I do hope it works out OK for you.I am one who has been 'had' by Hire For Lower'.
Could you e-mail Dollar at Orlando and check they are honouring Autos Abroad voucers??
When I turned up at Europa Car in Alicante on May 24th to pick up my 9-seater van (which had cost (£336 from you guessed it,Hire for Lower) they told me they hadn't been honouring their pre-paid vouchers for a month,hadn't they called to warn me,er no I said OK I'll pay for the 9-seater and sort the money out when I got home,but what made me even more upset was they hadn't even booked the car for me at all.The woman said there was no way I would get a car that size without having booked in advance (which H4 L must know full well and couldn't care less). I rushed around a few of the other rental desks but they almost laughed in at me so I realised the woman was telling the truth.We had a big car as my brother has never driven abroad and didn't want to do so.It was sheer luck he had his license with him as I don't know what we would have done otherwise.We had to get two seperate cars and I had to pay for my brothers as well as he only had holiday spending money with him,the cost was another £445 .
I called the company from Spain and was told 'It is between their directors and our directors,you will get a refund when you get home.' I wasn't too worried until I read a letter in the travel section of the Telegraph on the day I got home,a woman had had the same thing happen with a Dollar car in Orlando and couldn't get a refund.She was told 'We had contractual problems for a month ,which are now sorted out'.On the Monday I spoke to the manageress at Thomas Cook and found out the same thing happened to her with Budget and she still couldn't get her money back from April.
I have sent all the paperwork off to them recorded delivery as other people were told they didn't recive their paperwork.I have contacted ABTA and faxed paperwork off to them but don't think they can hold them accountable.Higher For Lower customer services have their phones off the hook I think.My credit card compnay says they are processing several claims aginst the company at present.They think there is a possibilty they can get me back the original amount as I 'didn't receive the goods/service' they are sending me the paperwork to apply for that.
I had a quote from them for Orlando in October,I'm so relived I didn't book that as well.I should say I used this company three times last year,once in Orlando and twice in Spain with no problems whatsoever.
Below is a copy of a letter printed in The Times
I RECENTLY booked a car through Hire for Lower, also trading as Autos Abroad, Direct Car Hire, USA Rent a Car and American Car Hire. When I arrived in Nîmes, expecting to pick up the car with a prepaid voucher, there was a notice at the National/Citer desk saying it was refusing vouchers for Hire for Lower and Direct Car Hire. So I had to hire another car at £117, as opposed to £73.40.
On my return, I called Hire for Lower, was put on hold for ages then told to put my complaint in writing. I faxed them on May 16, and on May 20 I tried calling several times. When I eventually got through, I was told that customer services closed at 3pm.
The next day, after holding for 13 minutes, I was told that the matter would not be settled for at least 14 days after I had received acknowledgment something that I still hadnt had 14 days after faxing. Three weeks on and still no refund. I think I have been treated appallingly.
N Hill, London
Hire for Lower replies: During contract negotiations in May with National/Citer, there was a total breakdown of communications. During this short period, National/Citer decided to suspend our working relationship, which then affected a handful of customers. The differences have now been resolved. National/Citer did not tell us it would be refusing our vouchers, we only discovered this when customers told us of the difficulties they had experienced. We will issue Ms Hill a refund of £118.84 for the cost of the rental in France and give her £50 worth of Autos Abroad gift vouchers.
but nothing!!!
