Green Motion Car Hire review – possible scam?
Popping this tale of woe here to share my experience of dealing with Green Motion Car Hire – I hope this will warn others to steer clear of this dodgy car hire company with this Green Motion Car Hire review.
I booked a hire car with Green Motion in April 2023 for a work trip. I hire cars all the time with zero issues but had never used Green Motion before. When I returned the car, the member of staff who collected the car showed me a scratch on the front bumper and told me I must have caused this and therefore had to pay for damage.
I categorically did not cause this damage in any way and told the staff member so, but the Green Motion member of staff escorted me to the front desk and made me feel like I had no choice but to be charged almost £500, as the company had my deposit and were claiming I caused this damage. I suspected this was a scam payment but I allowed them to take this payment under protest. I was really unhappy but felt like I was being coerced into agreeing to pay so that I could leave and catch my flight on time.
I actually had already booked my own excess insurance as I usually do when hiring cars, so thought I could sort this through them (otherwise I would have tried harder to sort this in the office) . However when I phoned the insurance company they informed me that they specifically do not cover Green Motion due to ‘the high number of fraudulent charges this company makes for damage not caused by the driver’. As such, I’m not able to claim back this fee through them, which is not their fault – I should have checked the small print.
I’ve done some research and it looks like Green Motion regularly try to scam their customers, as laid out in this BBC article. The Guardian also reported they are one of their most-complained about companies.
I’ve tried to call Green Motion twice but never got through to anyone. I then emailed and instead of getting any help, had various people aggressively asking me who I’d spoken to at my excess insurance company, so that they could press charges against them for libel! What’s funny is that if you look about, many excess insurance companies do not cover Green Motion, and you have to wonder why.
Next time I’ll carefully check the reviews of a new car hire company I haven’t heard of, and will also check my excess insurance covers them.
Unfair car rentals are disappointingly common – but there are companies out there that provide quality services and good reviews, such as Renty, which offer a large selection of different car brands from budget to sports cars and luxury cars, as well as 24/7 support.
