Sixt at London Gatwick - avoid at all costs
Jan 13, 2015, 3:38 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1
Sixt at London Gatwick - avoid at all costs
Hi FlyerTalk,
I'm writing to dissuade anyone from using Sixt's car rental at London Gatwick Airport. My experience has been atrocious ever since I dropped the car back on 2nd January.
I picked up the car and was handed the keys with no bother. The agent even added a cheap upgrade to an automatic diesel as I was driving a long journey through to north-west France.
The issues started when I got to the car. I did a thorough check of the car for damage that wasn't included on the damage report and found a crack in the windscreen and a scratch on one of the alloys. I went back to the desk to report these additional bits but the agent was nowhere to be seen. I waited as long as I could (around 10-15 mins) for the agent to come back but he never appeared and I had to leave at that point otherwise I would have missed my Eurotunnel booking - in hindsight I should have taken some photos but I was in a rush and was already very short of time (lesson learned).
During my rental, no damage occurred to the car and it was always parked either in a sleepy French village or in an underground car park.
When I returned the car, the agent informed me of the damage which I had tried to report before I drove the car out of the rental lot. I tried to explain to him that I had attempted to report these bits of damage before I left but he was very dismissive to the point of being rude, and said the damage department would be in touch.
I received a letter from them this week demanding payment for the damage to the windscreen and alloy that I had found before I drove off (bear in mind I had no opportunity to check the car over before I signed the rental agreement and was handed the keys). I have been back and forth with their damage department who have become increasingly more dismissive and aggressive in handling my issue, to the point of being threatening.
I did not cause the damage, and don't really know what to do. Having read some of the reports on here of other people's past experiences with Sixt, it seems this is quite a regular occurrence, to the point where Sixt will send out multiple damage reports to the last few people who have rented a car.
It also seems they have a tendency to target their customers for extra damage seemingly on a whim.
I feel completely and unlawfully targeted by Sixt - what can I do?
Thanks
Ed
I'm writing to dissuade anyone from using Sixt's car rental at London Gatwick Airport. My experience has been atrocious ever since I dropped the car back on 2nd January.
I picked up the car and was handed the keys with no bother. The agent even added a cheap upgrade to an automatic diesel as I was driving a long journey through to north-west France.
The issues started when I got to the car. I did a thorough check of the car for damage that wasn't included on the damage report and found a crack in the windscreen and a scratch on one of the alloys. I went back to the desk to report these additional bits but the agent was nowhere to be seen. I waited as long as I could (around 10-15 mins) for the agent to come back but he never appeared and I had to leave at that point otherwise I would have missed my Eurotunnel booking - in hindsight I should have taken some photos but I was in a rush and was already very short of time (lesson learned).
During my rental, no damage occurred to the car and it was always parked either in a sleepy French village or in an underground car park.
When I returned the car, the agent informed me of the damage which I had tried to report before I drove the car out of the rental lot. I tried to explain to him that I had attempted to report these bits of damage before I left but he was very dismissive to the point of being rude, and said the damage department would be in touch.
I received a letter from them this week demanding payment for the damage to the windscreen and alloy that I had found before I drove off (bear in mind I had no opportunity to check the car over before I signed the rental agreement and was handed the keys). I have been back and forth with their damage department who have become increasingly more dismissive and aggressive in handling my issue, to the point of being threatening.
I did not cause the damage, and don't really know what to do. Having read some of the reports on here of other people's past experiences with Sixt, it seems this is quite a regular occurrence, to the point where Sixt will send out multiple damage reports to the last few people who have rented a car.
It also seems they have a tendency to target their customers for extra damage seemingly on a whim.
I feel completely and unlawfully targeted by Sixt - what can I do?
Thanks
Ed
Jan 20, 2015, 11:01 pm
#3
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 201
This is one of the situations where they have you over a barrel. You had to make your Eurotunnel crossing, so you couldn't hang around. That was unfortunate. I would usually reject a car with an actual crack (rather than just scratching), as hitting a pot hole could further the damage. You'll often need to be persistent in declining an assigned vehicle.
Also, the contracts are usually worded so they can pretty much charge your credit card for any reason. People need to be more aware of the risks.
I've also had terrible service at LGW. It sounds like not much has improved. I hope this bad PR gets your issue resolved. These are unfortunately not once-off incidents.
Also, the contracts are usually worded so they can pretty much charge your credit card for any reason. People need to be more aware of the risks.
I've also had terrible service at LGW. It sounds like not much has improved. I hope this bad PR gets your issue resolved. These are unfortunately not once-off incidents.