The most Terrible Customer service has a name: EUROPCAR South Africa

 

Keywords an memo for the Book: Saegezahn 3 (bad performers) - when the end is near!!

We have been customers since years and been more or less happy with the Car Rental Company EUROPCAR in South Africa.

The cars often had some minor failures as the missing sealings in the canopies of our bakkies. But no feedback on our complaints.
Yes bakkies. We usually go up into the Kalahari and need 4x4. So we rent bakkies.

 

If EUROPCAR was too expensice, we tried to book via our Travel agency. When it was cheaper with the agency, we booked there and got the EUROPCAR bakkie.

Nobody can explain the pricing model. But that's not our job.  

 

Two years ago  we made a wrong booking with a single cab ISUZU. Terrible - but our own mistake.

 

Last year in September we booked again for the flower season. Toyota HiLux 4x4 manual gear.
After a week or so we recognized, that one of the tires looses some pressure,  we asked EUROPCAR, which local tire repair could to this minor maintenance as we had  windscreen & tyre insurance included.   We got tyre repairs or changes  before at Hi-Q and we have one (Hi-Q) here in Bredasdorp.

BUT NO!!!


EUROPCAR said: No tyre repair, we will get a new car. Delivered from Cape Town. 204 km ONE WAY!!
OK for us, if they have the money to do so. We got a Toyota HiLux 4x4 autotmatic.  No problem, when in easy terrain the automatic is also  fine.

After another 2 weeks of rental time we got a phone call, that the car ius not visible on their monitoring system. They have to change the car.
The guy at the line asked, if we need the large loading compartment of the pickup or if we are also fine with a FORTUNER?. Yes - of course. We had a week left in our holiday and want to spent the time on the beach fishing. So a FORTUNER is fine. We often saw the FORTUNERS in the Kalahari but did not book them because of the very high rental rate.
Late in the evening the driver arrived on our holiday resort with a FORTUNER.
In the meantime after all the problems we have a checklist, when getting a car from  EUROPCAR.
So we checked: 4x4
And NO - it was a 2x4.
We didn't even know there was a 2x4 FORTUNER - but it was.
The driver did not know about our 4x4 booking, because he was a sub-contractor.
We first did not want to accept the car, but  decided to accept late in the night and want to clear the mess up on the next day.

On the next day EUOPECAR Cape Town was astonished, as I accepted a FORTUNER. THEY KNOW NOTHING!!!!!
Anyway, we spent the last week of our holidays without 4x4 and without driving into the dunes to the beach. That's Africa.
Thank you EUROPCAR!!

 

THEN we go the final invoice of the rental:
40 days for the 4x4
AND: 2 x Transfers from CapeTown to Struisbaai and back  for the 2 changings  of the car!!!!

 

Imagine: they charged me the transfer NOBODY ASKED FOR!!!!

After some (rude?) emails  EUROPCAR said: As a gesture of goodwill, they refrain from charging me  the 2 transfers.
I asked, if they are stupid?? I did not order the transfers.
THEY HAVE TO DO SOMETING, to make me happy again and COMPENSATE my lost week not going to the beaches for fishing!!!!!

We call this procedure: Complaints management by Baseball Cap.
The poor performer has to do SOMETHING to make the customer happy again.
NOT JUST undo the mistake or failure. The poor performer has to add on SOMETHING.
A baseball cap.
To say: I am so sorry is the stupid AMERICAN way.

 

After another 10 emails Mr. André B.  (Name of the expert is known to the editorial staff) offered 5 days free of charge on my next rental contract, that was already in the system for 40 days 4x4.
Hey man, that's a lot of money. 
But 5 days is fine for me to compensate my lost week not going fishing. Compromise!!
He did not accept my suggestions to do better!! That's also ok for me and not new!!  We call it: advice-resistant!!

 

No - it's not over.  The story I mean.
We arrived at Cape Town Airport and want to pick up our 4x4 car as usually. We got the keys and went to the car park.
A friendly but clueless employee showed us the car. As mentioned before, we have a short checklist:



But NO: It was NO 4x4!!!
With a rental cost of 46.576 RAND, this is appr. 2.450 EURO we got a 2x4!!
The friendly employee said, that maybe the 4x4 sign was removed by some tourists. But if the 4x4 and "Low Gear switch" is missing, IT IS NO 4x4.
We complained and got a 4x4. AND: we asked to inform Mr. André  B. (the Expert) by email.
And: of course: no feedback, no apology. AS USUAL!!!

Now we fight with the Credit Card transaction.
EUROPCAR charged us the WHOLE DEPOSIT (appr. 50% at the begin of the rental period, 50% at the begin of 2nd rental period. EUROPCAR is not in a position to make rentals longer than 30 days, so they have to split the rental into 30 days and the rest of the days in another rental period. Experts anyway.

Usually after 2 days after the return of the car all invoices (2!!) are booked on the credit card.
This time, after the return of the car  we had the WHOLE DEPOSIT boooked followed by the first invoice (first 30 days).
We asked for some information about this new business model. NO ANSWER so far!!!
So we think, this is kind of FRAUD and asked the Credit Card BANK to help us (AGAIN).

More, when the case is  finished.  It will not change the ranking.
EUROPCAR is no. 1  in the list of the WORST customer service.
No. 2 is ESCOM,  the load shedding company. They are the No.1 experts in delivering: load-shedding!!.
No. 3. is Build-IT a hardware store with the standard answer: we no have!!!

 

 

They (EUROPCAR and Mr. André) tried hard to get rid of me as a customer.
So - in this point -  they will be successful.  

 

 
Franz REINISCH

and yes:
this little story will make it into my Vol. 3 of Stories about poor performers, stupid business and government behavior.
In a ranking about the bad performers EUROPCAR is on top of the list at the moment. That's not easy with ESCOM and the South African Government (ANC) as the main competitors.