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GoldCar Rental review: shocking behaviour of staff 25

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10:55 am EDT
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We rented a car through carjet and they booked us a car with goldcar. We had used carjet for many years with full satisfaction and had no indication that carjet could use such a company as goldcar. This is what happened on 6 may 2009: goldcar has no office inside the terminal building at seville airport. We were transported by bus to a portecabin-like 'office', outside the airport, in the middle of nowhere (No housing, shops) at the back of a shell petrol station. My husband presented his driving licence to the woman who drove her there and was completing the rental document, when he felt something thrown at the back of his legs. He was shocked. Our two friends and I rushed to clean his trousers. When he looked for his wallet and credit card to complete the car rental, he could not find it anywhere. Someone had stolen my husband's wallet from inside the goldcar office. What was the reaction of the person who was dealing with our car rental and driven us to the godlcar office? She disappeared without further ado or comment. Her (Male) colleague did nothing, continuing to deal with four french clients who also showed total indifference to our predicament. When we asked the remaining goldcar representative to call the police and to report the theft, he threatened us with not renting us anything if we made a fuss with the police, and to leave us in the middle of nowhere late at night. One of our friends spoke perfect spanish. He scrapped and he bowed to get us a car which he paid with his credit card. Without him we would have been abandonned in the back of a petrol station with money stolen and no credit cards (We have joint accounts, so we were left without credit cards to use). We had used all our mobile phones credits calling our credit cards companies to have them stopped. Goldcar representatives were rude, unhelpful and frankly, especially at night, their office location is a paradise for thieves: goldcar's door was left open, their office next to a petrol station which was by a busy road; there was road junction nearby; and no houses or shop in sight. Luckily it was ketchup and not acid thrown at my husband. The goldcar staff did not give us their names. By the way, we are pensioners.

When we told our stories to people, one of them said that they too had a bad experience with goldcar. They had left a jacket inside a car they have just returned. They asked if someone from goldcar could retrieve it, or if they could have the keys to do so. The jacket was in full sight, obviously it was an oversight not to have taken it away. Goldcar staff at first refused, then relented and it was at a price. €50 was added to the cost of the rental because the car was allegedly very dirty - when it was not.

Jun 10, 2014 10:21 am EDT
GoldCar Rental customer support contacts
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Carretera Madrid, Km. 531.7, Sevilla, 41007, ES

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Dear Cathy Reid,

Having to pay for fuel at the destination (it not being included in the price shown online by the booker) is common practice for most rental car firms.
Please take into account that 90% of our customers last year (out of +1million) hired a car with no extra charges. Furthermore, the CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) offered by bookers does not cover a lot of the possible damages, which is why we offer the option of leaving a deposit.
Please send us your reservation number at goldcarweb@goldcar.com so that we can look into the deposit you were asked for.
The 100€ for petrol included our SDR service: rates are available for consultation on our webpage https://www.goldcar.es/SDR/ (you can choose a language option). Also, when you return the car you are always reimbursed for the petrol you did not use.
We are surprised you had issues with the car itself, since 70% of our fleet (+30, 000 cars) is renewed annually.
Please let us know if you were charged for anything else on your card since your return.

Kindest Regards,

Victoria R.
Goldcar Representative
https://www.ekomi.co.uk/review-goldcar-rental.html
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25 comments
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David Dyson
, GB
Feb 29, 2020 8:42 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I have today been notified that a charge of £34.15p was taken from my Credit Card by Goldcar. I received a final settlement email and there were no charges to pay.

I want to know why this money was taken and also seek a full refund.

David Dyson
Car hired 26.01.2020 - 02.02.2020

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Ирина Карамиля
, US
Oct 14, 2019 6:09 am EDT

The cashback for fuel was not complete.
The guarantee for the car- 1100 euro wasnt sent at all. There passed 12 days already.
There's no international line+ they are not calling back. I've requested the invoice, but there was written: NO SUCH A CONTRACT NUMBER. CS cannot help and sending you from department to department. Awful :(((

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Forestfan
, GB
Sep 03, 2019 2:37 am EDT

I rented a car on the 2nd of August until the 11th of August 2019.

It is now the 27th of August, why am I still waiting for my deposit to be refunded. The deposit was paid on my debit card. I need this money back.

Stephen

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Josefino
, PT
Jan 22, 2019 9:09 am EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I tried to rent a car online at m. goldcar.es for 27 days in italy, bologna but it gave me a crazy price more than 12112 € about 448 €, per day. It was a citroen C1. I think it is better to buy a new car at this price. Look at the attached picture below. What's happen? Is it a joke?

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Robbed By Goldcar
, US
Nov 14, 2018 6:23 am EST

Robbed, lied to, attacked and spat at... Welcome to my Goldcar experience.
Vehicle was returned in the same condition as collected. Paperwork confirmed no damage. Then a month later get a £1, 200 debit on my credit card. Despite numerous requests for proof of repairs, photo's, invoices... Nothing...

Do not use this company.

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bulmer
, GB
Oct 15, 2018 9:39 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Rented a car from GC and filled it on return. They just emailed saying it was 8 euro short of being full which is rubbish. They charged me an additional 50 euros with no proof of this. Customer Services didn't want to know about it and hung up on me. Worst hire company I have ever come across. Will never use again.

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MIHAI1989
, GB
Sep 10, 2018 2:03 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Hello! Should be a big mistake. You charged me with 60€ by mistake I hope. I was to petrol station and I puted fuel in the tank, 11€. I have attached the receipt. Please check all the details and solve the problem. Don't disappoint me. I want my money back. Thank you!

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Rs291
, US
Sep 11, 2018 5:05 am EDT

I rented a fiat 500 when I was in Italy on 29/06/3017 (Milan) and recently they send me an email saying that during that rental period I got ticketed 1 time which was 50€ but they charged me 200€. Now I am trying to get a hold of someone but no one was giving us any information like to whom I contact and why they charged my visa card 200€.

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Tomtom7
, CH
Sep 10, 2018 10:45 pm EDT

Worst car rental ever. They have charged me twice for a car and are not able to find or to refund the money because these idiots are not able to find the bookings. I am waiting now since 3.5 weeks for the refund, a comment or an excuse. Also, they do not reply to my mails. Do not any business with them!

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Tania Shpak
, US
Sep 06, 2018 4:20 am EDT

Hello!
I would like to get the copy of the car rental contract, the one you sign in italy. could you please send it to shpak.tetiana@gmail.com
Thank you

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Emma Sunderland
, AU
Sep 05, 2018 12:03 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

1. Unable to submit a incident online using the gold car web portal as it states my email address is not valid.
2. Have received an email that I am unable to confirm is legitimate or an email scam regarding payment of tolls. I received an email detailing the fees of tolls used during he car hire period and that money has been charged.

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Rachael Brenda Stanner
, GB
Sep 01, 2018 7:18 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I hired a car with Goldcar Italy in August 2017 where I took extra insurance to cover damages and returned it with a full tank, but they have taken £49.62 off my credit card on the 23rd October 2017 for no reason. I would like this refunding immediately. Contact Rachael Stanner [protected]

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Sky Mist
, US
Aug 28, 2018 8:46 am EDT

I'm not happy with the gold car company in madeira it is really not good to rent a car it takes your many for the rent and lots of extras and you won't have choices .and you spend lots of money and time .this was my last time to rent a car from there i have very bad experience . Rental 03/08/18...17/8/18

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Pat brennnan
, GB
Aug 20, 2018 1:26 pm EDT

We hire the car from Goldcar--ref [protected] from 14/02/2018 to 24/02/2018 Funcal Maderia airport.
We was informed that if we returned the car refueled our money would be retruned with in two weeks, (we are still waiting)
We paid £68.82p on 15/01/18, and paid £230.28 on 15/2/18 at the airport which included £76.00 petrol. to be refunded.

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Pat brennnan
, GB
Jun 01, 2018 10:22 am EDT

Still waiting for reply from Goldcar

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KateCarru
Oxford, GB
Aug 28, 2013 12:49 pm EDT

How to ruin a great holiday; use Goldcar rental for your car hire needs! Whatever you do DO NOT HIRE A CAR FROM THIS COMPANY. They charge you for extra insurance when you pick up the car. The overcharge you for what they claim is a full tank of petrol, but is not. (You find this out when you fill up for the first time at a petrol station). They then charge you a 2.00% exchange rate mark up (which you discover after you've signed their document & they claim they asked you when they didn't). Then a few weeks after you return from holiday they make up an extra charge to surprise you with. For us, it was 90 Euros for 'special cleaning' with a series of photos of some crumbs on a seat (we have 3 children), some sand on the carpet (we visited the beach as we had time to kill before our flight), and some finger marks from opening the boot to get our luggage out at the airport. Does all this warrant a charge, and can all this be classified as 'special' cleaning? Well Goldcar rentals make up their own rules so it seems they can charge you whatever they want to. They are cheats and fraudsters and should be avoided at all costs. Those Spanish brothers who set up the company may be laughing now, but they'll be shovelling coal in the after life.

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DJ Anarchist
, US
Oct 11, 2016 2:49 am EDT

No need to add specifics. Just google any of the below
Goldcar Robbers
Goldcar Scammers
Goldcar Thieves
Goldcar Liars

This company is a disgrace and needs to be held accountable.

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Bawn
, IE
Feb 04, 2015 6:27 pm EST

Hired a car last September for the holidays through Aer Lingus website and got an email link to the car voucher which brought me to cartrawler, com., which ultimately brought me to hire a car from Goldcar, which was paid for in full and we even took out extra insurance over there just in case. Now the latest visa statement came in with an unauthorised deduction of €80. from Goldcar Italy, 4 months later and no explanation. Be warned. Take note. The credit card company are well aware of this situation, because they offered very little support to us. Couldn't reverse the transactions despite being unauthorised. We have to take it up with the hire company which is Spanish and might get an explanation if we ring an Italian number in the Airport we landed in. Good luck with that when you have very little Italian. Warning, NEVER HIRE A CAR from Goldcar ! Just go and google it and do a little research on tripadvisor and you will do yourself a favour.

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cathy reid
, IE
May 14, 2014 2:26 am EDT

I have just returned from a 5 day break in Italy and am disgusted by the (mal)practices of the car hire firm Goldcar.I booked through a 3rd party Rentacar.com and naturally thought by paying upfront all I would be charged for was my additional driver charge of around 37 euro.How wrong was I, on arrival the rep kept us waiting forever then while taking the amount on my credit card I noticed it was for 252 euro, on asking what this was for suddenly her english got a lot worse.Eventualy it transpired it was extra 100 for excess protection(already paid for online with Rentalcar.com) and 100 for petrol and the rest for the driver.100 euro for petrol in an opel corsa ffs.She told me my protection was usless and i would not be covered for any damage and gave me the hard sell on bad drivers etc.After standing firm I was left with a bill of 142 euro for petrol etc.not happy-they also charged dep of 1200 not the 800 I was advised by Rentalcar.com.On getting the car it had multiple scratches that were not logged on the signing out sheet-she refused to examine it saying she "trusted" me.hmmm.The full power throughout the break was 65 miles and it felt like going uphill all the time.On delivery back the same girl was on the desk-still as rude as ever.After making me wait she loudly greeted me with "the lady with no insurance" and proceeded to examine the car with a fine tooth comb looking for problem's in my opinion.Eventualy saying it was ok but reading other review's I note they are known for charging after the client has gone so now I have to alert my cc company.All in all a disaster and DO NOT hire from either company as they are total SCAM artists!

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H.F Groenestein
, NL
Aug 28, 2013 4:46 am EDT

Via rentalcars.com, we have booked and paid a car at Goldcar, in August this year. Due to a double charge for a tank of petrol some years ago, I was somehow blacklisted. At arrival in the middle of nowhere, I did not only didn't get the car, but Goldcar rufesed to reimburse me the ammount paid. The employees at the site were highly abusive and refused to give me there names.
The guy infront of us had trouble paying for a full tank of gas - an empty tank scam - and charging his creditcard for 700, - Eur. Which they actually collect. They were extremely abusive to him as well.
Complaining at Goldcar headoffice had no use. They simply do'nt react. People should BLOCK this company.

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maxphil
, BE
Mar 30, 2012 2:29 pm EDT

I would like to inform you of our relatively unpleasant experience with Goldcar which on paper seems like a good deal but in reality is far from it. Our car was ok and with a full tank, what we didn’t know and which is not informed on your website is that we have to pay for a full tank of gas. The people at goldcar speak essentially Italian, so we didn’t understand much of their explanation. I rent cars very regularly and in many parts of the world, when I returned the car I filled it with gas as I do for all other companies. Big mistake, at the counter they informed me that they could not reimburse me what they had charged on my credit card, € 98 vat. I was told I needed to ask for a reimbursement via the Goldcar website. I tried to fill in the form online three times and got an error message each time. I tried to join them by phone in SPAIN where nobody picks up the phone. Worse I checked with my credit card company to find out that the €2000 deposit was still blocked by them. If I look a little closer a Citroen C3 has a reservoir of 45 liters and a liter of gas costs € 1.74 where I tanked. That makes for a total of € 78.3 for a full tank of gas and not € 98 as charged by Goldcar. I personally don’t have anything against Goldcar but you need to inform clients that they will in the end actually pay more for their rental car with this company than with a traditional company such as Europcar, Avis etc. Since Goldcar is not answering their phone or the website is not operational I have to intervene with my credit card company to block the payment of € 98 to Goldcar, a hassle I would have liked not to have to go through.

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JimGT
, ES
Aug 18, 2011 10:38 am EDT

Goldcar are DISHONEST. No doubt about it. I would NEVER use them again and I would warn others not to. Maybe you think I´m just ranting, but I´ll give you some specifics...
We booked a small car for one week from Jerez Airport. The quote was 170€ with 0 (zero) excess... Except that it´s not.
1. The zero excess is NOT zero excess. We found this to our cost when we got a puncture on the very first day - the first day! Goldcar kindly told us that in fact tyres weren´t covered and they promptly charged us another 80€ for the privilege of me having to spend an hour on my hands and knees at the side of a boiling hot road trying to change a tyre with a dodgy car jack. When we got a replacement car, we then had to pay ANOTHER 35€ to get proper ZERO excess.
2. The fuel deposit you pay at the start is 78€. Except that it´s not a deposit. They don´t give you it back. They keep it for the petrol you use, even if you don´t use a whole tank - and the small car we had wouldn´t have cost 78€ to fill up anyway.

So, there you have it. The quote we had for ZERO excess was 170€. Add to that another 35€ for get REAL zero excess. Add to that another 78€ charge for the petrol - whether you use all of it or not. The REAL cost of a 170€ hire car from GOLDCAR is in fact 283€.

DO NOT USE GOLDCAR. Whatever you do. They are dishonest.

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Dutch frauded customer
, BE
Aug 16, 2010 9:26 am EDT

We were ripped off two times by this company. We did not contact them directly but were appointed by www.carjet.co.uk to rent from them.
In 2008 my husbands credit card was charged of 350 euros after departure. This year they robbed us of +/- 150 euros in spite of letting the car beeing checked by the lady at Gold Car rental desk in Valencia.
I contacted the local police today. We hope to make them allert about this issue. Could everyone do the same?
To whom it may concern at goldcar.es and carjet.co.uk,

This year we booked our car hire via Carjet.co.uk again by Goldcar (totally unwilling, because if we would have knowed in advance we would have absolutely avoided to come even close by this company again! ), and having the experience from 2008 (zie bottom of this email) we feared that we will be robbed again by Goldcar of Valencia Airport.
Upon arrival at the pick up point we checked the car, we made photos of the car, of all the scratches that were already done to it, and checked whether the spare wheel was in place. We could not reach the spare wheel as this was fixed in big screws underneath the car.
When we brought the car back to the airport, prior to our flight back home, om 3rd July at 7-8 am, we asked the lady at the desk to come outside and look at the car and see that everything was there. We told her that in 2008 her company abusively charged our credit card with the reason that we might have stolen the spare wheel. What a reason! We do flight and drive holidays, and have no place in our suitcases for such spare wheels. Besides, what should we do with a Citroen Berlingo spare wheel while we drive not French cars back home, it would not fit at all.
Any way..the lady looked at us in a strange way, saying with no words, that she would know of the malpractice of her company and that we bothered her confronting with the truth. I asked the lady to confirm that all about the car condition was all right and that NO ADDITIONAL costs will be withdrawn from our credit card after departure. She confirmed, after inspecting the car, and looking at its state, gas level, kms, and spare wheel, saying that all was in place and all right, and that no costs will be added to our transaction. The very overweighted Spanish driver, a man around 30-35 yrs old, who brough us to the airport with the shuttle van, was also present at the moment and can confirmed my conversation with the lady behind the counter.
And yet...what wehave feared of, has already happened. On 5th of July 2010 Goldcar carhire, has charged the Visa card of Mr. XX again, for something around 150 euro, less than last time, so thank you ;-///. No explanations are given for the transaction absolutely nothing.
I think that this Goldcar company is regularly doing illegal transactions ripping its clients off.
I want to ask carjet.com and carjet.co.uk no to do business with this company again, as it shadows the business experience of their UK web clients.
To Carjet.co.uk I want to ask to do everything possible to reimburse the transaction made by Goldcar on 5th July 2010 on the visa credit card of Mr. xx
If ever flying to Valencia again we will definitely no longer book through carjet.com or carjet.co.uk, as long as they continue to do business with Goldcar.es.
This company is doing illegal practices. Somebody there in the company is robbing all the clients and making good money out of it.
So please carjet.com and carjet.co.uk be alert, and protect your name and your clients, as this miserable company is no to be trusted.
We expect by the end of this week to have our money back, thank you, or otherwise we will press charges against both companies.
Regards,
frauded customer

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MAGGIE@1234
Holmes Chapel, GB
May 29, 2010 4:13 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Mr Burrows - I hope you complained to Carjet and Goldcar about their attitude and terrible service. We have just returned from Malaga where we were ripped off by them via their 'empty tank' scam. We returned the car half full mostly because we were afraid to use the car in case it got damaged. NO refund. How much money are they fleecing tourists out of.

It seems that Goldcar also charge your credit card as they think fit once you have left the car with them. They don't bother to check the car on collection or delivery back and that is so they can accuse you of non-existent damage.

I have complained to Carjet and have sent them numerous links to complaints I have found on the web re. Goldcar. As I assume that Carjet is aware of the fraudulent activities of Goldcar it does make one wonder why they are still using them... Are they on commission for the petrol scam? I have contacted Watchdog to warn others of this.

The Spanish are in position to be upsetting their livelihoods, ie. tourists are they!

STEER CLEAR OF GOLDCAR

Maggie

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eddylo
, HU
Aug 31, 2009 6:32 am EDT

u bunch of old bats, how can u dirty a companies name just because u dont know how to look after your wallet, that can happen anywhere, especially in a foreign country. and dont expect your ### licked by staff who cant speak your language