Goldcar Rental Reviews 

If I could give no stars I would. Horrific don’t use this company. Chose them as competitively priced why a mistake. Had to turn down 2 cars after waiting 45 mins in line to get car and complete paperwork. Both cars totally unroadworthy. 3rd and final car available to me as I was told they were going home had a strange noise to it but we had to take it as no one left at desk. Realised when we got to the Gozo ferry that it had a puncture and the noise was a 3” screw in the tyre. Called the always there 24hr number left a message no one called back. Called the office the following day who said I was covered as I had to take out their full insurance- another long disgraceful story- so would send someone. Then got told after waiting all day for someone e to arrive that it was costing me €150 which they’d take off my credit card. The young lad didn’t agree but said he needed the job! In all this car cost me €500 more when arrived to collect and the tyre so not cheaper at all. Had to pay out of hours fee even though my paperwork said is already paid it. They were quick to underline with a pen that I had to put with a credit card in my name for the cover insurance which I didn’t have with me as left at home Jensen their full insurance hung to be taken which they took my husbands card for, but wouldn’t take my underlining that I had already paid ooh fee. They are scammers and there are literally thousands of people been in the same boat if you look online. They definitely need investigating. I have tried contacting them several times but only one response referring to their t&c’s!!
They didn’t understand that I had asked the company and was told u wouldn’t be charged for the tyre especially as it was damaged when it was given to me

STOP! Do not rent your car at Goldcar you will definitely be cheated

Wish I could leave no stars.

This company is fraudulent. They charged me £200 extra upon arriving in Italy as I had to be the named driver due the booking being made on my credit card. I DON'T HAVE A DRIVING LICENCE!!!! This extra money was to cover the higher insurance due to me not having a licence. They advised that we could crash the car multiple times and we wouldn't have to pay anything more. Now, nearly 3 months they've deducted nearly £50 from my credit card for an apparent "penalty" charge. Was told I could complain in writing and have been told nothing of why this apparent penalty has occurred.

Simply the worst company I have EVER dealt with in my life, avoid them at ALL costs

AVOID AVOID AVOID!
The most awful experience. Waited in a queue between 45-60 minutes to be served. The staff were rude and unhelpful. Spent more time speaking on their personal facebook pages than they did with customers.
Our flight was delayed and as such our scheduled 2pm landing was actually 4pm. The car was booked for 2pm, however when we got to the front of the queue, Goldcar didn't have any cars!!!!
Their email confirmation advised to bring a credit card. I brought an AMEX by mistake, which apparently they don't take, so I had to take out their insurance policy on my debit card for an additional €120. A policy which was exactly the same a policy I already had, and had taken out before leaving the UK.
I asked for a refund, but was told I was already in contract, as my car was booked for 2pm (DESPITE THEM NOT HAVING ANY CARS TO GIVE ME!!) and as such a refund was not possible.
We had to wait for a further 1.5 hours for a car to become available, and no end of nagging them.
This was not an isolated incident, and everyone in the queue had the same issue. Someone approached us whilst we were waiting, to advise they had been waiting 3 hours for a car to become available.
AVOID THIS COMPANY LIKE THE ABSOLUTE PLAGUE!!!

As all comments on every review web site states about Gold Car Malta, they are pure scam artists. They give you damaged and scratched cars and then charge you for the damage on your return. They'll find the smallest spot you missed on check in and charge you thousands for a new door or wing, even though that door or wing had considerable damage already on collection. . DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!! You have been warned.

fin bil og i forhold til hvad vi bestilte hjemmefra, men prisen blev pludselig dobbelt så høj da vi stod i lufthavnen da de pludselig havde en tvungen forsikring som står med småt, de er umulige at komme i kontakt med både på telefon og mail, så brug dem ikke

Goldcar Malta har en idé om, at fjernbetjening til låsen skal slås fra, for ellers kan man komme til at låse nøglerne inde i bilen, hvordan det så end skulle kunne lade sig gøre. Da vi kom til vores hotel i Malta, kunne ikke låse de bagerste dør i bilen. Vi ringede til Gold-car, de sagde bare, at vi skulle køre tilbage til lufthavnen, så kunne De hjælpe os, men det havde vi da ikke særlig meget lyst til, nu hvor vi lige var kommet frem. De gad ikke en gang forsøge at sætte sig ind i problemet, eller at løse det telefonisk. Så måtte vi selv finde en Løsning, det var meget besværligt
Dem skal jeg aldrig bruge igen

Non usate questo locatore! Don’t use this service!! ci hanno dato una macchina con danni “invisibili” e al rientro hanno detto che li avevamo fatti noi trattenendo i 1.500€ della cauzione. La polizia dovrebbe intervenire

Never again. So rude personal only think about selling extra insurance and if you said no they get crazy angry with you and the same when you come back for returning the car then you can wait until nobody 6is in queue if you haven't pay extra insurance.
Extra hidden prices.
Never again

I collected a car from Gold car/ Rhodium boot at Malta airport on Tuesday 27 March 2018 at around 21:00.

I was offered an insurance that was more expensive than the rental itself. I politely refused and for that I was given extra two detailed penalty documents to sign. I never saw anything like this anywhere else in the world! But I wasn’t given a choice.

At the street garage, the agent handing over the car did a very fast walk around the car, it was 21:30 and the inspection took place under a semi lit streetlight. He kept on assuring me that the many little scratches and dents are too small to mention in the report.

He didn’t give me any copy of the inspection report therefore I insisted to photograph it.

I then drove directly to the hotel (25mins drive) the car was full of loud mechanical sounds and scary noises and the overall feel was that I drive an unsafe , unmaintained , old car. I am having twelve days holiday in Malta with my partner, my mother age 73 and my 3 years old son and my guts feeling indicated the situation is not safe nor professional.

25 mins after collecting the car from Malta airport, while I hand the keys to the concierge to park the car in the Intercontinental Hotel parking hotel I quickly noticed a little scratch on the front. I remember myself wondering at the back of my mind if we included that in the inspection report that took place only 25 mins ago. I was too busy with checking in to the hotel and dealing with a 3 years old toddler therefore I could not pay too much attention or thoughts to this.

After putting my little boy to sleep while sitting in the bath I recalled on the scratch and remembered I took a photo of the inspection report. I checked my phone and surprisingly it was not included. The following day I asked the concierge to get my car out of the hotel garage. Under day light I could inspect the scratch more closely. I took a picture on my phone and emailed the branch as soon as I got back to my room.

At that stage, on Wednesday, I was unconcerned and confident that my quick report will be quickly resolved assuring me not to worry, or that they forgot to include this in their report or any other explanation but instead I received a generic copy paste reply that did not answer any of my queries.

It was only when I started to call the car rental office branch the following day (Thursday), when the phone was put down on me during the conversation a few times, and then when my further calls were totally ignored, that I started to get suspicious. A quick internet search and online review website revealed the hundreds of bad reviews and similar incidents of scratches that appeared from nowhere and the heavy fines. I started to get really concerned that this rental company was operating a large scale scam.

On Friday morning, before heading further inland, I returned to the airport to have face to face chat with the manager. I first looked for the guy who inspected the car in the inspection garage. He wasn’t there. I talked to other employees and they all seemed to be briefed with a fixed short reply ‘this is why you should have taken the insurance we offered you’ !

I walked to the airport terminal and after an hour wait I managed to meet the branch manager. Her name is Kaycee Pope. She is the person who replied my email with a standard copy-paste reply that you can see at the bottom of this page (*1)

Her approach/attitude was very strict and unpleasant. Rather then listening to my story she kept on repeating that ‘if not on inspection report then it is my fault’ she already came with a price tag of EUR 430 which EUR 150 would be as an admin handling fee.

It sounds and felt a very professional scam and fraud at that stage but there was nothing I could do about. I felt frustrated and helpless. I kept on wandering it could have been worst when you are in a rush to get to your flight and have no other choice.

Although I do have an annual insurance back home in the UK I knew it wasn’t my fault so I decided to keep on with my argument on and on and on and see what happens. Eventually, all of a sudden, she came with a surprising suggestion. She suggested that I would quickly register online for car insurance and that she would amend the dates of the car reservation to start after I start my new insurance (30/3) and that she would issue a new rental agreement. She also offered to change the date of the scratch/incident to the last day of the rental (8/4) so I could claim it back from this new insurance.

I was overwhelmed by her upfront and direct suggestion to me committing fraud /insurance crime and immediately refused. I decided to go to the nearby police station but she was not intimidated at all ‘ it is your word against us she said’.

She was right, at the airport police station they briefly explained to me that this is a civil case and that it is my word against them.

I then called you at MasterCard where you confirmed that EUR 1,400 were provisionally blocked on my card but that you cannot do much before they actually confirm how much money they will charge my MasterCard card account.

I returned to the terminal to see again the branch manager, Kaycee Pope, giving it one last chance to see if I can talk senses to her. This time I decided to secretly record my conversation with her. She kept on suggesting me to do fraud while handing over a printed bill of EUR 430. It was only the beginning of my 3rd morning into my car rental period and I already got a bill double than my twelve days rental fees. She kept on ignoring my request to check if the scratch was already recorded by previous rentals. I refused to pay and left the airport keeping the same old car.

I have nine more days left on my rental, in a car I don’t feel safe to drive and I have no way to change it unless I pay hefty fine and claim responsibility on a tiny scratch at the front.

To summarise:

1. The scratch seemed to be ‘peeling off’/revealing itself during the drive to the hotel. Another option is that we might have noticed the scratch during inspection but it was deliberately omitted/not written down.

2. The scratch that seemed to be deliberately caused by a sharp metal/key got bigger and longer with each passing day.

3. I was given an old car that felt unsafe to drive in.

4. I was offered to take part in an insurance fraud.

5. I am anxiously await to see what else they might blame me for after returning the car.

Update 8.4.2018 | Upon returning the car , the scratch was dismissed by Maz saying all is OK and no extra charge. He even signed my form as all OK. The following day a charge of euros487 appeared on my card which included euros40 for loss of use due to repair of the scratch (seriously?!).

Update 1.7.2018 | After returning to the UK, I emailed jcazcona at goldcar.com and pedrobonet at goldcar.com . I then got reply from Rachel escalationheadcs at goldcar.com which promised to investigate my claim. It has been 3 months now and no one answers my emails.

Update 3.7.2018 I just got email from Rachel at escalationheadcs saying that "the charges applied are to be correct".

Update 4.7.2018 I contacted mccaa.org.mt they were quick to reply and also suggested me contacting ukecc.net.

Update 20.7.2018 I get a surprising email from Rachel at escalationheadcs "we re-opened your case and discussed your issue at length with our management team. I am happy to inform you that as a Commercial gesture we have decided to refund the damage charge. To be able to issue a refund we will need your IBAN and SWIFT number. Please if you would be so kind to forward your details onto me. "

They ruined my holiday and this "commercial gesture" is too little too late. Stay tuned for further updates

This is a WARNING !
Do NOT use Goldcar - Malta !

What we expirienced is the worst I have tried with any company in any business.

We were forced to pay more than 1400 Euros, for 4-5 damages to the car, which i'm certain they knew all about before we came.

Picking up the car in darkness and parked between other cars makes it almost impossible to observe the real state of the car. The Goldcar employee clearly has no intention of documenting the correct condition, they only "see" what you explicitly make them.

I went to the local Malta police station, and I quote:

[me] : I think i've been cheated by a car rental company !
[police]: Which company was it ? ….. Goldcar ?
[me]: yes
[police]: unfortunately that is what they do ! …. they are the worst !

We had to pay because otherwise we would loose another 400 Euros for renting another car. I was sent to the managers office to be shut up, otherwise i would not get another car. These people can't be trusted.

The car rattled and made noises that if it happened in my own car at home, I'd take it straight to the garage. There were lots of people waiting to get their car, and the same when we returned, people waiting to drop off/collect.

My issue with them is that on return, the guy opened the boot and said there was damage to the rim of the boot. Its true there was. We hadn't seen it, and it was only visible either when the boot was open and you paid particular attention to the shape of the rim, or if you stood a good 20 feet away. The only way I can see that it could have been damaged is if we had left the boot open and reversed to cause a gentle bump. This didn't happen and I am convinced the damage was already there and that the guy knew it. He didn't pay much attention to the rest of the car. We were charged 860 Euro for the damage, and we had no choice but to pay on the spot.

Rhodium Car / Goldcar in Malta seems to work on a scam basis. Pure Ripp off!! (Should have done my research on the internet and not trust a recommendation - you only find bad reviews on Goldcar!!)

1) you prebook a car for 12:00 - you want to pick it up at 12:15 you get it after 1.5 hours waiting time

2) this happened not only to me but to at least 5 customers when I was at their premisses

3) I booked an additional feel free full insurance - with the result that they forced me to pay the damage (€687).

4) After the accident I called their accident hotline. The operator told me explecitly that he would do the filing and I dont need to go to the police (there is a witness for the phone conversation!!)

5) bringing the car back they said I have to have an accident report - even thoug their hotline operator definetly told me I dont need to

6) The car they gave me had already had a damage. I suspect that the pre renter already paid for the damage. So they cashed in twice and on top they kept the insurance premium

7) last but not least at the return point there were at least 2 other customers which seemde mor then disgruntled, to put it mildly

We reserved a car for 4 days in Malta and the renting procedure was completely unacceptable. Staff member named Massimo was rude and didn't provide any information apart from trying to take extra charges, which are not included in any rules or agreements. The driver was over 25 years old and the staff member tried to charge extra for each day saying that driver must be at least 26. After a long argument where we found all the terms and condition that state: driver must be at least 25 years old, he said that he's too tired to argue and we don't have to pay the fee. Although, after we were asked to get an extra insurance because that office doesn't take debit card for deposit. We did check before booking and contacted goldcar where we were told that credit card is not required and deposit can be taken from debit card. At the end, we paid extra insurance as otherwise they were not giving us a car and would have charged full booking fee and somehow they were able to take 200 deposit from debit card to cover any traffic tickets. After that, everything was of course well, as they took all they money they could have and no extra checks of the cars were necessary as we paid the super relax cover.
Only after returning the car we realised that the date of birth in the contract was enter 5 years wrong making the driver 19 years old so just they could prove us that the system is requiring to pay extra fee for not being 25 years old.
Car return was quick and efficient again because the full insurance was covered. Which we were happy about at the end as there definitely would have been far more extra charges considering their customer service and unwritten rules.

Wouldn't recommend this company to anyone and next time would rent a car from more expensive but honest company where at least staff would be able to guide us and answer our question instead of trying to make money out of the tourists.