Europcar Reviews

Expedia failed to disclose that renting the vehicle would effectively require the purchase of additional insurance. The cost of that insurance exceeded 150% of the rental price, which is unreasonable and should have been made clear during the booking process. To make matters worse, Europcar did not advise me of the less expensive coverage options and instead steered me toward a costlier alternative. I found this deceptive and disappointing.

We paid Expedia for TD to reserve a car at Europcar TGV Avignon. We arrived to find no car, even though we showed them a confirmed reservation and payment. They said they had no cars, nor did other companies, but then magically found one and charged us 3 times their regular price and 6 times our Expedia price. We had no choice since we were driving to Spain the next day to meet friends. We felt this was extortion! We gave them a 1 star Google review and they sent a standard apology requesting more information with a link that did not work. It seemed like they want to appear like they were doing something about it but didn’t really want to do anything. We were ripped off for $2500 and are getting stonewalled.

Unscrupulous sales practices. I declined insurance, showing I had it covered by Visa. Signed for what I thought were the keys digitally, as allegedly the printer wasn't working, only to find the sales agent had added 'Premium Protection'. Disputed charge within 24 hours and 14 days remaining. Europcar wouldn't process the complaint until I returned the vehicle and then hid behind a fraudulently obtained signature, claiming I had agreed to insurance. Absolute scammers.

I have used Europcar for the last twenty years with good results. I booked a car in March 2026 for an October trip in Italy. I signed on with copies of my licence and passport etc. However, when I arrived two weeks ago in Italy, this all came undone as I was told I would need an international driver's license and they would hire the car out without it. They also said that this was a new 2026 rule and that all the car hire companies required it. Then the attendant put me on to a neighbouring dodgy car hire company that miraculously gave me a car, but for several hundred dollars more. I hired a car in Italy last year, and this was not required, but I did meet another Australian where this was the case as well in 2025. There are two issues here:

In October of 2025 I had a business trip in Vicenza Italy. I reserved a compact car and when I arrived (Marco Polo AP in Venice) on time (around 8am) they told me that they did not have any compacts and said I can wait (2 other people were ahead of me) and hope some turns-in come relatively soon. After nearly a 24 hour travel day I agreed to accept a Economy rental car instead of waiting. This economy car was the worst rental I have ever received. It needed the extra space on the rental contract to list all the damage. I probably should have rejected the car but going 24+ hours without sleep and a 1.5 hour drive to Vicenza I opted to keep it. The following morning I noticed one of the tires was low. After work, I filled the tire with air. The following morning the tire was low again. The following day I called their roadside assistance and requested they bring me a different car and take away the POS they gave me.

I will never rent a car again from this company again. They make up scratches to keep your security deposit money. Terrible experience!

After waiting in line for an hour 20 min at the Fox Car Shuttle and another 2 hours in line waiting to get our car we got to the desk and they told us they canceled our reservation because we were late. It was 3 in the morning and we did not get an text or email saying they are canceling it. They just let us wait in line from 12 am to 3 am. This rental company don't deserve a star. Worst ever.

Was not told why I was paying twice despite ordering through Expedia. Upon returning the car the person at the counter said I purchased their insurance which was not explained at the time of sale. Total added cost was $400.

PLEASE READ THIS REVIEW AND SAVE YOURSELF TIME AND MONEY!!! My sister and I rented a car from Europcar this past summer for our trip to Portugal and Spain. We paid $535 for our car upfront and I did some research before arriving in Europe so that I could plan for any other expenses. I knew I would have to pay the cross border fee because we were driving into Spain. And I wasn’t surprised by the fees related to the electronic toll machine. When we went to pick up the car, I felt refreshed and surprised by my interaction. At first I thought the gentleman was so nice and was even looking forward to leaving him a nice review. I’m glad that I was not hasty in leaving a good review, because since I got back from the trip in August, I have been fighting with Europcar about charges to my card.

Be warned and ask a lot of questions before booking. We booked through Europcar for Denver and were surprised to learn that the rental was actually being handled by Fox Rent A Car. What initially looked like a great deal—under $400 for about nine days—ultimately cost us over $900 after additional coverage and fees. What bothered me most was not simply the additional cost, but how everything was presented. At the counter, we felt pressured into purchasing additional insurance coverage based on what we were told could happen in Colorado if there were an accident. At that point, we had already arrived, needed the car, and changing rental companies would have meant potentially losing money and trying to find another vehicle.

They're rob you blind. Dishonest, greedy, abusive. Never rent from them,.

Our experience with Europcar Malta was extremely disappointing, particularly because of the way additional charges and communication with customers were handled. We received a parking fine after arriving at our accommodation at around 2 AM and being unable to find suitable parking. We accept that the parking fine itself was our responsibility. What we found very disappointing was what happened afterwards. Europcar charged our credit card €20 for an administrative/notification fee. The initial email we received did not clearly explain what the €20 charge on our card was for. We only noticed the charge on our credit card and had to contact Europcar ourselves to find out why €20 had been taken.

Very unpleasant personnel since the moment we picked up our vehicle in Italy. Europcar does not put customers first. They clearly did not perform a maintenance check which we discovered after driving away. It was not convenient to return and their other offices were not nearby. As a result, we could not use our vehicle to full capacity because of compromising our safety. Our exploring was limited. Although having to use quite a bit of time during and after our trip in contacting Europcar, it was to no avail since they shifted the blame to us, the customer, and gave ZERO compensation. What kind of rental car agency does not care about safety nor try to satisfy their customers? Would NEVER recommend this company!

A disgusting immoral company which hides behind its small print. Apparently they charge £200 for an AA callout for a puncture - this was not pointed out at any point. I had to wait FIVE HOURS for the AA and now Europcar are being totally unreasonable. Case #**.

ZERO STARS if I could. Absolutely horrible experience with Europcar/Fox. 13 people ahead of me, ONE employee working, and over an hour just to get my car. I paid for a specialty SUV advertised as a Range Rover, Audi, Land Rover, etc. and was handed a Toyota RAV4 with a huge burn in the carpet. Then the fuel door wouldn’t open—apparently a common problem judging by the damage and key marks around it—yet I was still charged for fuel. The garage staff were rude, disrespectful, and completely unprofessional. Management’s response? A $10 credit toward a future rental. After this experience, there is absolutely no chance I would ever rent from them again. Misleading advertising. Terrible customer service. Substandard vehicle. Questionable charges. Zero accountability. Do not rent from Europcar or Fox. Save yourself the headache.

We rented from Europcar in San Diego, which happened to be through Fox Rental Car. We had a terrible experience and were charged 3 times our quoted price. They required us to buy liability insurance even though we said our personal car insurance covers us in a rental car, and then they said we returned the car 2 days late and charged us for that. But, we did NOT return the car late, we returned it to the airport, to Fox/Europcar and even spoke to the car attendant about what to do with it (she was frazzled and the only one there moving lots of cars to make room for more cars coming in).

We booked a rental in the United States for around 20 days through Europcar, selecting a **Jeep Compass CFAR or similar – Compact SUV**. At pickup, however, Europcar’s local partner FOX provided us with a **2024 Nissan Kicks S FWD**, a significantly smaller vehicle which, in our view, was not genuinely comparable to the reference vehicle used by Europcar for the category we had purchased. The experience at the pickup desk was already very negative: the employee was rude and unhelpful, focusing mainly on selling additional services. Among these, we were charged **USD 149.80 for Roadside Assistance**, despite roadside assistance already being included in the Europcar booking we had purchased and paid for.

Made my reservation online for one month rental. After I paid all in full the contract stated in first page to have a valid driver license non digital and a credit card. I made my reservation from America stating that I have an American address and arriving on a USA airline on Sept. 1 2026. When arrived in Milan I went to the office. The office were closed but 5 employees were in the office. When they open I presented my driver license and a credit card. The agent refused to give us the car because we didn’t have an international driver license. Agent was nasty and very disrespectful. Looked like he is already having a bad day.

I planned a trip through Expedia that included an SUV from Europcar. Upon arrival at Sangster International/Montego Bay Jamaica I was informed that Europcar doesn’t accept/honor online booking. At least that’s what they said. I stepped out of line and attempted to book a vehicle elsewhere. It was a Saturday morning and the other agencies in the airport were out of vehicles. I got back into line for another long wait. My initial reservation was for a SUV because of my bad back and the poor road conditions. I ended up with a Toyota Yaris and paid $835 USD. The agent was rude and uncaring. I called Expedia and complained once I returned to the states. The matter was never resolved. They now tell me that they have no record of the complaint and that it’s been too long so there’s nothing they can do.

I made a big mistake allowing Europcar at Dublin Spencer Dock (the only downtown location) to put me in a position where I was virtually forced into an upgrade. Just know that Europcar employees are so INCENTIVIZED TO UPGRADE YOU SO THEY WILL LIE about almost anything to get you to sign. My "agent," Mary, was a highly skilled con artist and started my renting process by saying, "I'm giving you an upgrade." With almost any other rental company, that would mean no extra charge, but after waiting in line for about 45 minutes and going through a 15-20 minute process to rent the car, I was about to sign the rental agreement when I discovered that it was triple the amount of my booked rental rate.

Horrible! Avoid at all costs. They forced upgrade by creating fake demand. Bait & switch.

I am (was) a repeat renter of Europcar… I am was a repeat renter of Europcar over the past 10 years. No more. I rented a car through Auto Europe for a 15 day rental (I usually rent for 21 days) for a CDG Europcar in February 2026. The Auto Europe voucher for the car was $810. I upgraded, which I have done before. That usually only costed a few hundred more. This time I was charged over $1,440 not including the gas charge at the end on top of the original Auto Europe charge. So my initial $810 charge turned into a $2300 rental for two weeks. This was three times the amount I ever paid for a three week rental. Through multiple card disputes, no human reply to multiple emails it took until today (late August) to clarify the actual charges. P.S. I was also a "preferred member"

We rented a car with Europcar through Expedia in August 2026. The rental was supposed to be at the Calgary airport but we found out after arriving that you needed to take a shuttle to the Routes car rental (so not at the airport). When we arrived at Routes we found out that in the small print if you went to BC, even for part of your trip, the unlimited mileage no longer applies and it would cost an additional $11 per day on top of that. The car itself was nice (small Ford Bronco for Nissan Sentra size). However, charging an additional daily fee plus additional mileage seemed a bit much given it was written in the fine print under "other" and not mileage. A lot of people were not happy with that. If that is how you make your fees I recommend being upfront about it. My advice is rent directly through the car rental agency and you will actually get an airport rental agency instead of off-site with additional fees.

First off, we had to wait 3 1/2 hours at Shannon Airport because Europcar didn’t have the prepaid car we reserved ready for us. Imagine just sitting in the airport with your family for over three hours on the first day of your vacation. While all other car companies were moving their customers into cars, Europcar didn’t seem to think not having a car available for over three hours was an inconvenience or breach of their contract. They told us to get some coffee while waiting.

Scam company. Will charge you for extras and have someone else sign it and claim it was you. Will not return the stolen money.

It's been a few years since I rented a car from Europcar but I now remember why. I'm extremely disappointed with the lack of professionalism from the office in Madrid, Spain at T1 airport. We had a reservation (from August the 7, 2026 to August 14, 2026) for economy class car which would have been sufficient enough for the three of us plus the two large suitcases we had with us. Instead, we were greeted with a only one option of mini class (Fiat 500) and were told that car we reserved had been rented and there is no other options for us. We took the as our only option by smashing our daughter with suitcases in the back of the car and barely able to shut the trunk closed.

Rented a van for 18 days for a total of 1800$. Arrived at the airport in Munich and was told they don’t have the right vehicle and they only have a new Mercedes van for an extra 900$. I agreed to that and took the van with me. One day later I got an error message on the vehicle so I called Europcar and the lady told me to go find a Mercedes dealer and hopefully they can help me. I did that, lost half a day of the rental and they replaced a fuse on the van. One day later the same issue came up again and it turned the engine to emergency mode. It was Saturday and I wasn’t able to find another Mercedes dealer so I called Europcar. They told me they are looking for a replacement car but they will tow the van I had. They didn’t care that I had 7 family member with me. Some of them older than 60 years with medical conditions and they said they’re only responsible for the driver.

Don’t ever rent from this company. We reserved a car from Canada for Italy for 14 days. When we got at the counter they used the excuse about using a Canadian driver's licence to which was a lie since we inquired prior to leaving Canada. They gave our car away to someone else charging them more money. Then we were forced to go to Avis where driving licence wasn’t an issue but was charged 3 times more money. It is a shame that they take such advantage of tourists. This company is not reliable, rude, and overall a horrible car rental service. I will never rent a car from them.

After being forced to pay an additional €230 for extended insurance/coverage, due to having only a debit card for the deposit/hold, we were handed a car with 79.000 km mileage on it; fully shot suspension. Awful, unhelpful staff + terrible car + hidden fees (and dubious at that; ad hoc reduced from €360 to €230 midway) = avoid.

When I arrived at the rental location the small hybrid I reserved was not available so I was bussed off site. There I was given keys to a large, dirty and damaged SUV. 3 days later, when turning off a one way street into a parking lot and driving about 10 km/hour, a tire came off the its rim. If it had happened anywhere else, to a less careful driver, in this county of narrow, twisty roads, high hedges and rock walls, there would have been mayhem and possibly loss of life. Europcar charged me to have the vehicle towed 80 km from the incident and 95 km from home. I then had to transport myself back. The ordeal took 8 hours. I was not compensated for my trauma, time, meals or fuel. It was an incredibly awful experience.

Extremely disappointing experience. I rented a JEEP Avenger and during my rental the vehicle suffered a complete electronic failure. The dashboard, infotainment system, and all displays went completely black, making the car unsafe and unfit for use, especially as I was travelling to the airport. I tried calling customer service immediately, but the office was closed and no assistance was available. I was forced to arrange alternative transport at my own expense. Since then, I have sent multiple emails, including a formal complaint with photos and videos showing the fault. Weeks later, I have still not received a meaningful response or a refund.

I had a TERRIBLE overall experience with Europcar in Germany. I arrived at the pickup location in Trier, Germany (run by Michael **, according to the rental contract) on a very warm afternoon, 18 June 2026. I had reserved a "Standard Estate (Skoda Superb or similar)" car through Booking.com, had already paid $517 for the rental plus an additional $72 for insurance). I was expecting to pay an additional $127 or so on pickup for a one-way rental and an additional driver. On arrival, I was told that they did not have a Skoda available but they DID have a BYD for only a small upgrade fee. (Yes, the counter agent told me it was a BYD, a Chinese made car.) I asked for clarification and was shown a screen that seemed to indicate a total charge of approximately $1100. This was much more than expected, but it was hot, I was tired, and we needed to get on the road. So, foolishly, I signed on the signature pad which did NOT show the entire contract.

Thieves. Liars in Portugal. Run away. They double the contract price and overcharge hidden fees. So corrupt. Thieves. VERY BAD COMPANY. EVIL AGENTS AT ALL LEVELS OF EUROCAR EUROPE. PORTUGAL WORSE..

Do not rent from Europcar - specifically the Chur Switzerland Office. We had an absolutely horrible experience. We got a flat tire on a Saturday. There was no spare tire. No repair kit. Customer service closed. Roadside assistance number doesn't work for US phones. Totally stranded with all of our kids in the middle of nowhere. We found a local company and paid 250CHF out of pocket to patch the tire. When we returned the car Europcar told us to send an email. So we did and they responded by promising us a refund on the tire repair. We just had to send our banking details. So we did. Then they emailed and said actually no we aren't going to refund you. This is horrible customer service!

I rented a car from Europcar in France and later encountered a damage charge that required insurance resolution. Customer service communication was slow, inconsistent, and difficult to work with. It required repeated follow-ups over a long period just to obtain basic documentation needed for the insurance claim. There was also a lack of clear photographic evidence of the vehicle condition at the time of rental and return, which made it difficult to verify how and when the reported damage occurred. Although Europcar eventually provided the required documents and the insurance claim was successfully reimbursed, the overall process was unnecessarily prolonged and frustrating due to poor communication and incomplete initial documentation.

I was going through my bank statements today and found a random charge from Europcar for $645.92. I called immediately, and engaged in one of the most frustrating calls in my life. All the responder could tell me was that it was a cleaning fee. Later (literally an hour) she was able to tell me that she would need to process $250.00 from me to have the $645.92 returned to my account. It was the only option provided. When I asked to have some sort of explanation or summary of how the cleaning fee was assessed, or any details to support this type of fee, they could not provide anything other than 'I am sorry ma'am, this is all I know'. Later I was told there was a 'sensor glitch'. When I asked if I could get an email outlining the charges, I was also told that was not possible. I am beyond frustrated and will never use this agency again.

I rented a vehicle from Europcar in Naples, Italy. When we arrived, they did not have size car I reserved with an automatic transmission. I was told, to get a vehicle with an automatic transmission, they would have to upgrade me. When I returned the car, they charged me 180 Euros for the upgrade that was their fault, not mine. When I called customer service to request a refund of the upgrade charge, they said they would not refund the charge because I signed the rental agreement. Not sure how I'm expected to pay for an upgrade when they couldn't provide the car type I reserved.

These are disgusting liars and scammers! I booked a car for $137, and that was the "total price". At the counter, they refused to give me the car until I bought insurance for extra $230!! And, oh yes - "you can cancel reservation with a $91 penalty". Thank you very much! Car rental in Inverness. Jun 6, 2026 - Jun 16, 2026. Confirmation: #**.

I would like to share my experience with Europcar and formally express my disappointment regarding two separate vehicle rentals that raised serious concerns about customer service, vehicle quality, and safety. My first experience took place in Italy. The customer service was poor from the beginning. Staff members were not welcoming or helpful, and when I raised concerns about the condition of the vehicle, I felt that my feedback was dismissed. The cars appeared old and poorly maintained, and the representatives showed little interest in assisting customers or finding reasonable solutions.

Not sure where to start? This is a shady business, no clear policy outlines, do things in rush, so you sign a standard agreement. We were tourists from USA so not familiar with UK, especially London driving, parking signs etc. After car is returned, we start receiving fines ranging from $3.5 for parking violation to $90 for a tunnel passage payment.