Paris National/Citer Car Rental A Disaster

I recently rented a car from Charles De Gaulle Airport which was slightly marked (not damaged in the normal sense) with National/Citer over the Net. National/Citer brought the marks to my attention before renting me the car. I thought nothing of it, agreed to the contract and proceeded with my journey. I drove from there to EuroDisney back into Paris and back to Charles De Gaulle airport. I parked the car back as I found it, hardly used a quarter of the tank. Two weeks later I receive a letter from National/Citer citing the the exact damage they informed me of - but yet accusing me of causing the damage. I am livid. National/Citer have taken €850 from my credit card and I have found it extremely difficult to contact anyone in their office. Emails sent to their address only get replied to with automated messages. No contact number included in their letter. Can anyone please give me the name of a good solicitor in Paris?Any small claims court in Paris? How can I tackle this problem from overseas?

I've moved this to a more appropriate forum than 'Other Financial Issues', Bobby.


Before reaching for an avocat, I'd suggest you call/write to National/Citer and calmly explain the problem. Their contact details are:I presume you've held on to all the relevant documentation — contract, pre-rental inspection sheet, etc.?

Do you have the pre-rental inspection sheet showing details of the damage? Have you tried disputing the credit card transaction with your credit card company?

Sunday Times ran an number of articles on cases exactly like yours a few months back. if I recall they claimed that a number of customers could be billed for the same damage and wrote a few articles to back up their claims. might be no harm in emailing them for futher information. my next door neighbour carries one of those instant cameras in his car all the time, in case he's ever involved in an accident.

I posted here some time ago about the very same experience at the same airport but with a different company (budget). I am posting the final answer that I got.
This may be a habit at that location so keep up the pressure and they will give in. It seems a shame to have to go to the expense of hiring a solicitor.

Dear

We received your e-mail regarding your recent rental in France. Office - by mistake - charged you for damage on the car. We have already sent to the bank a request for a refund of 601.65 €. The invoice amended will be 215.31 € rental + 59.39 € for fuel = 274.70 €.

Your Sincerely,
Max Ruspi
Customers Service
Budget France

I recieved the first notification of this charge exactly two weeks after the car was returned and therefore did not keep the contract as no problems were anticipated. I have phoned and e-mailed the company head office several times to which I have only recieved automated responces. It is my summation (and indeed copper fastened by the grateful responses to this thread) that National/Citer are quite willing to let mistakes slip in their favour. After all who keeps unsuspecting small contracts after two weeks? National/citer can easily take the money because it is their right due to several pages of small print! This really is white collar crime. They quite ceverly told us of the damage only to bill us for it later. It is an uphill fight for me. But I am quite willing to go to court in Paris to sort this out. Now anyone know a good solicitor in Paris?

Do what I did this year. I rented a car in Spain. I had the Insurances but there was a scratch on the car I wasn't sure if it was there when I got the car.

I rang MBNA, from the Airport, about 5 minutes after I left the car back and cancelled my Credit Card, thereby preventing any extra charges,

this wont be funny in the context of above but a few years ago I hired a car in Lanzarote. the girl in the office had good english but my licence was very badly handwritten and pretty illegible. she took the licence and passport and when I enquired if she could make it out she just pointed to dundalk on the map of europe she had up behind and said 'Dundalk you live - Donegal you born' pointing to Donegal. anyway when I went to the car it was all bumps and dents and panicking I returned to the office but she just shrugged and said word to the effect ' its ok, we know. dont worry, its all right etc' drove around for the week ( knocked the wing mirror off once but as it was a corsa it just stuck back on) and when I returned the car the guy just asked if I had filled it with petrol. when I informed him that I didn't put the bumps and scrapes on it he just laughed and said 'no worries' and didn't even get up. I had prepaid in cash and anytime I have hired a car on holidays its always been a cash payment - except UK where they insisted on cc. I definitely would try and contact the sunday times though to find out more about their campaign for openness when hiring a car abroad. AFAIK they were looking for eu legislation to cover scams like this.

The general rule when hiring a car is to make sure that all blemishes are marked on the rental agreement, no matter how small. Take the extra 5 to 10 minutes to do a thorough check. Remember to also thoroughly check the interior of the car. A non-smoking friend of mine got hit once by a charge for a cigarette burn on the back seat.
You then need to get a member of staff to sign their acknowledgement of existing damage. If they know that you have a signed copy showing existing damage, they're less likely to try and hit you with charges.

Thanks for all the advice. But let's be honest - no car rental company will do business without security. That's either a credit card or a substantial cash payment up front. When you drop back the car they don't inspect it. You just drop it off where you picked it up. Then before you know it your credit card is debited and you are blamed for the damage. You are back in your home country without their language and basically screwed. I would be interested to know how many French families have been treated in the same way? Far fewer I suspect given the home advantage. I reckon that 9/10 families just roll over and accept defeat. It's probably people like me posting threads like this that that just might bring about some change. I will let you know how I get on.

Tbh I doubt the good folk at National/Citer are readers of AAM, bobby...

Why don't you try ringing them at the number provided above? I'd be amazed if their staff at CDG airport didn't speak a leetle English, and it strikes me as easier than going to court in Paris! If you provide them with your name and the date of the rental, they should be able to look up your file...

Tbh I doubt the good folk at National/Citer are readers of AAM, bobby...

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Probably not. Buy they are about to get an intro. If you do a google search on "National Citer" and select Pages from Ireland you get this very thread. I have sent that link to client@citer.ie. So they can see I am active and vocal about getting this issue sorted.

Why don't you try ringing them at the number provided above? I'd be amazed if their staff at CDG airport didn't speak a leetle English, and it strikes me as easier than going to court in Paris! If you provide them with your name and the date of the rental, they should be able to look up your file...

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Tried several numbers. Everyone passes the can. Finally you get told that the official channel to email your problem to is the email address listed above. You get an automated response every time. It is brick wall stuff. Sorry DrMoriarty - I don't share your collective opinion on the people of National Citer as being "good". If you were ripped off the way I was your attitude might be somewhat different. I already left €5K in France on an 8 day trip to EuroDisney- i will be dammed if I am leaving any extra.

Bobby said:

I have found it extremely difficult to contact anyone in their office. Emails sent to their address only get replied to with automated messages. No contact number included in their letter.

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Bobby said:

I have phoned and e-mailed the company head office several times to which I have only recieved automated responces.

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Sorry — it wasn't clear to me from what you'd posted above that you'd actually managed to speak to anyone there (and incidentally, my use of 'good people' was intended to be tongue-in-cheek!)

From what you now say, it certainly sounds like your complaint isn't being dealt with satisfactorily. If I was you, I'd post hard copies of your email correspondence to the above postal address, marked à l'intention du Responsable du Service d'attention au client (Head of Customer relations), citing article R. 134-1 du code de la consommation, stating that you wish to lodge a formal complaint, requesting immediate written acknowledgement of your letter and indicating that this is your last contact before initiating legal proceedings.

CC your letter to the [broken link removed] (Conseil National des Professions de l'Automobile) and the [broken link removed] (Centre Technique Régional de la Consommation).

Cheers Dr.Moriarty. I will get my French speaking buddie to draft up a letter. Thanks.

Maybe just me but each time I have rented a car, when I hand it back someone comes to the car to check the mileage, petrol etc. and usually gives it a once over before signing a copy of the agreement and giving it to me.
I assume this covers this type of thing because they have checked the car out and signed off on it.