Europcar - KEFALONIA AIRPORT Information, Car hire Instructions & Policies

Very satisfied

Infuriating, very poor service from Europeans. It was around eight or nine at night, and they picked us up to the store, pretending they didn't know I had already paid in full and asked me to pay again. After insisting I had already paid, they reluctantly accepted but started finding fault. First, they said the deposit must be charged to the credit card of the booking driver, which must be a chip card, not a magnetic stripe, and not a UnionPay card. Unfortunately, the booking driver's cards were not chip cards, and they refused to even try. They also wouldn't accept cash. I had a card that met all their requirements and asked if it would work; they said it would require adding an additional driver, charging 50 euros more, and they wouldn't cancel the original order to make me the primary driver. I kept explaining that I wouldn't be driving and it was just my credit card, but they insisted that because the credit card was under a different name, an additional driver fee was necessary. Either we leave and forfeit the money, or pay the 50 euros. We had no choice but to pay. Then, when they heard we were taking the car to Zakynthos, they scared us into purchasing an additional 15-euro insurance policy, claiming the existing insurance only covered Cephalonia. Initially, I thought they were just strict, but later a Chinese girl who booked through another website and didn't prepay was allowed to rent a car with only a Chinese license. They even told her it was considered driving without a license but to call them if police were involved. To summarize: 1. This company is terrible, and rental platforms should better understand these coercive practices and credit card requirements. Their high rating is very unreasonable. 2. Don't assume all Europeans have high moral standards. Some can be very deceitful. 3. Never prepay. If you haven't paid, you have options. Once you've paid, you're at their mercy. Car rental in Europe is very developed and there are many choices. Also, instead of a VW, we got an old Nissan. When asked why, they rudely insisted it was the only car available.