One third of rent-a-car users suffer mandatory fuel charges

Date : 27/02/2014
Author : Forum Business Travel

Nearly one-fifth (17%) of users in Spain were forced to pay the mandatory fuel charge in order to take the vehicle the last time they rented a car. That figure rises to 33% of users if their previous rentals are included, according to a survey conducted by Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

The company's survey reflects the risk of super-reduced car rental offers that include a mandatory fuel charge and require the consumer to pay a fee when picking up the vehicle. The main reason given by domestic users who rent a car for leisure purposes to explain why they chose a particular rental company is the price (45%).

Consumers participating in this Europe-wide survey reported that the additional charge amounted, on average, to 80 euro per rental. Based on the estimated number of transactions carried out in Spain in the leisure car rental sector, the total cost borne by consumers could amount to as much as 50 million euros.

According to Enterprise Rent-A-Car, the mandatory fuel charge is often applied by some companies that want to offer the best advertised price;, hiding the final rate from customers who book a car through the Internet, often through portals that show the prices of different suppliers on the same page.

Despite the fact that information regarding mandatory additional charges is usually given in the small print or in the terms and conditions, the actual cost is often not known until the vehicle is picked up at the relevant office. This is despite the fact that, in many cases, the customer has already made a payment in the expectation that it will cover the full cost of the rental.

For Karsten Summers, general manager of Enterprise Rent-A-Car in Spain, "the usual application of a mandatory fuel charge, in our view, is unfair to the consumer. We believe that the price offered should be the real minimum price, without mandatory extras."

Enterprise Rent-A-Car is contacting various European parliamentarians and consumer associations in Spain and Europe to try to raise awareness of this practice.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car is also in contact with the European Parliament and consumer associations in Spain and Europe to try to raise awareness of this practice.