The new European 'traffic penalties' car hire charge

Did you hire a car this summer? If so, check your credit card statement. You may find you’ve been charged additional fees long after you returned the vehicle and flew back home.

When Theresa and Edward Bamber booked car hire for a week in Rome earlier this summer through Hertz, they were quoted an overall cost of about €160 (£117).

This was very attractive but, as often happens, their bill at the end of the week was bumped up with extra costs for petrol and the addition of another driver.

Those costs were acceptable. Far more disturbing, however, was the deduction from their credit card of about €170 in “administration fees” which came several months later.

Mr and Mrs Bamber, both 73 and living in Ginestas in the south of France, where they retired, were horrified. Mr Bamber said: “The extra charges I had to pay at the end of the rental period in May were bad enough. But I am most shocked about Hertz being able to use my card to impose further fees after the event.”

Hertz claims that the four administration fees of €42.70 each, which appeared on Mr Bamber’s credit card statement last month, related to four separate traffic violations reported by Rome’s traffic police. The fees are not in themselves fines, simply the charge Hertz applies for passing on drivers’ details to the relevant authorities.

The Bambers now wonder whether they will in due course receive notification of the fines sent directly from Rome’s traffic police.

They were not aware of infringing any speed or parking restrictions and cannot understand how the penalties arose.

A Hertz spokesman told Telegraph Money: “In accordance with Hertz’s terms and conditions, we provided the authorities with Mr Bamber’s contact information and billed him for the mandatory administration fee.

“An administration fee was applicable on each violation, but we have refunded one of the transactions as a gesture of goodwill.”

The Bambers feel they have been trapped into accepting the charges.

“I have not heard anything from the Italian authorities about the alleged violations, which all appear to have taken place on the first day of the holiday,” said Mr Bamber.

“I am confident that I did not exceed any speed limits or park illegally, but I see no way of proving it to Hertz.”

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Unexpected charges

Mr Bamber is far from the only holidaymaker to be hit with unexpected car hire charges long after the rental period.

Car hire companies reserve the right to use the credit card details you provide to charge you unforeseen or additional charges as and when they come up.

Some of these charges, such as those for minor damage or extra cleaning services, are applied immediately after the end-of-rental inspection.

Others, including toll fees and speeding fines, can be charged to your card many months later.

“We apply traffic fines and local road and toll charges when we receive notification from the relevant authorities,” Hertz said.

The consumer group Which? receives lots of complaints about delayed car hire charges.

“If you find any unexpected charges are taken from your card, ask for an explanation and supporting documents from the company,” it advised.

“If you are not happy with the explanation, tell the company the money has been taken 'under protest’ and inform your card company about the dispute.”

You may be able to make a claim under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act if you paid by credit card.

Debit card users, meanwhile, can ask their providers to reverse the payment via chargeback.

You can also report your complaint to the European Car Rental Conciliation Service (ECRCS) or British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA).

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Extra costs

You can find car hire on the Continent for as little as £10 a week.

But while the base price is low, there are more and more extra charges to pay on top – and some of them are pretty sneaky.

If, for example, you arrive at a car rental counter to be told, “We’re giving you an upgrade!” it is worth double-checking that it is free of charge.

Some companies will argue that by accepting it you agreed to be charged.

Check too what the fuel policy is. Many car hire firms now expect you to “collect full, return empty”, meaning they can charge you for the full tank you get at the start of your rental period and benefit from any fuel left in it at the end.

Other charges to look out for include those for additional equipment such as satnav systems and car seats for children.

Excess waiver insurance

Most hire cars come with insurance included as standard.

However, there will generally be an excess (the amount you must pay towards any claim) of £1,000 or more.

Often, you will therefore be advised to take out an excess waiver policy, which can cost you as much as £20 a day, or £140 a week.

That’s twice as much per day as it supposedly costs to hire a car for a whole week with some car hire firms.

But you can find stand-alone excess waiver policies from separate providers for a fraction of the price.

Insurance4carhire.com, for example, offers excess reimbursement insurance from £3.99 per day, or £39.99 per year.

The only downside is that you will often have to pay the car hire policy excess upfront if your car is damaged or stolen, before claiming it back from your insurer.

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