We found out about Auto Europe in 2006 and have booked car rentals through them 2x so far. Very reasonable & competitive rates and excellent service.

Posted By LT on May 16, 2008, 12:09 PM

I've used them, too, in Ireland. One thing I noticed, though: Auto Europe is not a rental car company itself. It's a booking agency (a la Orbitz). The rental-car chains themselves may attempt to tack on bogus charges.

You may get a surprise charge on your credit card directly from the rental car company, weeks after your trip. This will be a separate charge from what Auto Europe charges you. If unnecessary charges appear, call Auto Europe. It will assist you in disputing them. (Note: You have just as much of a chance of facing this same problem if you booked directly with the rental-car company, particularly if the company isn't American, I've found anecdotally. So it's not a reflection on the Auto Europe experience.)

Posted By Sean on May 16, 2008, 5:06 PM

What's even better than Auto Europe is booking through their affiliate www.gemut.com. They apparently do a lot of rentals for Auto Europe and, at least in Germany and maybe other countries, get special rates from them that are lower than Auto Europe quotes at their website or if you phone for a quote.

In any case, their prices are at least as good and you have all the Auto Europe services and guarantees. But the big reason I like them is the personal service and their knowledge of renting cars and traveling in Europe. On a Frankfurt rental they saved me about $125 when they suggested I pick up the car from an office 5 minutes from the air port, thus avoiding the 19% airport tax. I was able to return the car to the airport after the rental, no extra charge. Ask for Andy.

Posted By Guy Crouchback on May 17, 2008, 12:12 PM

BE CAUTIOUS!!! I rented a car from EuropeCar (through Auto Europe) in Australia, paid for insurance, and when I got in an accident, I was told my insurance was voided because the accident was my fault! This may be EuropeCar and not Auto Europe, but evidently in the 'fine print' of the contract, they 'loophole' themselves out of liability if the accident was the fault of THEIR insured. I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF INSURANCE NOT PAYING JUST BECAUSE THEIR INSURED WAS AT FAULT!!! They refunded the cost of the insurance then slapped me with a $6,000 repair bill. So, again, BE CAUTIOUS!!!

Posted By Rick Sherwood on May 19, 2008, 12:25 PM

We had a terrible experience with Europcar/Autoeurope in France. We booked online and paid for our rental in advance. We were asked for our ID at pickup in Paris and, without thinking about it, we both gave them ID. We returned the car at the airport and asked for a receipt which they did not give us but they said there were no other charges. Two months later a charge appeared on our credit card for an additional $89. We disputed the charge with our credit card company, who after reviewing our submissions, agreed with us (they actually required reams of documentation). Then the threatening letters from Europcar began. They said that the charges were for an extra driver (laughable because although I made the reservation, I do not even drive a manual) and that we had extra time on the car (although we dropped it off 2 hours before our flight as planned). They said if we didn't pay, that we would never be able to rent a car in Europe again. After several rounds of negotiation with them, we felt forced to cave in.

Posted By SS on May 19, 2008, 12:57 PM

We have been using Auto Europe for years for rentals in Germany and Holland. The service and prices are excellent. I recently made a booking and they had a new sale. Without question, my reservation was changed and I saved an additional $110.00. I recommend Auto Europe highly.

Posted By Muffi on May 19, 2008, 1:29 PM

AutoEurope has given us superb service over the years, including bailing us out of bad situations (not our fault) right on the spot when we called their number for help. In one case, for example, the car rental company (Europcar) at the Rome airport had made a major mistake with the reservation and claimed to have no appropriate car for us. We were exhausted after flying from Seattle and had to get to Assisi for an event. One call and AutoEurope had it straightened out. I would never rent from anyone else.

Posted By Jane Ellis on May 19, 2008, 1:34 PM

I've rented from AutoEurope in Italy several times, in France and in Ireland, since 1992. Always the best prices, great service, everything as promised -- which is why I've gone back to them again and again.

Posted By Tamra Fine on May 19, 2008, 2:31 PM

We have used Auto Europe but have found a couple of others to check as well since different consolidators may be using different vendors and costs can vary. Auto Europe did not offer the best price in our last trip.

Tiger, Argus and Nova are three European consolidators who pretty predictably provide some of the most favorable quotes. We have dealt with two now and have been quite satisfied. One provided us with a contract from Hertz (I think) and the other from Budget at rates much lower than other sites.

All three of those consolidators provide quotes with the basic collision damage waiver included in the price. The upgrade coverage is still additional if you choose it but even so, that's a big bonus.

Posted By Fran on May 19, 2008, 4:21 PM

Postscript from the author.. some of you were right with your warnings about AutoEurope and perhaps I was a little hasty to laud the company. I did get billed by Europcar for an extra driver, and tax on the extra driver charge, after I returned my car and came home. The extra charges were equivalent to what I got back in the refund for returning the car early.

C'est la vie.

Posted By Justin Bergman on May 21, 2008, 2:56 PM

I've used Auto Europe on several occasions and found them to be very good. However if I'm travelling with my husband, Auto Europe make an additional charge of around £5 sterling per day for an additional driver whereas with economnycarhire a 2nd driver is free of charge.

Posted By Karen Bryan on May 22, 2008, 5:03 PM

Good news!!!I i have a chance travel to Europe, i want to try it !

Posted By micle on May 23, 2008, 8:32 AM

I've used AutoEurope many times in both Europe and the US over the past 7 years and not had any problems with them. I recently booked a car in the US (I'm an expat in the Netherlands) and had some issues with printing my confirmation. I inadvertantly by pushing the back button booked the car a second time. I contacted the e-mail help desk and got a speedy response that they would correct it and credit the extra charge back to my credit card, which they did do.

I've also found that if I book using the Dutch language site of AutoEurope that it is cheaper than using the English version of the site. My Dutch isn't great but if you can get through the screens of name & address etc in a foreign language you might be able to save a little more.

Posted By Andrea on May 29, 2008, 6:57 AM

If you book with Auto Europe you need to read the voucher they send. It itemizes all the extra charges you will be assessed in Europe. You should not be surprised by extra driver charges or road taxes. They are standard all over Europe. In addition, watch out for Tiger, Argus, Nova. They are Europe-based brokers and their price includes the CDW insurance. Sounds good but is not because there's a high deductible that will cost you big time to reduce to zero deductible. Your credit card's insurance (free and zero deductible) in that instance is no good because they require that you decline the CDW offered by the rental company. I'm sticking with gemut.com who tell me verbally and in writing about all charges to be encountered AND guarantee my rental in US dollars.

Posted By Guy Crouchback on June 2, 2008, 2:55 AM

Has anyone ever rented from Sixt in Germany? We have reserved a car with them for Christmas. We would welcome any input. Thanks!

Posted By Anne B on June 17, 2008, 11:31 AM

In reply to Anne B asking about Sixt car rental in Germany - I had nothing but the best of experience with Sixt each time I used them.
I have used also AutoEurope for many years as a travel agent for our clients and had consistently good experience through the years of service. Just like anything else-read your voucher and you will not be surprised with extra charges. Better yet, let your travel agent or AutoEurope agent explain to you what to expect.

Posted By Peter D on June 18, 2008, 2:39 PM

I travel to Europe every year. We have been using Auto Europe for the past 5 years in Spain and Italy. They have always been a pleasure to do busines with. This year we received a faulty GPS and the vendor nevertheless insisted that we pay for it regardless of the fact it didn't work.
Auto Europe went to bat for us. And after they were not successful in convincing the vendor that we shouldn't have to pay for it, Auto Europe took it upon themselve to reimburse us for the charges.
I am travelling to Europe again this year and wouldn't think of using anything but Auto Europe.

Posted By Blase Spinozzi on June 21, 2008, 5:55 PM