[Closed] Car hire in Italy

Get a separate insurance policy and just go with the cheapest one. My experience is they really do go for the hard sell with extras in Italy. I'd avoid Gold.

You say stung... In what way.? I'm off to Italy in June and looking at car hire and toying with separate insurance.

The last couple of times we've been to Italy, we've used one of the biggies - Europcar in Pisa and Avis in Siena. There didn't seem to be much difference in price compared to apparently local companies. Didn't get pushed to buy add ons (except insurance).

I got separate insurance. Picked up car in Turin very friendly.

I used Avis when I was in Milan, took out waiver insurance here though.  Didn't have to claim on anything.  Was all pretty painless

I used "Sicily by Car" from Milan over Easter (Part of Auto Europe).

They were fine.

To be honest, I wouldn't trust any of them not to spot some piece of minor damage that you'd missed, so I always buy a separate excess insurance policy. About £40 for the year.

Used Enterprise, via Auto Europe last September and the experience was on par with here. Actually possibly better, because on requesting a Golf I got a Golf, rather than a Renault/Peugeot/Ford the same size as a Golf.

Auto Europe offer their own excess waiver cover which was a lot cheaper than Enterprise's. The whole process was very smooth. Picked up from Florence Airport and dropped off at Milan Airport.
http://www.autoeurope.co.uk/

Top tip, most autostrada tolls are paid at a booth when you exit, but for some you have to go online or call up to pay.

Sorry, just marking for reference...

Just looking at the same myself. Hertz currently have 15% in Europe. The cheapest car that comes up, almost half the price of the next car which is an economy model is an Audi A5 Sportback, not sure why it’s so cheap to be honest. Does anyone know if I would fit 2 large cases and 2 small cases in the boot of one?

timely thread, looking at this myself for a months time.  flying into pisa, staying near lucca and will be after a motor for most of the stay.  ive read to just use the big three, hertz, avis or europcar, anything else is a gamble, altho to me its all a gamble.

i read on a thread 2 or 3 days ago someone on here mentioned they were in pisa right now so i was going to mail and ask them whether they hired one or not but cant remember the thread.

redmex appears to be in Pisa currently (based on the Peroni! thread)

Problem can be that you choose to use one of the bigger, ‘better’ companies, but when documents come through/you arrive at the airport they have subcontracted to one of the dodgy ones anyway.

I spent ages trying to sort through it for a trip to the Maratona, and in the end I ended up going through my Amex card travel services. They use all the same crap companies, but I just felt that I might get a more sympathetic ear if there was an issue. And I took out excess instance with Questor for £15.

As it was there were no issues and no hard sell, and they gave us a 1km old car so no potential for dodgy damage claims.

No idea if the Amex helped or I was just lucky.

Hired in Pisa a few weeks back - went cheap and cheerful (GreenMotion through Holiday Autos). Took out a separate xs policy for about £11.

Hire company were OK but bloody miles from the airport (20 min shuttle bus and only one shuttle - we got lucky but you could have a long wait if you'd just missed it!). Sizing of the car was "optimistic" to say the least, but probably more down to Holiday Autos I guess. We ended up with Fiat Panda which was supposed to seat 5 people and 2 suitcases!!

redmex appears to be in Pisa currently (based on the Peroni! thread)

thats the one.  was thinking it was the 'how do you use money abroad' thread, but no, youve got it.

thanks chaps.