeded to register a claim without my content and without giving me any feedback on my complain i lodged a complaint at the branch and they promised feedback the following day i also called in to lodge a complain and nothing was done

now still without any feedback from them they sent me an invoice of close to 5k for repairs

agent Andrew mthanda giving me a damaged rental car
Rental Agreement No **********20 -I would like to lodge a complaint against europcar and their agent Andrew mthanda

What happened is that I returned that car today and the other agent said he says a home job was done in front when Andrew marked rear and they said they will lodge a claim against me and I disputed because it means Andrew gave me a damaged vehicle and now I must be liable for their damages mind you these agents drive these vehicles before handing them to us.
europcar proceeded to register a claim without my content and without giving me any feedback on my complain i lodged a complaint at the branch and they promised feedback the following day i also called in to lodge a complain and nothing was done

DO NOT USE. We hired a car from Cape Town airport and returned it 6 days later in good condition with a full tank of fuel. We were then charged for refuelling and an admin fee. This is a complete scam and completely dishonest. They also took £520 deposit despite telling us this was an “hold” and that no money would be taken. Apparently this is a regular practice for them and they will charge your credit card despite saying otherwise. We will never use them again and couldn’t recommend them to anyone else. Invoice number 30266845

We had a very positive experience with all the staff in Capetown airport. We had paid for a sqt nav, but never took it as used google maps offline instead. Our monies were refunded before I even asket for. Absolutely great service and very friendly staff

I returned the car at the end of October after a 6 day rental. The company said there was damage to the rear bumper, which I cannot recall was caused by me. I requested photographic evidence and the only damage was a small scratch. They nevertheless claimed the replacement of the bumper and deducted more than R6000 from my deposit. In addition their telematics reported me exceeding the speed limit near tollgates where one decelarares gradually merging with traffic. There was a veiled threat in the message that insurance could be canceled. I’ve rented cars often in the past and never had such a bad experience.

I have used Europcar over the years and trusted them however after recent car rental I would never use them ever again and strongly advise that anyone thing of choosing them doesn't. Fraudulent payments were made against my credit card and when contacted their customer service department they say they cannot do anything. Choosing a car rental company requires trust and TRUST me don't use them.

On Tuesday 01/11/22 I hired a car in George to drive to Cape Town as part of my holiday. Unfortunately the car broke down between Somerset West and Cape Town. I was super worried, could not call with my UK number and asked a mate if he could contact #Europcar and ask them to Watzup me. Believe it or not, 5 mins later a super friendly lady called me, informed me that they knew exactly where I was and that help is coming from Cape Town International Airport. 15 mins later a guy was there, gave me his car and hot me to the airport. They swapped my car, upgraded me and within 1 hour I was on my way. This was an amazing experience that could have gone really badly should they not have been this helpful and efficient. Job well done to everyone involved. Will use your service again! Job Well done!

Took a car at king Shaka international Airport and was advised to return it with a full tank and I did that then took another one as the previous one was due for service and when I received the second vehicle it was a full tank went to fill it up and gave them the receipt they refused to refund me of my money

Rented a VW Polo TSi for two month's from Europcar Cape Town. The vehicle's hubcaps were stolen in Cape Town, and I was charged ± R5000 to replace 4 x hubcaps! To have a rental vehicle with removable hubcaps, with our country's high crime rates, is completely unacceptable. They were always going to get stolen. I took this further with Faizal Cosyn, who was very dismissive of my request and replied via email that there is nothing they can do.

Will definitely not recommend Europcar or ever use them again.

I hired a car from Europcar OR Tambo on 17 June, as I was hosting friends from the UK. We travelled to the Madikwe Game Reserve, Sun City and then my UK visitor, Paul Darling, who was also a designated driver, returned the car on my behalf on 24 June. We had scratched the car superficially against dry twigs in the park; on returning the car Paul was informed that the damage was indeed superficial, and would be able to be polished out. At the time of collection, Europcar took a deposit of R10 649,00 off my credit card.

1 month later I received an invoice from Europcar claiming R7 295,00 worth of damages. At no time was I informed that a claim against myself was pending, and the difference between the R10 649,00 deposit and the final account of R8 726,14 of R1 922,86 was not refunded. I contacted the number given and was told “a claim was done which was why you were not refunded, and you now have 7 days to pay us.”

I have no way of knowing whether the damage they claim (pictures were supplied) occurred in the month after returning the car; no mention was made of the credit due to myself until I pointed it out to the lady concerned; and at no stage was I informed about a pending claim until they wanted money.

Europcar, your customer relations are shocking; it goes without saying that I will never use your services again, and will make sure I communicate this lack of service with everyone I know.

We arrived at Cape Town International Airport. When we went to get our hire car, there was a problem. Monica the Europcar representative was extremely helpful and friendly, but more importantly sorted out the problem quickly and efficiently to both our satisfactions.
Update 01/08/2022: just found out that Europcar have taken Rands18,850 deposit from my account after saying it would be a pending transaction and would only be taken at the end of my hire. I emailed them yesterday but NO response has been received!
Very disappointed that they went against there word that the deposit would not be taken.
They certainly would not get a 5* review at the moment...
To be continued