Avis - Avis rip off Frankfurt Airport: STAY AWAY from this station

Just a warning to anyone contemplating renting a car in Germany. I have read of similar warnings before taking the trip to Germany and I thought they must be rare occurrences. It seems to me that they are not, especially not at the station in Frankfurt, (FRA airport).

The most outrageous part: you run a very high risk to be charged for damage you did not make to the vehicle, you can not do much to prevent this and your credit card will be billed on the spot for huge amounts at unfavorable exchange rates. You will be responsible for paying those amounts until your claim will be solved. You can not settle the claim with the credit card until you get an estimate from the rental company and this will take a while.

More specific in my case, the agents in Frankfurt found some scratches on the rim of the alloy wheel that were not documented in the papers. They charged my credit card for almost 390 Euro on the spot, at an unfavorable rate and with added fees and it came up to $540.

I have had this vehicle for less than a day, as this has been a replacement vehicle on a 10 day rental, the previous one got a check engine light because of the exhaust system. I got the replacement vehicle at the Hanover airport and I turned it back in at the Frankfurt Airport. This was a vehicle with 20,000 Km on board, with the wheels covered in dust and with marks on them, it all looked as rather normal tear and wear. They did found those scratches however and they billed me on the spot for the aforementioned amount. I am 100% sure I did not cause them as I only parked the vehicle once while it was in my possession and this was on the left side of the road. The damage was on the right (passenger side) of the vehicle.

Now this doesn't tell the whole story about Avis in Frankfurt. It is a long story that for me began and ended bad, the worst rental experience ever for me really, and I rented before in Spain, Poland, Romania, Dominican Republic, as well as numerous times in the US.

First of all Avis in Frankfurt will not honor the reservation class of your vehicle. I got a very good price by buying a voucher through Auto Europe, and I basically PREPAID for my rental about 4 months in advance. On the voucher it said that the class is "intermediate", BMW 1 series or similar. On the Avis reservation was mentioned the same class, just that "Mercedes B Class" or similar was the listed vehicle.
On my voucher however it also said "UPGRADE ONE CLASS GUARANTEED" and I checked with Auto Europe and they confirmed in writing that this means I would get a full size vehicle, Audi A4 w/navigation or similar. This prevented me from cancelling this reservation at that point, as I thought that a full size vehicle for the price paid was better than the counter offer I had from Sixt, also for a full size vehicle, but for about 100 Euro more for the same 10 day rental.

At the Avis desk in Frankfurt however I am being told that all they have is a Peugeot 308 (small and outdated and by no means comparable to BMW or Mercedes, plus it's a D size vehicle not and F - full size) or a Ford Galaxy (station wagon). With an almost hostile attitude the Avis representative at the desk tells me that this is "all they have". After calling from my own cell phone in roaming Auto Europe I finally have been offered a Renault Laguna coupe "that just arrived". It was not I wanted nor what I reserved, but seeming to me that I had no better option I accepted it. I was also tired with the whole thing already to be honest.

I was very careful in assessing the vehicle and I took pictures of the existing paint damage. This was in light of the reports I knew of by reading online. As you know already by now, it has all been futile, as I have been charged $540 for a damage I did not do.

I have been asked to sign a rental agreement where it said that I have been offered to have my credit card charged in EURO for any incidental fuel charges and that I refused. This is a lie, nobody asked me about this. I thought it doesn't matter much as I will return the tank full and I will not be charged at the unfavorable exchange rate and with added service charges. It turns out however that they applied this clause for the damage charges as well. At other merchants in Germany I have been asked about the currency option and always chose Euro instead of US Dollars. My Chase Sapphire Preferred billed me in US Dollars for those EURO transactions at very favorable exchange rates and without any other fees.

Then when I got the check engine light towards the end of the rental period I was in Hanover. I called Avis as I did not want to take the risk of driving the vehicle as it was back to Frankfurt. They passed me over from one station to an other in Hanover, although the guy on the phone said it would be OK if I go to the nearest station in the city. I have been sent from the city to the airport, where I finally got a replacement vehicle after wasting an other one hour and a half. On the phone and at the previous stations in Hanover nobody told me that I would have to bring in the vehicle with the tank full, so I wasted some more time driving back to the nearest stating in order to fill up. It was like it was either my fault that the vehicle broke or like this vehicle exchange was my out of the blue desire.

Both in Hanover and in Frankfurt I could see a lot of cars from the Avis fleet in the garage. In general, for what it looked as the intermediate and full size classes, they had anything else but BMW and Mercedes, although if you check their fleet online, for Germany they only list these more desirable brands.

Upon returning the replacement vehicle in Frankfurt the rental story became a true horror one with a worthy finale. The agent was looking for the tiniest of scratches, found the wheel damage and billed me on the spot. He did not wear any visible identification and he refused to identify himself when I asked him to do so. The agents there sent me to the desk upstairs if I did not agree that I caused the damage. After wasting some more precious minutes before the flight I am being told at the desk that there is nothing they can do there and that I should send my complaint to the "headquarters".

Needless to say I regret choosing both Auto Europe and Avis. I should have payed 100 Euro more for the Sixt rental. While I would have had no guarantee that a similar episode with the damage charge wouldn't have happened with Sixt, I know for a fact that they had an Audi A4 station wagon for me or a Ford Kouga (small SUV). This is because I did not cancel the reservation with Sixt as it was not a prepaid one, and I checked with them at their desk in Frankfurt. I couldn't take the car from them anymore however as I was tied by a cancellation fee with Auto Europe and Avis.





The wheel damage (the lighter colored part on the rim, upper part slightly to the left)
http://oi48.tinypic.com/2nsavr8.jpg

I have had this vehicle for less than a day, as this has been a replacement vehicle on a 10 day rental, the previous one got a check engine light because of the exhaust system. I got the replacement vehicle at the Hanover airport and I turned it back in at the Frankfurt Airport.

[...]

Then when I got the check engine light towards the end of the rental period I was in Hanover. I called Avis as I did not want to take the risk of driving the vehicle as it was back to Frankfurt.
Have you ever gotten a Check Engine light on your own car? On my own car, I got one once, didn't panic but did take it to the dealer as soon as it was convenient (about a day or two later), and it turned out to be nothing more than an emissions sensor that had gone bad. Nothing critically funcitonal at all!

Of course, this is just one anecdate, but based on that, if I only had one day left, and that was the only complaint from the car, I think I would have gone on with back to the original rental station.

...

Now, on the auto-billing, I ran into that (on a rock through a plastic grate in front) in Hungary at Avis at Budapest Airport.

But my question is: Is this auto-billing specific to Avis, or is it something you will get with anyone (in those countries) if you decline insurance? In other words, I'm not sure if switching rental firms is going to help with this, unless you know for a fact that Sixt or whoever else never does this.

Otherwise, why through Auto Europe and not direct with Avis? And the reason I bring that up, is that another thread in this forum has documented that sometimes you can get a rental with insurance included at Avis's site for the country you're renting from for the same or sometimes even less than with insurance declined but rented through a North American site. The only way to be sure you won't be auto-billed might be to buy insurance from the rental company, which might not look good if it's extra on top of your rate, but might look better if it's included in a similar or even lower rate. (But then you have to figure how much the "Super CDW" for that country costs, and how completely it closes the hole. In some countries you can close completely, and in some others not, and in those that not, the amount remaining will vary. I wish there was website that documented all this, by rental car company and by country.)

Have you ever gotten a Check Engine light on your own car? On my own car, I got one once, didn't panic but did take it to the dealer as soon as it was convenient (about a day or two later), and it turned out to be nothing more than an emissions sensor that had gone bad. Nothing critically funcitonal at all!

Of course, this is just one anecdate, but based on that, if I only had one day left, and that was the only complaint from the car, I think I would have gone on with back to the original rental station.

...

Now, on the auto-billing, I ran into that (on a rock through a plastic grate in front) in Hungary at Avis at Budapest Airport.

But my question is: Is this auto-billing specific to Avis, or is it something you will get with anyone (in those countries) if you decline insurance? In other words, I'm not sure if switching rental firms is going to help with this, unless you know for a fact that Sixt or whoever else never does this.

Otherwise, why through Auto Europe and not direct with Avis? And the reason I bring that up, is that another thread in this forum has documented that sometimes you can get a rental with insurance included at Avis's site for the country you're renting from for the same or sometimes even less than with insurance declined but rented through a North American site. The only way to be sure you won't be auto-billed might be to buy insurance from the rental company, which might not look good if it's extra on top of your rate, but might look better if it's included in a similar or even lower rate. (But then you have to figure how much the "Super CDW" for that country costs, and how completely it closes the hole. In some countries you can close completely, and in some others not, and in those that not, the amount remaining will vary. I wish there was website that documented all this, by rental car company and by country.)

You're right, most of the time the check engine lights are nothing and I think I got one once on an older car and it turned out to be nothing. However they can also signal more severe problems and I didn't want to take the chance for 2 reasons: one so that Avis will not blame me for driving a malfunctioning car and maybe causing some more damage to it and second, so that I didn't run the risk to get stranded on the side of the road on the trip from Hanover to Frankfurt (I had no way to know what was actually wrong with the car). I actually called them almost 3 days before my last day of rental, in the evening, asking them how would they want me to proceed. Because they told me to go to the nearest Avis I thought I will have to do that, as now they knew of the check engine light. Maybe I was stupid in this regard, but then again I would have had no guarantee that the guys in Frankfurt would have not found "something" that I would have to pay for on the initial car as well. I received that car with quite a bit of paint damage to begin with, although it only had less than 2,000 Km on board. The damage I knew of was noted in the papers, but you never know with these guys. This is an other thing that bothers me: if they bill you for the tiniest scratch, including for loss of use days, why on earth do the cars have so many scratches on them: they should be fixed and impeccable every time you rent.

As for Auto Europe and insurance here is what I think. This was the first time I tried Auto Europe and it will probably be the last, although their fault is somewhat indirect. They also offer their own insurance, supposedly cheaper than the one offered at the rental desk but I didn't take it.
I chose Auto Europe because they offered me a much better rate than anybody else and I thought that as long as the reservation is with Avis, the greatest car rental company in Europe according to some newspaper surveys, I should be fine, right?
While shopping around for the best rate I didn't see the CDW included anywhere, it was usually at least 10 Euro/day if not 20 if you want more things covered, and very often it had a deductible. I also read stories of people who paid for the insurance and they were still charged several hundreds as they were responsible for the deductible. As far as I know, those money that you would have to pay for the deductible can not be recouped from the regular credit cards, that is from the credit cards that offer secondary protection for car rental.
I could have used premium car rental insurance offered by American Express for $25 per rental, I am not sure however how much better that would have been (this would have been primary insurance though).

I would be also curious to know what is the best approach to avoid this type of defrauding that these rental stations seem to run. I plan on renting again in Europe in the near future and I would not like to repeat this type of experience.

I would have had absolutely no guarantee that Sixt would have been better in terms of the billing but I believe in experiences that end just as they started. Sixt would have offered a vehicle very similar to what I reserved, Avis nothing close to it and they didn't even apologize for it. This should have been enough as a cue for me to switch the companies even at an added cost. I suppose I will try Sixt next time and I will see how that goes.
It is not like I will have to pay for this wheel damage out of pocket in the end, but it bothers me how they run a dishonest business and how they steal, if not from the customer then from the credit card insurance.

It would be interesting if we could conduct a poll for the people who rent cars to see how often this kind of bogus damages (preexisting, normal wear and tear, mechanical malfunction etc) are billed by different companies and by different stations.

As someone who rents directly from Avis and uses avis.com to book, I've never had a problem at Frankfurt airport. Indeed all Euro locations check the car for scratches when you return, so it is up to you to check very well for scratches when you leave and make sure they are noted on the contract. AMS is the same, as is CDG, MUC, MAD, etc. And its the same for all rental companies.

In fact I think it is only America that doesn't check closely for scratches in rental cars. My last rental at Avis CUN checked closely too.

Doesn't sound right to me at all.

I'm a very regular Avis renter but I've never rented from FRA so no experience there.
In any case rim damage unless serious (which surface.scratches are not) should not be charged for.

I didn't notice anywhere in our post whether you've written to them about it or not? In any case I highly suggest you do that plus the following:
Avis UK have both an online blog and a Facebook page where you can post your claims and they take them very seriously (this doesn't have to be a UK specific issue, they will take this up with the other stations I believe).

Facebook is:.http://www.facebook.com/AvisRentACarUK/app_404739979543030

Blog: www.wetryharder.co.uk .

Looking at the picture you posted it looks like a Volvo to me, was it not?.

By the way, you would have been better off taking the Ford Galaxy, far superior to the 308, one of the better handling People Carriers on the market (it's not a station wagon as you suggested), although if you were on your own, I guess you didn't need the size.


Oh, and congratulations for finally posting on FT after being a member for 4 years... :)

As someone who rents directly from Avis and uses avis.com to book, I've never had a problem at Frankfurt airport. Indeed all Euro locations check the car for scratches when you return, so it is up to you to check very well for scratches when you leave and make sure they are noted on the contract. AMS is the same, as is CDG, MUC, MAD, etc. And its the same for all rental companies.

In fact I think it is only America that doesn't check closely for scratches in rental cars. My last rental at Avis CUN checked closely too.

Thanks for your input. I will keep that in mind and be even more careful, although I thought I was this time too, as I was aware of this type of charges and of people complaining on this forum and elsewhere that the charges were not warranted.

Doesn't sound right to me at all.

I'm a very regular Avis renter but I've never rented from FRA so no experience there.
In any case rim damage unless serious (which surface.scratches are not) should not be charged for.

I didn't notice anywhere in our post whether you've written to them about it or not? In any case I highly suggest you do that plus the following:
Avis UK have both an online blog and a Facebook page where you can post your claims and they take them very seriously (this doesn't have to be a UK specific issue, they will take this up with the other stations I believe).

Facebook is:.http://www.facebook.com/AvisRentACarUK/app_404739979543030

Blog: www.wetryharder.co.uk .

Looking at the picture you posted it looks like a Volvo to me, was it not?.

By the way, you would have been better off taking the Ford Galaxy, far superior to the 308, one of the better handling People Carriers on the market (it's not a station wagon as you suggested), although if you were on your own, I guess you didn't need the size.


Oh, and congratulations for finally posting on FT after being a member for 4 years... :)

Thank you so much, clubman, you provided me with very valuable information. I wrote to Avis and also to Auto Europe who said that they forwarded an inquiry to Avis, but I've got nothing back other than a letter mentioning the charge and showing two identical pictures of the damage.

Thanks for the info on the vehicles as well, I didn't know much about either of the 2 cars offered by Avis, I rather knew the Peugeot 307 for instance. And yes, it was only my wife and I for most of the trip, so I didn't really want a people carrier. I think they should keep these vehicles for the people who book them, as I don't think anybody chooses one unless they need them and when they need them they will not want anything else. And I think that they should list these vehicles in their fleet online so that I can do my homework and choose the class that I want.

As for posting for the first time after 4 years, I agree, it took me a while, isn't? I didn't even realized it was 4 years, I feel old now. I tend to do some things slowly, I can only hope that I will live long enough so that I can do everything I want/plan.
Seriously now, I am not a truly frequent traveler as I am strictly a leisure traveler for now. I've been put off a bit by seeing that most of the conversations here are between very frequent travelers. I found many discussions interesting but I felt that I can not contribute much, at least not yet.

I rent with Avis Germany pretty much every week and their list of vehicles is very diverse and misleading. A 308 is certainly not full size, a renault laguna is. Avis & Hertz don't use the ACRISS classification, so a MBMR is a 'A' and ECMR is a B and so on.

Prepaid bookings with third parties is pretty much the bottom of the heap for them, especially at airports. Everytime I pick up my keys at MUC they have customers hopping and screaming at the counter trying to get what the third party promised but never paid Avis/Budget and the frontline staff have to listen & argue.

Regarding your damage, Avis will provide you with a damage report by default in writing and should provide further documentation like the actual damage assesment on request. I got charged 540€ for a scratch in the front and the assessment in actual paperwork sent to me later was 612€. I needed the paperwork for my credit card insurance. You may want to check if the CC used had some CDW insurance included @:-)

I rent from the Avis Frankfurt desk quite regularly! You are right those people that check in the car are overly thorough! They once tried to get me for a cracked license plate frame while the rest of the car was pristine! It took a bit of back and forth but I got them to back down on that.

I learned early to go with the no-deductible insurance, it makes these things easy. Once I started using that they stopped being so thorough.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience

I have reserved a "full size" MB C class at Frankfurt for next June. This post has me somewhat concerned. I will document the vehicle condition with photos when I pick it up. What other vehicles are "full size" in the Avis Germany fleet? I am hoping for a C class as that is what I drive on a daily basis. I appreciate the familiar controls when driving on unfamiliar roads.

I had the exact same shenanigans with Hertz at FRA. The problem is all the rental cars are parked in narrow spaces in an underground lot, where the lighting and space is insufficient to inspect the tiniest of scratches to wheel rims when picking up the car.

When I returned they noted damage, and gave me the form to sign to acknowledge it. I wrote in big letters across the form that I was signing to confirm receipt of the form only, but that the damage itself must have been there when I picked the car up as I hadn't caused it myself.

I went home fully prepared to contest the charge on my statement should one appear, but never heard another word about it. This was 12 months ago.

There are so many reports spread across agencies for this location that it seems to be almost standard operating practice for them. I have decided never to rent from FRA again unless there is absolutely no alternative left open to me.

I have reserved a "full size" MB C class at Frankfurt for next June. This post has me somewhat concerned. I will document the vehicle condition with photos when I pick it up. What other vehicles are "full size" in the Avis Germany fleet? I am hoping for a C class as that is what I drive on a daily basis. I appreciate the familiar controls when driving on unfamiliar roads.

A C class isn't "full size" really. If you want a big car rent a premium or Luxury (can't remember which term). In the past I have received a 730d and an A8.

Based on your pictures I would think it would be pretty hard to prove that you caused that damage. It looks like normal wear and tear to me. I rented a car in Munich (not from the airport) and rear ended ended someone. It didn't do damage to their car and sightly damaged the rental car. It bent the liscense plate and part of the bumper behind the liscense plate on the rental car. I thought for sure I would get charged an arm and a leg, but they never noticed the damage. I rent from Avis in the US every week and you can argue just about anything in your favor, so maybe trying from the corporate level or even disputing the charge on your CC.

A C class isn't "full size" really. If you want a big car rent a premium or Luxury (can't remember which term). In the past I have received a 730d and an A8.

The C class is small car, which is what I want. I'm just curious what other cars in the same class Avis uses.

I have reserved a "full size" MB C class at Frankfurt for next June. This post has me somewhat concerned. I will document the vehicle condition with photos when I pick it up. What other vehicles are "full size" in the Avis Germany fleet? I am hoping for a C class as that is what I drive on a daily basis. I appreciate the familiar controls when driving on unfamiliar roads.



First of all an update. I got my money back through a dispute I opened with Visa for the charge. They sent me a letter saying that Avis agreed to refund the charge. I don't think they agreed because they wanted so, as they replied negatively through all the other channels that I approached them through: email, phone, Avis US, Avis UK both Facebook and Twitter, Auto Europe inquiry. One representative from visa told me that they would have refunded me the money on the spot if the same incident happened in the US. They did get them for me after 2 months so I'm very content with the service. By the way, I recommend the Chase Sapphire Preferred that I used for this rental. I think it is an excellent travel card and the protections and services (including concierge) work as described.

As for the rental class with Avis I can tel what I saw in the parking lot at FRA and Hannover airport. Everything up to the full size seems to be anything but Mercedes, BMW or Audi. They had Opel Zafira, Volvo V50 etc. I saw a BMW 5 series, which is Premium and Porsche, which is special I believe. Other than that not too many german cars and certainly not BMW or Mercedes as they advertise. Sixt on the other hand promised Audi A4 and they had one wagon A4, which sounded pretty close to me. Avis are a joke in this regard.

As for the damage I do not recommend picture taking as I recommend checking the documentation and asking them to update the papers. The most important paper where you have to make sure that the damage is listed is the one that stays together with the vehicle registration. That one should be already in the car and if it doesn't list the tiniest dent or scratch then ask the workers there to update it. The papers are are all that matters it seems.

As for insurance the credit cards offer non-deductible and free insurance, so in theory it is the best. The disadvantage is that you are on the hook for the charges until your claim is processed and probably you are also more likely to be charged for pre-existing damage as it seems to be a way for them to make extra income.

Good luck everyone and safe travel!

I am hoping for a C class as that is what I drive on a daily basis. I appreciate the familiar controls when driving on unfamiliar roads.
Never understand why some people want to drive the same car they have at home when renting abroad, why not try something different for a change?


The C class is small carNot in Europe - it would be considered full size.

First of all an update. I got my money back through a dispute I opened with Visa for the charge. They sent me a letter saying that Avis agreed to refund the charge. I don't think they agreed because they wanted so, as they replied negatively through all the other channels that I approached them through: email, phone, Avis US, Avis UK both Facebook and Twitter, Auto Europe inquiry. One representative from visa told me that they would have refunded me the money on the spot if the same incident happened in the US.


Thanks for the update zseba and glad you had a good outcome. ^

Very poor show on Avis's side though! :td:

Never understand why some people want to drive the same car they have at home when renting abroad, why not try something different for a change?


Not in Europe - it would be considered full size.


I agree. I don't drive a German car in the US as I found them to be too expensive and too showy, plus they don't seem to have the greatest reliability track. In Germany however I wished for a fast and pleasant to drive German car as I saw it as part of the German experience. Plus I would have gotten a glimpse of whether those German cars would be worth their premium. And to be honest for some reason it seemed to me that even the most expensive Porsche and BMW look at home on the Autobahn, much more so than in the US where the speed limits are 60 or below and where they are... foreign if not exotic. A similar speed limit of 60 here makes you feel you are standing still in Germany.

Yes I drive about between 180 and 200 or so on the autobahn, but I have to stay out of the left lane because some people like to drive 250 and higher.