Menu
Sicily By Car
Sicily By Car Customer Service Phone, Email, Contacts

Sicily By Car
reviews & complaints

m.sbc.it
m.sbc.it

Learn how the rating is calculated

1.4 109 Reviews

Sicily By Car Complaints Summary

11 Resolved
98 Unresolved
Our verdict: With Sicily By Car's very poor resolution rate, careful consideration is needed. Research their service comprehensively, and read up on how they handle customer disputes. If you face issues, be prepared for potential challenges in obtaining resolutions and explore other service providers as backups.
Verified
The authenticity of the customer service contact information for Sicily By Car has been meticulously verified by representatives from ComplaintsBoard using our proprietary verification system.
Get notifications about new complaints and reviews of Sicily By Car. We promise not to send you any unrelated messages.
Share
Claim Your Business
Take control of your profile: address complaints and engage with reviews
Write a review File a complaint

Sicily By Car reviews & complaints 109

Sort by:

Newest Sicily By Car reviews & complaints

ComplaintsBoard
S
4:29 am EST
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Sicily By Car unethical behaviour / possibly a scam

We recently (feb 16th to 22nd '16) rented a car from 'Sicily by car' (tel [protected]) which I believe is part of 'Auto Europa'. After the initial difficulty of finding the right location we were offered a citroen picasso (reg nº EZ850PY). The car was kept in a dark underground car park. The car was offered in perfect condition, but upon our inspection we noticed a couple of scratches. We had to then return to the rental desk to confirm this which the attendant reluctantly marked on the documents. When we returned the car 6 days later they pointed out a small (key - possibly) scratch on the drivers side door and passenger door behind. We have absolutely no memory of this occurring and wonder whether it may have been there all along but we were unable to see it in the dark car park. We have been charged €732 (£568) for the repair of these two scratches (which we have taken photos of). As we were then in a hurry to catch our plane (with our 3 small children, we had no opportunity to object to this charge. We feel this charge is completely unreasonable and wonder if others have paid for this same scratch before us. We hope you can help us.

Read full review of Sicily By Car
View 0 more photos
Hide full review
ComplaintsBoard
R
6:24 pm EST

Sicily By Car fine

hi, i am complaining about a handling fee i got, my account got debited on 29th november, 2 months after i got home, i got a letter from sicily by car on 22h december notifying me about handling costs.i have not got a fine yet in mail !.i would like a copy of fine within 14 days or i will put charges in dispute with my credit union & visa .RA [protected] regards russell jessop.[protected]@live.com.au

Read full review of Sicily By Car
Hide full review
ComplaintsBoard
M
1:38 am EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Sicily By Car over charged

I rented a Fiat 500 from Sicily By Car/Auto Europa Rent A Car on 19 Jun, 2015 for 1 day. I got a quote through DoYouItaly for 23 euros, I opted for the additional insurance of 15 euros, and was not able to refuel before returning the car. We did 105 kilometers which I calculate fuel of about 6 litres at a cost of about 10 euros. I expected my bill to be about 48 euros, yet the amount on my credit card is about 95 euros. My DoYouItaly voucher number is DYI-[protected], the Sicily by Car documentation has numbers 156942 and 2481438.
I have emailed repeatedly to get a credit but I am being ignored.

Read full review of Sicily By Car
View 0 more photos
Hide full review
ComplaintsBoard
J
2:34 am EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Sicily By Car car hire fraud

Do not hire with sicily by car or auto europa:
I rented a car through holiday autos / car trawler and have had a fraudulent withdrawal from my credit card since returning from sardinia where I hired a car from alghero airport. the withdrawal totals almost €370 and was taken to cover the costs of 'damages' which have as yet not been specified. I collected a car with 3 points of damage which I signed for, and returned the car 3 days later in the same condition as I collected it. with the extra insurance sold by holiday autos, my rental cost under €100. I am furious!
All the companies involved are virtually ignoring all correspondance and sicily by car is totally ignoring this complaint. they are a fraudulent and unprofessional company that should be totally avoided.in order to avoid ending up unwillingly with this company, which is under the umbrella of auto europa, do not hire a car in italy with holiday autos / car trawler. book through a reputable company like hertz, even though it may cost more. I have been involved in this case since july and I would have willingly paid more to avoid all the inconvenience since.

Read full review of Sicily By Car
Hide full review
ComplaintsBoard
M
9:43 am EST
Resolved
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Sicily By Car fraud charge of credit cards

* february 7th 2014 *
* this is a fraud car company - stay away *

Unfortunately, I have to submit to the rest of the comments and complaints in regards to this
Company in italy. I rented a car in august 2013 and as of this date february-14
8 months later, I am still getting claims for unlicensed traffic tickets that
The italian police can not confirm I have made with the rented car.

As of today, I have received 4 claims of €60 each (total €240) charged to my credit
Card, for traffic tickets that I can not get verification on.

Sicily by car will not listen to my complaint, I have spoken to 3 different
"managers" at both the milan airport rental shop and their headoffice
- all are skipping my complaints and will not help me. as a last resort, I have
Had to get my credit card cancelled and got a new one which they can not charge.

* stay away from sicily by car at all cost for your own sale, please! *

Read full review of Sicily By Car and 1 comment
Resolved

The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Hide full review
1 comment
Add a comment
N
N
NIGEL ZERAFA
, MT
Feb 03, 2015 11:05 am EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

AFTER 2 MONTHS I RECEIVED A FINE FROM SICILY BY CAR AMOUNT OF 61 EURO IM OK WITH THAT BUT UNFORTUNATELY THEY TOOK EXTRA CHARGES FROM MY CREDIT CARD AND IT COST ME 244 EURO 4 TIMES AS MUCH WITH DIFFERENT DATES UNBELIEVABLE AND SEND AN EMAIL TO SBC@SBC.IT AND STILL I HAVE NO REPLY DONT NO WHAT TO DO NEXT

ComplaintsBoard
E
12:12 pm EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Sicily By Car over charging/wrong charges

Our Rental was originally with Thrifty but when we arrived at the airport, the agent said there was no record of our reservation. Auto Europa could offer as the same car at 11 Euros more. Since we had no options we took it. Everything was fine until we got a flat tire in Sorrento. After finding a pay phone, we called the emergency line to get assistance. We were informed that a tow truck was on the way to attempt to fix the tire. The tire repair kit did not function as the sealant and the air compressor were not compatible which was verified by the people at Auto Europa when we returned the car. The car was then towed and it left us stranded in Sorrento with no means of getting to our car at 11 p.m. when this had occurred. The emergency hot line which we called again said that we would be reimbursed 100 euros for a hotel. We wandered from hotel to hotel looking for a room however, now being midnight there were no rooms available. Due to the lack of help in a foreign country, where we did not speak to language, we were forced to sleep on the street. In the morning, we once again called the emergency hotline and Auto Europa, we were informed that a taxi to get us to our car was coming and that the emergency company would reimburse 100 euros for the taxi fare(I was told this by AutoEuropa). I was also informed that because it was not covered under my insurance (which nobody at the desk in Rome told us we could get) I would have to pay for the tire(Also told by AutoEuropa). Of course this was now well after 10:00 am in the morning. Finally arriving at the garage, I had to pay 110 Euros for the tire and 110 euros for the taxi. All this aggravation, upset and stress, cost us a lot of money and wasted a day of our vacation. Our trip was Jun30-July 14th. It is now August 10th and I have been emailing Autoeuropa since July 17th with no response until today when I received a registered letter informing me that I had to pay for the tire and that they have billed my credit card company!Needles to say this is a TERRIBLE COMPANY TO DEAL WITH!

Read full review of Sicily By Car
Hide full review
ComplaintsBoard
K
11:45 am EDT
Resolved
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Sicily By Car damage to car

Insurance Scam. Stay away.
Picked up the car in an unlit parking lot after a 30 minute wait at the desk in Fiumicino Airport, Rome. They never went over the car with us for damage as they said they had already done so and marked it on the rental agreement. I noticed more damage that wasn't on the agreement and insisted they mark it on. They were reluclant to do so but eventually did. After returning the car, they pointed out more damage that was intitailly on the car when I picked it up but failed to notice. It was suspicious, because in order to see the damage, you had to get down on your hands and knees and while the attendant never did this, he still noticed the damage.
When I complained, he said "don't worry, you have full coverage". I had no recourse and I'm sure that this damage was being repeatedly charged to each customer without being repaired.
Very disappointed to be used in a scam that costs everyone.

Read full review of Sicily By Car and 11 comments
Resolved

The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Hide full review
11 comments
Add a comment
S
S
Sfur
Clarence Center, US
Jan 02, 2014 5:45 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

December 2013 rented a car in Ancona from THRIFTY, but surprise they are represented by Sicily by car. Rental cost should be 508 USD they attempted to charge my credit card 1332 USD. Called Thrifty customer service, they were horrible would not do anything except to tell me to call the sicily by car location in Italy. I will mark the charge as fraud and refuse to pay. Stay away from Thrifty and Sicily by Car.

K
K
korp67
, RU
Dec 11, 2012 3:06 am EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

SIcily By Car uses fraud scheme. After car returning 450$ had been deducted from my credit card. The car was damaged before my rent. All scratches were observed in the pick up documents. Manager In the Roma office SIcily By Car assured that the error will be corrected. But then came an evasion, that money will not be returned, even though I have all the evidence. Cheap car rental has become a very expensive - about $ 500 per day.

D
D
Dilekmorrison
, TR
Nov 29, 2012 1:50 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I also hired a car from this company and in our trip a stone made a crack on the window, they said that the car was insured and after 3 weeks i found 800 euros charged to my credit card!I contacted them and their broker company which is Vip cars in uSa and not being answered.I am now sueing both companies .Stay away from those two companies!, ,

M
M
Mauretto
, BE
Sep 29, 2012 2:50 pm EDT

Several weeks ago I posted on many websites my story where I explain how SBC did charge my credit card for two damaged tyres while only one was found damaged when I left the car back from my trip in Catania.

I was then contacted by the company, SBC, who accepted to refund the equivalent amount of money for the second tyre.
They saw my posts on the web and asked me to remove them.

Since I cannot remove them (you do not have access to your posts once uploaded), I want here to share this with the readers. So this is it. After posting many complains they contacted me and effectively did partially refund the money they charged.

K
K
KMHonest
, MT
Aug 31, 2012 6:37 am EDT

Further to the above comment, having been stung by this theiving unprofessional company I believe that if we work together we can both get our money back and perhaps bring the company down. Some time ago I had a grievance with another multinational company which I was unable to recieve a reply from either by e-mail or e-mail. What did I do? I collected e-mails from different web sites pertaining to the company and composed a stinging message which I sent to each e-mail more than a thousand times (which took around 45 mins: sending, going back, sending and so forth). Needless to say they phoned me on my mobile less than an hour later as I filled up their mailboxes and interrupted their operation. Imagine if 20 or 30 people did the same to a single company. If you found the right e-mail addresses it could hinder their operations. If you continued on for a week or a month and then copying to watchdog authorities this could bring the company down, much in the same way as governments were brought down in the Arab Spring. We now live in a world of instant communication and these companies have to realise that their will be consequences for their dishonesty. I will search for some e-mails and them post them so if anyone wants to help in this it would be most appreciated. Lert's not allow them to get away with it!

J
J
Juanita Debattista
, MT
Aug 31, 2012 2:49 am EDT

Hi

I am a victim of this crook company myself. We had an accident which was clearly not our fault ( we were stationary on a roundabout and the truck behind us crashed into the back of our car) We were told by sbc that the insurance will see to our claim and within 2 weeks the money taken from our credit card will be returned. Surely enough it was returned only to be taken a couple of weeks later without our knowing. Now we are trying hard to contact them but they dont have a customer care landline and when I did get through to one of their agents, a certain frances, she was really rude and unprofessional and told me that i have to wait at least 2 weeks for them to even acknowledge my email! Fancy that! So I agree with you guys, sicily by car is a crook company set out to make money by false insurance declarations! if anyone knows of any other way i can contact them I will really appreciate that

Juanita debattista
Malta

M
M
Mauretto
, BE
Aug 25, 2012 3:05 pm EDT

! Auto Europa = SicilyByCar = CROOKS !
We did rent a Fiat car at Catania airport (Sicily) for a week from June 30th to July 7th. The company is Sicily By Car, with prior reservation online via AutEuropa. You do not know the company that is renting the car before you pay online, and once you’ve paid it’s too late, you’re ###ed with Sicily By Car !
No way to really check the car because it was night and no, or weak, lighting on the parking area !
Minor trace found on the car and a tank not full, 3/4 only.
When coming back a week later we found a tyre was damaged. I can’t assume it was damaged prior the rent so I certainly have to pay for it.
Problem is they charged my card a week later for 2 tyres ! and with explanations and receipt more than a month later only, because I asked the company, otherwise they just do not give any information !
My suggestion is DO NOT RENT FROM AUTOEUROA / SICILY BY CAR
Go to major companies, in the end you pay less !
Take this as an advice for those like me who do not want these crooks going on with their business;

VISIT http://www.gdf.gov.it the website of Guardia di Finanza the Italian national police specialised in ripp-off and fill a complain.

DO NOT RENT with AUTOEUROPA and SICILY by CAR

Z
Z
Z Lazca
, ES
May 30, 2012 6:08 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I strongly agree that AUTOEUROPA - SICILY BY CAR is a dishonest company and would discourage anyone from using them.
We rented via One to One and selected full coverage insurance when we booked online. The booking confirmation we received said that the insurance couldn´t be processed at the time but that we could book it at the desk in the airport at a cost of jus over 30 Euros. We had to pay over 60 Euros for the insurance when we picked up the car, after queuing for over an hour at the desk...
Before returning the car, we filled the tank at a petrol station in Carini (5km from the airport). The petrol gauge wouldn´t go above 7/8 despite the tank was completely full, after several attempts the attendant at the petrol station assured us that it was physically impossible to put more fuel in. When we dropped the car, there was a group of people at the desk who had just returned a car and had exactly the same problem. Quite suspicious to say the least. After complaining, a member of staff told us that they could check with the computer whether the tanks were actually full and it was a problem with the fuel gauges, but they couldn´t do it until next morning. We have been charged 15 euros for fuel.
Same thing with damage, a member of the staff pointed out immediately a tinny scratch in the bottom of the bumper that was hardly visible amongst the dust. He didn´t let go until he realised we had full coverage insurance. Quite likely a scratch that has been charged to anyone who didn´t book insurance.
Very bad experience. As S T Warren says, safer to book with Hertz, Avis or other proper company. A real shame for many small honest car rental business that people won´t take the risk with because of companies like AUTOEUROPA-SBC.

S
S
S T Warren
, GB
Apr 28, 2012 3:39 am EDT

I agree. AUTOEUROPA - SICILY BY CAR.is a SCAM.
We rented via Carhire 3000 who put a blind eye to this. 3 months after the rental £200 were taken from our credit card without prior warning. Later on they sent a photo that showed a scratch on top of the car bumper. the scratch was in a position that makes outside vandalism very unlikely and couldn't have been accidental. It was clear that it must have been done on purpsose either by us or the car people themselves.
A garage gave us an estimate including labor for £40, less than a quarter than what was charged. The full insurance cover we had was rejected. After hassling Carhire 3000 enough they refunded the money themselves minus £45 "admin fee" (which obviously covers the real repair costs of the car). A total nightmare.
A few pounds more for hertz or another proper company will save you a lot of money!

B
B
braima
, MK
Jan 27, 2012 7:42 pm EST

I picked up the car after waiting at the desk for 40 minutes at Venice Marco Polo airport in September 2011. I paid for full insurance through Carhire 3000 website, but they insisted the full coverage wasn't valid (although I had a printed voucher with me clearly saying what I claimed) and they blocked 1100 euros on my credit card which I didn't plan to be blocked during my trip. I booked Fiat New Punto size car, but instead I got 3 generations old Nissan Micra. I couldn't put all of my bags in the trunk. Needless to say, my complaints didn't touch the rude front desk clerk or the "smiling cat" manager. Two months after the return of the car my credit card was charged 4 times 60, 50 euros, or total of 242 euros without stating the reason for the charge or informing me about it on my e-mail or phone. After I filed a complaint with my bank, they refunded my 242 euros. BEWARE OF AUTOEUROPA - SICILY BY CAR. THIS IS NOT A HONEST COMPANY. RATHER I WOULD SAY THEY ARE THIEFS. DON'T RENT THEIR CARS!

ComplaintsBoard
A
6:33 pm EDT
Resolved
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Sicily By Car repair ripp-off

On February 17, 2011 we rented a car from Thrifty (USA) on the InterNet on-line for our trip to Italy, commencing on Jun 02, 2011 at the Fiumicino Airport in Rome for 19 days. The total rent was Euro 635.76, plus the price of the gas (we could not find a gasoline station nearby), plus a penalty of Euro 14.62, total Euro 730.28. I paid this amount with my AMEX on June 21, 2011. Thrifty has had subcontracted the rental to Auto Europa, who made up their rental contract on site, with different break-down, but amounting to the same. The Rental Agreement # 0001695, dated June 02, 2011.
In Europe, and so in Italy too, the AMEX Gold Card guarantee for car rental insurance (CDW) is not accepted, you cannot decline it! So Hertz and Avis simply include the full insurance in the cost of the car rental, which makes it very expensive. Auto Europa advertises itself as "The Low Cost car rental", and as such they did not charge the Collision & Damage insurance right in the rental cost, but they took a security deposit on my AMEX card in the amount of Euro 1485.76. Upon returning the car without any damage, this deposit is returned to the Renter, as it happened last year also in Italy.
The car we got was a Peugeot 206 with 1.1l gasoline engine. The odometer reading at the commencement of the rental was 18098 km, i.e. the car was definitely not a new car. As a matter of fact, it had small dents and scratches all around the body at least in 15 different places. The rental agent told us not to worry, everything were marked on the Inspection sheet. When we went to the garage to pick up the car, upon noticing the scratches, we inspected the car ourselves and found another 10-15 scratches, which were not even marked on the inspection sheet. We marked these also on the inspection sheet, but since we could not find a single attendant around, it was around 7 o'clock at night, we drove off.
Upon returning the car, the inspection noted a small stone chipping on the windshield at the center of the driver side. I know, it happened, but it was so small, they would not have noticed it, if the rain downpour a day before had not cleaned the windshield. There was no crack around the chipping, just a tiny dent. They also noted another scratch at the rear of the driver side, which was allegedly not marked on the inspection sheet, I repeat, the inspection sheet had about 25-30 dents and scratches marked already all around the car, so I really do not know, how they could tell, if it was new scratch! Nevertheless, they refused to return my security deposit. A month later they charged me Euro 712.79. A detailed repair bill followed a month later by registered mail. Instead of repairing the stone chipping, thay replaced the entire windshield at a cost of Eu. 556.99. A small stone chip damage like this costs $45.00 to repair in Toronto. For the allegedly new scratch on the body, they resurfaced the body with 4 hours work, which was another Eu. 148.80, very probably fixing all the other 29 or so scratches that were already there before I picked up the car, using my safety deposit. Strangely, they did not do this before they rented the car out., but now it was I who paid for it. I belived that since my Gold AMEX card has car rental insurance coverage and will take care of the justified repair bill. Never believe it! AMEX refused my request to block the payment of this repair bill, until their Insurance company investigates it, so I had to pay it. So much about the AMEX Gold card car Theft and Damage Insurance guarantee.

Read full review of Sicily By Car and 1 comment
Resolved

The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

Hide full review
1 comment
Add a comment
R
R
robert_langdon
, BR
Dec 14, 2011 4:56 pm EST

This is a abusive and unfair company. I also had problems in September 2011 in Italy. They are now charging me in 150 euros for "handling fees" on some alleged fines. I never receive any copies of such fines even though I insisted with them. Besides according to them this amount of money (which surpasses the value of the rental) will not pay the fines. According to them I still own the government. It is outrageous!

ComplaintsBoard
K
3:47 am EDT
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more
Featured review
This review was chosen algorithmically as the most valued customer feedback.

Sicily By Car - unreasonable additional charge on car rental and bad service

My name is Ka Lok NG, a tourist from Hong Kong. I travelled to Florence and hired a car from Auto Europa during 17 to 18 June 2010. I selected Auto Europa because I thought it is a renowned car rental company in Italy, however I have been extremely disappointed about the service provided by it. My car rental contract ref is XRF612336/09 (RA n. 2314479). I...

Read full review of Sicily By Car and 33 comments
Trust badge
Collect Your Trust Badge
Be recognized for outstanding customer service

Contact Sicily By Car customer service

Phone numbers

800 334 440 800 069 837 More phone numbers

Website

m.sbc.it

Your Voice Matters: Our Commitment to Genuine Reviews

Empowering Real Experiences

At ComplaintsBoard, we believe in the power of true customer stories. Our platform is a space for authentic voices, where experiences, both good and bad, are shared openly and honestly.

Dedicated to Authenticity

ComplaintsBoard is vigilant in our fight against false reviews. Our team employs robust verification methods to ensure every review reflects a real customer experience, upholding the integrity of our platform.

Encouraging Detailed Feedback

ComplaintsBoard values reviews that come with real evidence. Whether it's a photo, a detailed account, or additional documentation, such substantiation adds credibility to your story, helping others make better-informed decisions.

Balanced and Constructive Conversations

We're more than just a complaints board; we're a community for balanced dialogue. ComplaintsBoard encourages reviews that not only highlight issues but also acknowledge positive aspects, fostering a fair and comprehensive understanding.

Free and Fair Platform

ComplaintsBoard's commitment to maintaining a free and unbiased platform is unwavering. Every review is treated equally, ensuring that your voice is heard and respected, regardless of the nature of your experience.

Is ComplaintsBoard.com associated with Sicily By Car?

ComplaintsBoard.com is not affiliated, associated, authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with Sicily By Car Customer Service. Initial Sicily By Car complaints should be directed to their team directly. You can find contact details for Sicily By Car above.

ComplaintsBoard.com is an independent complaint resolution platform that has been successfully voicing consumer concerns since 2004. We are doing work that matters - connecting customers with businesses around the world and help them resolve issues and be heard.

Use this comments board to leave complaints and reviews about Sicily By Car. Discuss the issues you have had with Sicily By Car and work with their customer service team to find a resolution.