Sixt - My recent rental with Sixt

Hi,

I recently rented a BMW 7series out of Frankfurt and ran into some big problems.

As we approached the Czech border (10-15km away) we were pulled over by an unmarked police car (all legitimate) and had the usual questions asked.
We were then asked where we were going and what we planned on doing.

As soon as i mentioned the Czech republic, things changed slightly.
They asked us to leave the vehicle, patted us down, searched the car, searched our bags- took our passports etc.

After waiting for 30minutes in the car, the police come back to us and inform us that they have contacted Sixt and due to 'breach of contract' they were taking us back to the police station so that they could confiscate our car.

Having asked for full insurance, addititional driver insurance etc, i had not read my contract etc- which did say i was unable to take the car into the Czech republic, plus numerous other countries.

Long story short- after being interviewed and taken to a hotel in the middle of no where after 5 hours in custody- our car was still taken from us even though we never left German soil, couldnt see the Czech border and saying we would go to Austria instead.

Now i have a potential fine coming to me from the German police.
Has any one had any similar experiences with this?
Can any one comment on the supposed 'breach of contract' that Sixt are claiming i undertook.
As i did not have access to the car to fill the tank, can Sixt charge me for the fees associated with filling the car? etc

Thanks for your feedback?

Hmmm sounds a very unfortunate incident.

I know there have been several instances whereby cars have been rented from Germany and taken accross the border never to return!

Hmmm sounds a very unfortunate incident.

I know there have been several instances whereby cars have been rented from Germany and taken accross the border never to return!

Just received my invoice from Sixt.

total cost €840 Euro.

Charged me for a full tank of petrol at €2per litre, a drop off fee, a pick up fee, some other charge at €100 then 3 days insurance, extra driver, etc etc....

Will be disputing every single charge including the actual hire.

Sounds to me like a JOY ride...maybe a bit of showing off to friends and family in a BIMMER...whatever the case may be Porsche, Big BMW and Mercs cannot leave Germany and it clearly states that on the contract...

FWIW, 800 plus euros could have been used to drive an X5 for a whole month in Germany....

Just received my invoice from Sixt.

total cost €840 Euro.

Charged me for a full tank of petrol at €2per litre, a drop off fee, a pick up fee, some other charge at €100 then 3 days insurance, extra driver, etc etc....

Will be disputing every single charge including the actual hire.

As hard as it may sound to you: better a charge of 800 EUR than having a BMW 7series stolen in the Czech Republic without insurance and than facing an invoice of +100 k EUR.
Still, 800 EUR is a hard lesson.

Many rental cars in Germany do not have trunks. The rental cars have hatchback trunks, but many can be accessed through the inside of the car, which doesn't provide as good of a theft deterrent as a full trunk.

If you rent a car with GPS in Germany, the GPS may be in German. Make sure to ask to have English GPS, or the ability to switch to English. Have the rental car company switch it to English before you leave the parking lot!

Find out if you will need to cross any ferries. You will have to ask the rental car company their policies on car ferries for car rentals. :)

Many rental cars in Germany do not have trunks. The rental cars have hatchback trunks, but many can be accessed through the inside of the car, which doesn't provide as good of a theft deterrent as a full trunk.

If you rent a car with GPS in Germany, the GPS may be in German. Make sure to ask to have English GPS, or the ability to switch to English. Have the rental car company switch it to English before you leave the parking lot!

Find out if you will need to cross any ferries. You will have to ask the rental car company their policies on car ferries for car rentals. :)

How does this refer to the thread ???

Strange story... Did you cross the border? If not what was exact breach? Your intention is not breach before you cross the border, as far as I understand.

Could you provide more information, if you don't mind? It seems that you keep some details in secret...

FYI: Sixt has GPS-tracking for all expensive cars in its fleet.

Who was the officer, Hans John Anderton? How can you be arrested and fined for something you didn't yet do? I would dispute it all the way. The 840 EUR penalty for recovering the car would be appropriate had you been pulled over on the Czech side, but at most the German officer should've just turned you away and said "I just saved you over 800 EUR".

I find it intriguing that law enforcement officers in Europe actually enforce rental contract conditions. Imagine if they did that here, since in my experience as a rental agent the vast majority of travellers don't take car rental seriously over here (i.e. letting non-authorized drivers drive the car).

Who was the officer, Hans John Anderton? How can you be arrested and fined for something you didn't yet do? I would dispute it all the way. The 840 EUR penalty for recovering the car would be appropriate had you been pulled over on the Czech side, but at most the German officer should've just turned you away and said "I just saved you over 800 EUR".

I find it intriguing that law enforcement officers in Europe actually enforce rental contract conditions. Imagine if they did that here, since in my experience as a rental agent the vast majority of travellers don't take car rental seriously over here (i.e. letting non-authorized drivers drive the car).


I did not cross the boarder. i was i guess a few kilometers from the board- close to the town called Freyung in Germany.

I dont know what they are claiming i did, i am still waiting for a response from Sixt 'customer service'

I find it intriguing that law enforcement officers in Europe actually enforce rental contract conditions. Imagine if they did that here, since in my experience as a rental agent the vast majority of travellers don't take car rental seriously over here (i.e. letting non-authorized drivers drive the car).

Crap, yeah. It's hard enough to get the cops over here to help rental agencies retrieve stolen vehicles. :rolleyes:

While I'm not an expert on the legal system of the Bundesrepublik Deutschland, I find it hard to believe that intent to do something is a crime. (While I'm not an expert on the legal system of die Vereinigte Staaten, either, I don't think intent to murder is a crime if no act or attempt is carried out. Otherwise, my brother could have had me arrested a bazillion times for screaming, "I'm gonna kill you!" at him.)

I'd even consider a countersuit against Sixt for putting you through this mess.

I'd even consider a countersuit against Sixt for putting you through this mess.

After an absolutely pathetic response this morning, i have taken this matter further.

Thanks for your input.