Yesterday, I rented a car from Europcar at Frankfurt Airport. I had booked a Golf estate car and requested a diesel vehicle in the notes of my reservation. However, I was given an Opel estate car, which was diesel and automatic, and I had to pay a pre-authorization deposit of over 800 euros. The trunk could only fit two 28-inch suitcases and one 24-inch suitcase, along with some backpacks. The cover for the trunk couldn't be pulled up, and the luggage was exposed. Additionally, the previous renter had clearly broken one of the clips on the cover, so I took photos as evidence. I'm not sure if having exposed luggage will cause any issues when I go to Poland. Yesterday, I drove 400 kilometers, and the fuel gauge showed that I had used almost half of the fuel ?
Poland Q&A
Return and inspection of the car
1. Prepare the checklist provided by the rental company before
2. Rental agreement, insurance documents, deposit receipt
3. Wash the car before returning it, both interior and exterior. Otherwise, you may be fined up to 500 Swiss francs for car washing (e.g. in Switzerland)
4. All photos taken when picking up the car
5. Return the car with a full tank of gas. Otherwise, you may be charged for refueling, which can be expensive
6. Take a photo of the fuel gauge
7. Take photos of any potential scratches to avoid being overcharged
8. When the car is inspected, make sure to check what is written and any associated fees. If there are any objections, resolve them before signing. This can be a stressful time, especially if you are in a rush to catch a flight, and you may overlook certain issues. It can be difficult to resolve them once you have returned home
9. The deposit refund will depend on the rental company checking for any violations, parking tickets, or toll charges. It may take 1-2 months to receive the deposit refund, and there will be no notification. The charges will be automatically deducted
Additional information: Some gas stations offer automatic and manual car wash services. Both require self-operation.
Automatic car wash: Drive in, the brushes will automatically clean and dry the car. The cost varies from 10-29 Swiss francs, depending on the size of the car. Advantages: Quick, approximately 10-20 minutes. Disadvantages: Expensive, and the car may not be thoroughly cleaned. Vacuuming requires coins, approximately 1 franc for 10 minutes
Manual car wash: Advantages: Cheaper, more thorough cleaning, and can help identify any issues. Disadvantages: Tiring, limited time with the car wash hose, need to purchase car wash detergent. Indoor vacuuming requires renting a vacuum for approximately 1 franc for 10 minutes ?
Switzerland Q&A
For one-off compensation and various benefits for those who suffer permanent injury. Q: What constitutes an "accident"? Any illness or injury caused by a sudden event. Some cases are uncontroversial: those who have been assaulted, involved in a car accident, fallen over, self-harmed, injured by any external force, and sudden illnesses that cannot be predicted. ACC will usually accept these cases straight away, without seeking a doctor's professional opinion. Some cases may be related to past medical history, for example, if someone who previously had high blood pressure suffered a heart attack or stroke in New Zealand, there is controversy over whether this counts as an "accident". ACC will usually seek a doctor's opinion and then make a decision on whether to pay compensation. However, in these cases, doctors usually side with the patient and advise ACC to pay compensation. Unlike general commercial insurance companies, ACC can be "free" and automatically joined. The biggest difference between ACC and general commercial insurance companies is that you don't have to join ACC insurance before an accident happens. As long as you are a natural person in New Zealand, you are automatically insured ?
New Zealand Q&A
I originally drove on the highway in southern France. Each section had a different toll. Some had toll booths where you had to take a card, while others required you to pay first without a card. Look at the signs above the toll booths to see if you need to take the ETC lane or the regular lane with the toll sign. There was a toll to get to Paris, and there was a toll on one section of the highway to Monaco. There were no tolls on the highways in southern France, but I remember there was an automatic machine at Nice airport that could exchange paper money for coins. I think the toll machines automatically counted the coins you put in, so you didn't have to count them yourself. There were a lot of one-way streets in France, especially in small towns, and the roads were very narrow. Also, always lock your car doors when you leave it, because we were waiting at a red light on a road in Gannat and someone opened our trunk. Fortunately, we had read in the guidebook to lock the car doors before getting out, so we didn't get stolen. This time, we picked up the car in Paris and drove to the Loire Valley ?
France Q&A