Europcar - Republic of Ireland Anmeldelser 

I am writing to complain regarding my recent vehicle rental from the Faro Airport location.

When I made my booking, the vehicle category was advertised as a Ford Focus or similar. I understand that the exact model cannot always be guaranteed, and I appreciate that a "similar" vehicle may be provided. However, the vehicle I received was a Seat Ateca, which is considerably larger and sits much higher than a Ford Focus. While I accepted the vehicle, it was not what I had expected or intended to hire.

My primary concern, however, relates to the additional driver charge. At the rental desk, your employee added an additional driver to the agreement, resulting in an extra charge of €76.97. Based on the explanation provided by the employee, I understood that this amount would simply be held as part of the security deposit and refunded when the vehicle was returned. It was only afterwards that I realised this was a separate, non-refundable charge added to the rental. Had this been clearly explained, I would have reconsidered whether to add the additional driver at all. I feel this charge was not presented transparently, and I was misled about its nature.

To make matters worse, we were also charged for windscreen damage that we genuinely believed was already present when we collected the vehicle. This added further stress and frustration to what should have been a straightforward rental experience.

Overall, what should have been an enjoyable start to our holiday became a disappointing and stressful experience. Between the unexpected additional driver charge and the dispute over the windscreen damage, I was left feeling that the rental process lacked transparency and fairness.

Won't be booking with them again.

Very disappointed with my experience. I booked and paid for a specific car, but when I arrived I was told it wasn't available and there were no manual cars. I was then given a different vehicle and later discovered I had been charged extra, despite being told there would be no additional cost because the change was due to the company's lack of availability.

On top of that, I was also charged a "Premium Station Surcharge" with no clear explanation. Despite contacting customer service several times, I still haven't received a satisfactory answer about these charges.

The lack of transparency and unexpected fees left me feeling completely misled. I would strongly advise others to check every charge carefully before booking and after returning the vehicle.

Dave in customer service was very professional and friendly when I was hiring a car for an extra day, really great person on your team. 5 star customer service

I rented a car from Europcar at Dublin Airport and picked up my car on Tuesday, July 7, 2026. I used Europcar because I wanted to drop the car off in Belfast, and had a contract price which included the drop off at Belfast. At the counter, the agent tried to charge me an additional 300 Euros because I was dropping the car off in a different country. I protested, and she summoned a manager. The manager also tried to get the additional charge but finally relented after asking me to show her the email with my agreement. She did insist on a 45 Euro additional fee for crossing the border. That should have been divulged when I booked the car; again, I had a contract that included the drop off in Belfast.
It was all very distasteful.
Additionally, when I refused to take insurance, they took a 5000 Euros damage deposit. Seems excessive to me.
Steven Slaven

Seems this review will echo many others. Tired, just got off a flight (Dublin) and you go to collect your hire car. You're then told your insurance is not valid, you need a bigger car. You feel scammed straight away. There's a sense of pushy upselling. The car was fine, the return was seamless but the initial interaction was very stressful and unnecessary. You're then worried for the rest of your trip that, should the worst happen, you won't be covered, even though you know you are. Reminds me of pushy car dealers, tricking you into signing up for expensive add-ons you don't need. Not a great start to a holiday, taking advantage of weary travellers.

The business model of Europcar Ireland is to persuade people to sign a contract that allows them to arbitrarily take up to €1500 or so from your credit card. The ostensible premise for this is that you are hiring a car, but in reality you are just giving them access to as much of your savings as they choose to plunder. When you hire a car, you take a leap of faith that you will be treated fairly; in the eyes of Europcar, this simply makes you a hopeless moron waiting to be exploited. The car hire sector should wake up to this. Europcar is fouling their nest and I, for one, would think twice about ever hiring a car again.

Hire a car from Knock airport, upon returning the car, was told they was damage to a wing mirror housing. I could hardly see it, it would probably come off with some T Cut. I’ve been charged €290 for the “damage”. I used them 4 times since last September, I won’t be using them again.
The women who did the return inspection went straight to it, as if she knew it was there. Feels like a scam policy to get more money from customers.

Upon our early morning arrival at Shannon Airport, Europcar informed us of a "mandatory" and VERY EXPENSIVE insurance requirement. When I pushed back, a disgruntled man at the desk told me I could avoid the excessive charges by showing him a coverage letter from my American insurance company (which, of course is impossible to obtain at midnight in the US).

So, we were forced to pay the REDICULOUSLY overpriced insurance. Thankfully, the agents in Dublin could see this review coming and took the insurance charges off... but the review stands so others will know. In my opinion, this is criminal what Europcar is doing and it's a very ugly way to start a trip to a beautiful country.

Lange Wartezeiten. Angeblich durften wir das von uns über TUI Car gebuchte kleine Modell mit 2 Koffern gar nicht mieten - spezielle Sicherheitsbestimmungen in Irland. Aufpreis für ein viel zu großes Modell!! Sicherheitskaution von 1800,- haqbe ich auch noch nicht erlebt. Dann bekamen wir einen Hybrid, stellten aber unterwegs fest, dass kein Ladekabel an Bord war. Überhaupt keine Einführung in das für uns unbekannte Modell. Ein genervter Mitarbeiter auf dem Parkplatz verwies uns auf das (ca 300 Seiten dicke) Handbuch im Handschuhfach. Fazit: nie wieder!!!

Avoid this company.
Returned our car in the condition it was collected. We were told I had caused a small scratch on the alloy wheel. I disputed this.
Upon return to England £234 was taken from my credit card without any correspondence, information or invoice. Disgusting.

Absolutely disgusting service waiting 15mins for a bus to get you to get the car and to find there 40 people in front of you never again

Terrible! My sister and I picked up a hire car to travel around Ireland, which we were told at the desk was an ‘upgrade’! No idea what it was upgraded from but we had issue after issue. The engine management light came on after we left the airport, the tyre pressure light came on, the warning sign for low battery on the fob came on. We were told we could do the tyre pressures and replace the battery ourselves! Then we got what we thought was a parking ticket, but no, it wasn’t a parking ticket at all it was a notice that the car wasn’t taxed!!!

On returning the car there was zero apology, they just took the keys and said you can go now!!! Never again will I hire a car from Europcar no matter what airport I fly into, the booking was under my sister’s name, we both agreed to write this review

Is it possible to give less than 1 star ??

I brought two credit cards for the deposit; however, I was told I could not split the deposit between them. Nowhere does it state this. I ended up using a debit card, which cost an additional £100, so an initial £60 hire cost ended up being £160 pound. The person who served me was pleasant, but the manager was rude and had no time for me. I will not use you again

Charged EUR326 in total for repair of a hairline light scratch on the car which took the assessor several goes walking around it and cloth rubbing to locate & identify, probably there on exit anyway. Excessive & unreasonable overcharge for the level of "damage" identified.

I rented a car from Europcar andcreturned it to Knock airport. After returning the vehicle, I was charged €403.45 for damage I do not believe I caused, as well as an unexplained fuel charge.
I have been renting cars for many years and this is the first time I have faced such charges. The damage was allegedly found during post-return inspection.
I have formally disputed both charges.
I feel misled and disappointed by this experience. I would caution other renters to photograph every inch of the vehicle at pick-up and drop-off, and to ensure everything is signed off clearly before leaving the location.

This is fir Dublin airport only, I've found them to be really good at Knock and Shannon. But Dublin is chaos, never enough staff to deal with the crowds. You'll be waiting 30-45 mins on a normal weekday, more early or at weekends. Horrible experience

A scam. Phantom charges after car was returned. Returned our deposit minus £154 and said we had agreed to premium extras that we said NO to. When contested the support team said it's a he said/she said situation and because we signed the long document, the charge will be maintained. Total trickery.

Booked a car from Friday PM to Monday PM, Excellent price with all insurance included. Friendly staff especially Ivan on front desk ( come on Croatia!)
Car was spot on and all in all a very good service and price which I am very grateful for

I hired a car and on the third day the engine seized. The AA attended and towed the car away. At no stage was I offered a new hire car to replace the first car. When I eventually spoke to a rep. He gave me email address for the manager at Shannon airport. I duly emailed him and requested a refund. Two weeks later I have heard nothing from the company except when somebody rang me and asked me to return the car two weeks later. Awful company never again.