Holidaymakers Warned About Hire Car Dangers

Tourists have been warned to carefully inspect any hire cars they may take abroad while on holiday.

New research has warned of the hidden charges, death-trap defects and insurance rip-offs waiting to ensnare the unwary traveller.

Threadbare tyres, worn brake pads, barely road worthy vehicles with 200,000 km on the clock, rental agreements with nasty surprises for the unsuspecting consumer such as a 1000 euro excess to pay in the event of damage to a nine year old car and brazen credit card charges for vehicle damage not caused by the customer were just some of the shocking findings generated by this survey.

Even an experienced market-researcher working on the study found himself hit with a €300 (£210) charge to his credit card that the car hirer was unable to explain.

"Britons need to be a bit more forceful, adopt the attitudes of some of our fellow Europeans, like the Germans, who are strong consumers," said a representative of the consortium which carried out the research.

"In many instances, pre-damage was not marked on documentation, which makes a hirer very vulnerable,"

"Britons have got to get into the habit of insisting on this. It is common practice in the UK."

A major common failing everywhere was the absence of compulsory in car equipment - e.g. warning triangles and first aid kits. It is unacceptable that paying consumers should be forced to accept vehicles that are not equipped in compliance with the legal requirements of the country thus also exposing themselves to fines and unsafe situations.

While in most parts of the EU the quality of cars was found to be reasonable, cars in Turkey, Tenerife and Rhodes were found to have life-threatening faults. Opting for international brands was no guarantee of safety or decent customer service standards.

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