Sixt review: fraud & scam 86

We had a very similar situation when we rented a Panda in Palermo from Sixti in 2008. It was supposed to come with 1200kms included, after which there was an outrageous surcharge for excess kms. They billed our charge card far more than we agreed upon - apparently allowing only 1000kms. At first we assumed that there was a simple misunderstanding, but they don't respond to e-mails from us.

Even though we have a copy of the rental confimation showing what the charges should be, 6 months later we're still arguing with our charge card company about the bill.

Avoid SIXTI like the plaque.

The same situation with in Rome, 2008.
They billed me about 50% more, than was agreed. Sixt are scammers!

I got home the other day after a business trip where I rented from Sixt in Zurich. When I returned the car, they just told me to drive it up to the 7th floor of the parking ramp. Don't know why they couldn't do it as I was at their drop off area. When I came back down, I asked for a receipt since it's a business expense. Reluctantly, the girl put on a coat to go up & inspect the car. She came down and as she was keying in the receipt I asked if everything was fine, she said "yes".

Four days later, I get an email saying there was damage to the car ... a scratch on the rear bumper, passenger side. And they want me to provide a police report or else cover the damages. Say what?

Four days later, with me on the other side of the Atlantic, and all of a sudden the vehicle is damaged? If there really was some damage (I've never had an accident in either my own car or with rentals), then she should have shown it to me and have me sign to confirm this.

I will fight them on this, even though my credit card covers this type of damage.

Rent elsewhere.

Hi, we also had a problem with Sixt. Although we had reservation they did not supply us the car and instead told us to take of our selves. I believe that Sixt doe not know how to be a brand!

an old Sixt customer

I'm going through the same thing with Sixt right now (July, 2009). rented a car in Paris (deGaule) and returned it. The attendant circled the car for almost five minutes and signed me in. My next credit card bill had a charge for $489.80 that's for "paint repair:, which is complete nonsense. I'm in the U.S. This is waste of time and I strongly advise against using Sixt. I sure won't. And I'm fighting this, even though it is a bad use of time, just because I hate these people. DON'T RENT FROM SIXT!

We were regular uses of Sixt, but on our last trip someone drove into us on the motorway. Sixt told us not to worry, as our insurance with them meant we would not get charged. A month later we got a bill for 3, 600 euros, later revised to 1, 800.
My father in law was recently charged for not filling up with petrol, when he had done so, and on another occasion collected a car 75% full of petrol. He went back in to the office to tell them, and they said it was full, but had a fault with the reading. Surprise surprise, when he next filled the car up, the reading went up to 100%.

skammers go with other rentals

I rented a car from sixt in Dublin. I scraped the vehicle in a car park (my first accident ever - in 25 years of driving)... it happened the very last day I was in Dublin. Sixt stated that they would debit my creidt card and send on the paperwork to Australia..When I arrived home I discovered that they had charged me nearly $3000 dollars for what was minor damage - but they have NEVER sent the paperwork - they ignore my emails and refuse to deal with my travel insurance company - my advice - DON'T TOUCH THEM WITH A BARGE POLE - YOU'D BE BETTER OFF WALKING!

I rented a car from Sixt in Malaga in November 2009. I returned the car with a full tank of petrol. A week after arriving home in th UK I received notification that my credit card had been charged 48 euros for a full tank of petrol. I called Malaga and was told I was supposed to return the car empty. As I returned it full I asked them what they had spent my money on. They couldn't answer. The customer service dept in the UK said to send an e-mail with my complaint, which I have done and they are (surprise surprise)totally ignoring. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY

Same with me just got back from Paris, last 16th december 2009 in beauvais ariport. My bill was 48e and they are charging me 197.87€, Dont use this ###ing scammers. AVOID THEM AT ANY COST

Could have used a mercedes from another rented company and still would cost me less. Reported to my bank and they did not receive a penny. Im still with this pending situation as they also dont answer to any email, either france company or deutsch main company.

My exact experience. A 50 Euro overcharge when my credit card statement arrived. But I persisted is complaining and after 6 months finally got a refund. One week later after receiving the refund on my credit card, a letter arrived in the mail demanding 1900 Euro damages to be paid immediately and deposited to their bank account. Needless to say, no damages were ever mentioned at anytime and I had all supporting documents. Sixt is a scam outfit and in no way should anybody do business with them in Germany, especially if you are from another country. Avoid them like the plague.

I also had a problem with Sixt car renting. Even living in Germany it is not safety.
I have hired a car in Prague in March.
I have booked it in advance by Internet on Sixt web page (to be more precisely it was SixtHolidaycars, but it seems to be the same shady business establishment). Cost me 150 euros for VW Polo 4 days. Winter tires for 10 euro/day extra. Payment was held fully from my credit card in advance.
I have clarified by phone the deposit sum – that was 300 euros.
When I came to their office, employee asked me for credit card, passport and driver license. Ok.
She tried to hold a deposit on credit card and asked me whether I have another one. Unfortunately not, just keep trying. But she tried to block 1000 euros (3 times more)! It was definitely impossible.
The answer stroked me, "we are blocking a bit more". After a short negotiation she recommended me to write an e-mail, that they will reimburse money. As a result I have hired the car at another renter for same price and even full CDW.
I have written e-mail at same day, but response came at last day of my stay. They told me that I don’t have any rights to reimburse the money as written in contract and it doesn’t have any sense even it is their mistake of providing non-relevant information.
After my arrival to home I wrote that it does not suitable for me and so on…
In a few days they transferred half to my account back.
Then I had a long term negotiations, a lot of e-mails and spoken about the threat of taking the matter to court.
As a result I have an extremely negative impression of Sixt and Sixt Hollydaycars itself. It is a method of work of swindlers, it is looks as fraud and it is a fraud but it is not a quality of known international firm.
Money as a result has been fully returned to me, after I have sent approx 8 letters to them and a month of waiting.

Then I have found in Internet a similar issue with Sixt and not only once. I would never cross the threshold of their office. Not at any price!

A similar experience happened to me when I returned a Sixt car in Berlin in July 2010. I returned it immaculate and in the same condition as I received it. They claimed I damaged the car and followed with harrassing letters. They initailly stated that the cost is over 1000 euros and are now demanding over 750 euros plus legal fees. They are a bunch of crooks and this is a form of extortion. With so many complaints, where are the regulators?

Sixt not only abuses with the credit cards. IT'S A DANGEROUS COMPANY. I've rented a car in December, 2010 in Paris and whoever traveled in Europe this winter knows the weather conditions were far from ideal. And Sixt gave me a car with a damaged direction! 300 miles on a slippery road it's a whole experience. Probably they need a new slogan: "YOUR RENT WILL COST YOU DOUBLE! If you survive with Sixt..."

We too had a fraudulent claim of scratches to the vehicle after we had returned from our holiday. We used a credit card and payed an additional 297 euros for insurance at the time we picked it up. I just looked on line to see if this was typical. They can correspond with my lawyer now cause they are now threatening legal action. They were not able to access my credit card because I routinely change the number after travelling.

Beware Sixt crooks -- I rented from Sixt Paris in April 2011 and returned to CDG airport. They added euro39.55 to my credit card... But I returned it on time and with a full tank of gas (have receipt to prove it). They do not have an agent in the garage -- you have to walk the keys into the terminal and leave them with the agent so you can't get a receipt on the spot subjecting you to their gas tank scam. I'll never rent Sixt again.

Beware of the Sixt Rental Branch at the Belfast, Northern Ireland International Airport location...they will lie to you about having your reservation ready when in fact, they tell you no cars are available. What they are doing is renting out cars to people who walk up to the counter since they make more money and then when people show up who have a reservation, they tell them they have no cars even though you have a reservation. We videotaped the last incident with this location and soon it will be posted on You Tube. We had to rent another vehicle which costs us three times more since it was a Holiday. The Manager Emily lied to customer service. we will be suing in small claims court to recover our costs

Beware of Belfast International Sixt Rental Agency..they are under investigation by US Dept for Fraud to US Customers

Absolute classical SCAMMERS! I wouldn't rent a donkey 7 cart from Sixt. After I'm home, Sixt notifies me about a scratch on the driver side door. When I turned in the car, it was perfect - no scratches. Fortunately I am a professional photographer and have a very sharp photo of the left side of the rental care. It shows no scratches at all. Sixt billed me for 1100 Euro. They won't see a penny.

We will never rent from Sixt EVER again. My husband rented a car in Paris. The break light turned on unsuspectedly while we were on the freeway. Upon return of the car, my husband reported this, but did not address it. We received blank damage paperwork 2 months later. We were billed 466 Euros for "driving with the parking break on", which was obviously not the case. We were additionally billed for 6L of missing gas, while we filled up the tank down the street. The customer service is ignoring us. I think the company is fraudulent.

I cannot believe I have fallen into their trap. That I was stupid and trustful enough not to take any pictures BEFORE and AFTER. The same scam: you return the car and they claim afterwards in a letter that you have damaged it. Unbelievable. Should I wait for the bill now? Or find a lawyer? I feel that I do not have any proofs and I am totally helpless.

People in SIXT Rent a Car are not capable of honoring commitments

This is not a Honest Company!

Be careful and do not do business with SIXT Rent a Car

I rented a car on Geneva Airport. Now SIXT is claiming that front bumper is loose. I am absolutely sure that I didn't have any damage. Glad to hear that it's just the way company tries to make extra money. I will not pay. It will be interesting to see how far they will go.

I would never rent from SIXT...mysterious payments to my credit card to a total of GBP180, the car rentail was only GBP200...after trying to get any info back from them...nothing after 9 months! Criminals...
I rented a car in the uk (heathrow)

I have the same experience with Sixt in Copenhagen.

WOW! I am VERY happy to have found this "complaintsboard" web site.
I was about to rent on line a car with Sixt for 5 days @ the beginning of November 2012 and found all these complaints!
Thanks google search engine for giving me this site in the first results with the "Sixt complaints" keywords!
To be honest I started suspecting there was something dodgy going on for the low price and all the "small legal printing" that really scared me.
Thanks guys! :O

I have had similar. Hired a car for 10 days, returned undamaged with three witnesses. Return slip signed by the agent who carefully inspected the car and no damage noted. 10 days later 782 pounds (about 1000Euros) disappears from my bank account. No paper work, and no basis for this to be removed. I wish I had read about this criminal organisation before I booked. DO NOT USE SIXT! I have my bank investigating this as fraud, My local trading standards as well.

@ foolilikehell I will be more than happy to check the details for you if you would be kind enough to send through the details. My e-mail address is gary.coughlan@sixt.com

I look forward to hearing from you.

Gary - Sixt Customer Service Team

First of all I want to say that Sixt's car rental at the Miami Airport customer service is by far the worst one I've ever met in a rent a car. Their employees were rude, completely unpolite and unproffesional. I wish I had asked for their names.
Second, I rented car where I was suppose to fit my three kids, my wife and I plus all of our luggae. And what happens? I get there and they tell me they have no more cars of that sort available. So they give me a convertible mustang where obviously we didn't fit. So I complain and what do they tell me? That's it's my problem, take it or leave it on A DECEMBER 28TH AT 11 PM, THOUSANDS OF MILES AWAY FROM MY COUNTRY. HOW IRRESPONSIBLE IS THAT? They're cheap but it's not like I'm getting this for free. So I ask if you they have other cars in nearby Sixts and what do they tell me? "Well, since you're going to Orlando in a few days, you can switch it there". WHAT THE HELL? I mean, we don't fit in the car and they want me to wait three or four days until I magically strap my kids to the roof so I get there? For my good fortune, our friends took our luggage and we made it to our hotel in Fort Lauderdale where I left everything. I took the damn car and called by myself to customer service and after being treater horribly once again, I find out they do have one of the cars I rented in Fort Lauderdale. ONLY 30 MINUTES AWAY FROM THE MIAMI AIRPORT AND THEY WANTED ME TO WAIT UNTIL ORLANDO? So I had to go there and they gave me the car at 4am... So guess what... I lost my hotel stay 'cause by the time I got back with the new car, it was too early in the morning and we had to leave. ARE THEY TO PAY ME BACK MY $100 HOTEL STAY? Of course not.
AND they made me pay for the gas even thought I had to change the car myself.

I also had a similar experience with Sixt Germany. I rented an M3 back in 2011. 4 months later i get some paperwork asking for about a 1, 000 for damages to the car. After some fighting they send a US lawyer after me. When i show them the paperwork and records from my return they ignore me.. Months later and a thousand dollar charge appears on my credit card. Ill spend every minute fighting this charge and every waking day warning people to never rent with them.
scammers.

We also have been riped off by sixt in Spain...they marked
additional charges we did not asked for like tires insurance
They blocked 300eur as a deposit ...we turned the car 5 days
before and they did not refund us..like othor comp..which is ok
...at the airport we dropped off the car and asked to clear
Our invoice bot they told us it will take long time..even there were
very few people...we left and now 4 months and not recievrd
Our deposit...they kept it

Beware. DO NOT rent from SIXT car rental in France.

Fraud is the reason why the toll-free number is not printed on ALL reservation forms. The agent told me that the original reservation at Cerrito 1314 in Buenos Aires was secure and that the "meet and greet" reservation switched to Ezeiza Airport was cancelled without charge.

I have a series of complaints. (1) The online reservation form leads on to believe that cars can be reserved at Ezeiza when obviously they cannot, or if they can, the form should state what models are available when using the Ezeiza sector. I was never told through all email contacts that that was the problem.and I'm still unsure. When filling in the form for Ezeiza it simply states "Unfortunately, we can't confirm your reservation for the required period". This statement is totally obscure the the customer and it should state exactly what the problem is such as wrong model- wrong dates, -we cannot supply any cars at the airport et cetera. (2) no car company should ask for prepayment; I know of none but Sixt that does. It creates all sort of problems to the customer. (3) the "meet and greet" option is totally obscure. I and everyone I have conversed with believes this to mean that an agent will meet the customer with the reserved car at any point including your hotel with the rental for an extra fee. This is what I was expecting, that the rental from Cerrito would be waiting for me at the airport for some $350 Canadian extra. This is certainly what is expected in North America using this phrase. Why can this not be done when the airport is only 30 kilometres from Cerrito? Makes no scenes to me. (4) a Sixt shuttle service should be available to the downtown location from the airport.

I rented a car from Sixt in Buenos Aires, originally from the downtown office by mistake as their website lead one to believe they had an office at the airport. Foolishly, I signed with a prepayment due to their inexpensive price believing the pick-up was at the airport. They charged me twice for the rental but luckily the Visa company discovered the error and one was cancelled. After many many emails, the reservation was changed as a "meet and greet" at the airport. The pick-up went well but there was no agent waiting when returning the car. We videotaped the entire rental with a newspaper proving the date and flew home. Two weeks has passed and we still haven't received the final bill with the extra charged for the "meet and greet" service. Is there a time limit for a rental agency to charge customers?

NEVER, EVER HIRE/RENT FROM SIXT! When I went to pick up the car at Malaga airport I told the agent that I had already purchased collision damage waiver insurance through the booking agent, rentalcars.com. The agent lied to me and said that the insurance I purchased through rentalcars.com was not valid. In addition, the agent added glass and tire insurance, which I did not ask for. Since I had a very early flight, I did purchase the petrol refill, which was exorbitant! When I next looked at my email there was a message from rentalcars.com warning me NOT to purchase insurance from Sixt because it was not necessary-the rentalcars.com insurance covered everything! When I complained the company did not offer any refund or compensation of any kind. Since then I have read numerous reviews from others that have had the same experience, or worse. Their business model is based on defrauding their customers. Sixt is the absolute WORST rental car/car hire experience I have EVER had!

We had problems with Sixt in Germany, too. First, they insisted we trade cars before traveling to Czech Republic,
then tried to charge us for the use of both cars on the day we made the
exchange ! I also believe they have an obligation in Germany to warn
North American drivers of the photo speed traps that are on the
autobahns.

We are not used to these devices, at least in Canada. Drivers travel
so fast on the autobahns that you spend most of your time concentrating
on the drivers that are whipping by you often at speeds well in excess
of 200 kmh. I would think, if only in the interests of good customer
service, Sixt should be warning customers these devices that are
everywhere in Germany. The result is that you miss seeing a few speed
limit signs or are simply following the traffic, then you return to
Canada, and you start to receive multiple invoices for 25 euros each
from Sixt for each time they've provided your i.d. to the police. What a
great way to make extra profit ! I can't imagine how many extra euros
they make each year. I suspect that almost every North American who
rents a car from Sixt ends up paying them multiple 25 euro charges long
after you thought you'd paid your bill.

How do we get our government or the German government to crack down on this company to protect Consumers better? They lost my police report in Italy but are trying to charge me close to $4, 000 Euros!

I have also been a victim to Sixt fraudulent tactics in Switzerland. I rented a vehicle in Geneva to travel to the UK. The vehicle had been previously in a collision on the driver side and had multiple scratches and bumps all over. When I saw the vehicle I took some pictures in my cellphone and went back to the office to show the attendant (no one was in the parking lot). The attendant looked at the pictures and said that all the damage was registered in the contract. The contract indeed had a list of damage but the descriptions were too ambiguous to identify each scratch and bump. In any case I was too naive and believed the attendant statement that "it should all be OK". Since no other vehicle was available and I needed to leave I took the vehicle. The next day the steering system broke down and the tied rod on the wheel on the driver side (the side that had been in a collision) broke. This failure was clearly caused by the previous accident and Sixt failed to perform a mechanical check of the car. Luckily, the accident happened at very low speed (at about 5 km/hr) and nothing else happened but it could have been lethal. Now, Sixt is harassing me to pay the insurance deductible ($1300 CHF) plus some extra fees and their only argument is that the car was in my possession when the accident happened. I have consulted with lawyers in Geneva but it seems it is very difficult and costly to pursue legal action for negligence. I am in disbelief with this company's lack of ethics.

The service I received at Sixt is extremely disappointing. I hired car for less than 24 hours on 16th of February from London Kings Cross. First after few miles I noticed that fuel is not full (8/8) but 7/8, but thought: ok, maybe you had to bring the car for me and it has taken a longer distance. I return car on time (next morning hours) and thought it is the end of our story. How wrong I was? Today we have 6th of March and I am still waiting for depose refund 250 GBP. How long could it be?

Have hired from Sixt many times in Dublin airport, but will never do so again after appalling service on Christmas Eve. When I drove from the car rental office onto the motorway, messages started flashing up on the dashboard that there was insufficient ain't in the front tyre, and I needed to take immediate action. After licking up my husband around 20 minutes later we headed to a garage, and filled the tyre with air. Then the car wouldn't start. No response from Sixt on Christmas Eve, so I called the roadside assistance number on the rental agreement. The AA arrived, and advised the battery was completely flat (about an hour after I hired the car). Even though none of this was remotely my fault, Sixt have changed me £148 for the AA call out, and continue to blame me. I would steer well clear of this dreadful company.