Car hire in Guatemala

I had a reservation and they didn’t have cars!!! Why take the damn reservation if you won’t be accommodate us!!!!

When we arrived, they didn't have any car of any size available for my reservation; the friendly representative at the counter told us they were overbook because of the holidays, and he offered to help find alternatives with other rental companies. It was very frustrating because it forced us to change our plans and scramble to find another way to travel that day. To make this service better they should either have more units available or manage better their inventory to avoid overbooking.

We have been given a car that was dented on every single corner and side, scratches everywhere and very dated. Not a problem, considering the money we've paid. HOWEVER, once we got at the counter, we have been asked to pay the car insurance (in lieu of the deposit blocked on the card), which is standard for all car rental companies. The only exception was, that we have been traveling before abroad and rented cars in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Iceland and other cities in Europe. Usually the car insurance fee is somewhere in the region of the rental fee (i.e. £200 for rental = approx. £200 for insurance). On this occasion though, we've been told that the insurance was mandatory (not optional) and the options we had were $45/day for minimum insurance (covers nothing basically), $70/day for average insurance (covers almost everything, including accidental tip-over, scratches, etc.) or $100/day for the full coverage (almost full, as 1 thing from their list was not covered). We have agreed finally to pay the outrageous fee of nearly $600 for insurance although was not very fair and exaggerated. After this, the team needed to mention also (very convenient at the end after we made the payment for insurance), that although we have paid for the insurance, we still need to lock a deposit on the card of nearly $600. That was outrageous!!! But we had no other option but to pay that too. The tip of the iceberg though, was when we have returned the car with now had a minor scratch (Guatemala City is crazy to drive in), the Europcar team claimed, that the "medium insurance" covers only 50% of the damages. Although on windshield and windows, the insurance clearly specified 40% coverage only, on all other items (including tip-over of car and rims, scratches, dents, etc.) there was no mentioning of percentage cover. THIS WAS CLEARLY A LOW MOVE ON THEIR PART! We obviously made our case and stated, that if this was their position then we will have no other option but to complain even further. One of their employee, had the nerve to even suggest that 'none of this would have happened if we would have purchased the full coverage'. What a t.w.a.t!!!! We had to argue with one of their managers on the spot and told him that this is outrageous, explained our point of view so we can finish as soon as possible with closing the paperwork so wee can catch our flight. When I told them that I prefer to roll over the car and give it back as this is covered by the insurance fully, rather than the scratches, he started smiling, then switched the story, saying that the insurance leaflet we had is not the contract, and THE CONTRACT WE HAVE SIGNED takes precedence, therefore, they are entitled to charge us and that clearly states that the medium coverage, allows only for 50% cover. When asked to find the clause in contract that states this, he gave up and told their colleagues to release the papers so we can go, with no extra cost. We have felt abused (financially) by Europcar and their employees and I can reassure them, that even if I have to go elsewhere and pay a higher price, WE WILL NEVER AGAIN USE THEM. It's not just about the money, it is the principle. Just because you can, doesn't mean that you have to abuse you clients. We have been rudely spoken too, cornered to pay the fees, and felt ambushed when 4-5 of them gathered around us to try and "convince" us that we are at fault. This is the worst experience we have encountered this time. Please bear in mind that we have hired before cars in Guatemala from Alamo few years before and we are used with the terms and conditions of rental companies in Guatemala. We have also rented cars from Europcar in Europe, so they cannot say that Europcar has different rules and terms in different countries. Usually the terms and conditions and the criteria of rental are quite similar across all rental companies, across borders. Bottom of line, worst experience ever!!

While I realize this is likely NOT a common occurrence, I was prepared to use a debit card to pay for this rental and security deposit when I got to Guatemala (as I have done many times before). Enterprise did not accept debit cards and I was left stranded. This was not communicated before I reached Guatemala.

Alamo is right few steps of the main entrance. Good price and new cars

The first time I rent a car with Alamo they pick me up at airport and then we went to the office to do the paper work, and when I returned the car they take me to the airport too. This time nothing of this happened, I had to walk to the airport

I liked that cars are clean and they take care of them

First of all, the location at Hotel Casa Santo Domingo doesn't exist, so I had to call the Hertz 1-800 number. First time they reassured me that yes everything is fine with the reservation, as mentioned, it didn't exist. The second time I called the 1-800 number they tried to convince me that it existed even though I was literally at the supposed location. They then suggested that I should walk (across town) to the other location to take my chances and see if they might have a vehicle and it wasn't until I insisted that they try to make those arrangements over the phone (as the customer service should) did they try to fix it. Never got a confirmation email, but luckily I asked for the revised number because when I got to the second location they couldn't find the information in their system. They also forgot to tell me that the time I had reserved it for was actually the time they were planning to leave from Guatemala City to transport the vehicle to the location? So I had to sit there and wait for another 2 hours. Then, when doing the contract, there were a TON of additional fees that were NOT disclosed when booking online, such as an international license fee, which originally was ~500Q but when I returned the contract they increased it to ~600Q??? The staff was nice, and when I reported minor damage they waived it, which was very nice of them. Overall though, terrible experience. You should stop listing the Hotel Casa Santo Domingo location on KAYAK and you should disclose all of the fees in advance.

The representative was very pleasant to work with!

We did not get a car despite a confirmation through Kayak.

The drop off procedure was irregular. I asked if the office was going to be opened and they said yes. When I arrived that office was closed, no one gave me my vouchers or papers that proved that the condition of the car or gas level was according to AVIS expectations. One day later I had to call and asked for my contract to be formally closed.

A good experience

Did not have the car I asked for and canceled on me one hour before pickup

They did not have a car

They didn’t have cars

Excelente servicio