Goldcar Portugal Reviews 

Would give it 0 stars if I could.

First of all the car was dirty and damaged ( Citroen c3 all road). Secondly I gave the car back with a full tank of fuel and they still charged me for not returning it full tank. They had the audacity to charge me 12 euro for fuel and a 50 euro penalty. Thirdly nowhere was it mentioned that I needed to purchase insurance for which they charged me 200 pounds .

Never using gold car again. No customer service at all

DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!! I rented a car - 8 days from.Faro. it was dark and I was shown 2 small areas of damage one of which was not on the paperwork. I returned the car out of hours and it was in the same condition as when I picked it up. I was charged €319 . Luckily I had taken out a separate excess insurance with a reputable company. I have also never had the promised return for unused toll device on numerous occasions. NEVER AGAIN.

We recently rented a car from Goldcar in Lisbon Airport. I had my own insurance so declined the offer of their Excess Insurance. When we got to the car which was parked in the middle of a poorly lit parking area we did check the car and photographed a few scratches and dents in the bodywork. Nobody from Goldcar came to check the car with us. We had the car for four days. When we returned to the airport the person inspecting the car claimed that we had damaged BOTH back hubcaps. One side had some very light scratches (which could be seen when the person shone their torch) and the other side had damage to the very top of the hubcap rim. I admit that we did not examine the wheels/hubcaps carefully enough, we should have used the torches on our phones and looked more closely all around the wheels and hubcaps. But we know that there is no way we could have done this damage. The damage to the rim of the hubcap could only have been done when parking at a curb and it could not have done without noticing at the time. In the four days we had the car I never parked at a curb. I drove a few times a day from my cousins house to a nearby hospital. I parked in a paved carpark at the hospital and in a covered garage at my cousins. The very few other stops we made I always found a parking spot facing the curb not running alongside it. However, as we had not noticed the hubcaps when we picked up the car we had no way to prove we did not cause the damage. The bill for two new hubcaps we received comes to €435.44. We absolutely feel like we have been scammed. We know we did not cause the damage. We feel that if we had noticed when picking up the car they would have simply claimed to have missed it themselves but because we did not notice they know we have no recourse. We absolutely believe that we have been scammed and will never book wtih Goldcar again. This is also not the first issue we have had with Goldcar - a few years ago, on leaving the airport, we noticed that they had charged us for excess insurance which we had not agreed to. We had bought our own rental car insurance so we had no need to buy their excess insurance. They did not clearly ask us if we wanted to purchase their insurance and amidst all of the payments they ask for when picking up the car it was added without our knowledge. I said then that I would not use them again. This time I mean it.

Despite a lot of comments on Gold car, I have to say having used them many times I've not had any of the issues regarding damage, up selling etc. The person I dealt with Sara, did pre authorise my card for potential tolls and damage, however nothing used in terms of tolls and no damage. Sara was especially helpful and a credit to Goldcar
The only dishonest part from Goldcar Portugal is that they charge you for a toll rental device that you don't use in the Algarve, then never give you the money back..! Just refuse it

GoldCar car rental at Lisbon airport. Quite simply the worst experience of car rental we have ever had in decades of foreign travelling. 2 hour wait at the airport to get our pre booked car, rude and disinterested staff simply trying to get you to pay inflated insurance, and then charging €217 for an extremely minor scratch on a wheel that we say was present on collection. A quick google search will show this is not an isolated or unique complaint.
It all started at the airport after nearly 2 hours waiting in the queue for our hire car, first they ‘told’ us that there had been a mistake and that our hire car was not suitable for us and we would need a bigger (more expensive) car. When asked why, he said we won’t fit in. He was completely unaware if I was travelling alone or as a group but said it wasn’t big enough. When I pointed out there was just 2 of us he conceded. Then it was the insurance, they said we didn’t have any and would need to take theirs out. (I’ve had this rodeo before) I will point out, they don’t offer their insurance, they tell you it’s needed first, then you say you are not covered for any damage, you point out you have insurance but they say it doesn’t cover everything, even though they haven’t seen and don’t know what insurance you have in place. Next we were given a car with an engine light fault, even though it had been “thoroughly checked”. Eventually, after over 2 1/2 hours, we get our car. We check round it and take a video and some pictures.
On return they immediately start their checking process. I totally understand their need to turn them around quickly, but they are straight on checking with a torch for minor scratches. I was then told a wheel was damaged. You have to wonder how, within 3 or 4 minutes, they find a minor scratch they know wasn’t present when you drove it out, a 1/2” scratch on the side of the rim barely visible. I had only driven to our villa and the shops twice and knew I hadn’t hit anything so knew I had caused no damage. I had a video of all around the car but as the scratch was so minor, it was barely visible on the video and was therefore dismissed by them. They now want €217 for this scratch.
I feel justified calling it a scam for the reasons I have outlined. I have insurance that covers this damage but it’s simply not right to do this to customers. Just avoid GoldCar at all costs.

I booked a car via Cartrawler. The offer I was interested in was a rental car from the company Goldcar. Immediately after I booked, I received an email saying that I had to have a credit card with me when I picked up the car. Since I don't have a credit card and always pay with a debit card, I chose to cancel the same day, which I could do. The money came 1 week later, but it was about 10% less than it cost. The answer from Cartrawler is that I have to pursue this against Goldcar. They don't take any customer responsibility, so don't trust that you'll get your money back as they say. That's not true. They also have no support, only AI support, which is crap. Dont use Goldcar!

Charged £900. When car was handed back and no issues. Marks on car same as when picked up. Even with this eveidence, refused to tell us the damage committed and have charged credit card 2 months later. Avoid at all cost

shocking and fraudulent

paid 917 euros for a rental car for a few weeks.
additional monies taken from credit card with no explanation.
rang customer service who kept saying to email them
etc etc eventually he said it was a cleaning fee and airport tax. it now transpires there is no such tax.
avoid

Worst experience ever!!! They try to scam you, infront of you. We booked a reservation for a rentalcar at goldcar sicily, catania. They said we don’t have to pay anything when we get on the location.

So, when we arrived there, they told us we had to pay extra since we were younger than 25, even though. We gave our age when we were booking the reservation, remind you. We were supposed to pay 0 additional costs. Then the next thing she told us is, that we are not insured, while we clicked full coverage when booking the reservation, remind you. It stated on the voucher, that we had to pay 0 and were fully insured. After discussing it with them, they got very harsh and offended, we contacted the 3rd party where we booked it, whilst calling she wanted to intervene with what I was saying…

After a total hour back and forth with them, we got back and they cancelled the car. Leaving us to take another car at the airport.

I've had almost the exact same experience as another reviewer on here recently. The company keeps you waiting for ages at the airport - we waited about an hour. We then were shown the car (it was black) in full sunlight making any damage difficult to see. We found a fair bit of cosmetic damage (minor scratches and scuffs on the paint / plastic). We informed a member of staff who was disinterested and said it was all 'superficial' and didn't matter. Fortunately we took a lot of photos. On arrival at Lisbon, we were told the car was 'fine' by the member of staff, then got a bill for over 300 euros for damages (two very minor scratches) a few hours later. Fortunately we had these scratches photographed when we picked the car up, as eventually they dropped the charges. So, poor customer service and they WILL try and scam you for extra damage that you don't do. If you have already booked with them, take a high resolution video or lots of photos of the car. If you haven't booked, then avoid them...

This company is a scam stay away!!!! They keep you waiting a long time in arrival before allocating you a car which after a flight is the last thing you want in the middle of August. The car was returned and a week later we are informed of a small scratch that was supposedly our doing. Thanks to taking time to video the car on collection and drop off along with extensive photos we can prove otherwise! A friend had a similar experience with them and despite the dispute they took the funds for the supposed damage with no response to the dispute. We are receiving generic bounce back emails whilst trying to resolve the dispute and still haven’t had the nearly £2,000 deposit returned! Awful service and depending on their upcoming response will be taking it further… STAY AWAY

I made a reservation on the Goldcar website to pick up a car at Malpensa Airport from 27/08 to 31/08, with the Cross Border option and full insurance coverage.

However, at the moment of pickup, the desk agent informed me that the vehicle could not be released because I was planning to drive to Austria, and Goldcar's insurance does not cover that country. This restriction was never mentioned during the booking process, and I had explicitly added the Cross Border option.

The only solution offered was to rent a car from a competitor and to contact Goldcar's assistance service for a refund. When I called the service center, I was told that no help could be provided over the phone and that I had to send an email instead. As a result, I received no assistance either at the desk or through the customer service line.

To make matters worse, Goldcar later refused to refund the payment without providing any justification.

I find this situation unacceptable, especially from a company of your size. The lack of transparency during booking, the refusal to honor the reservation without a valid reason, and the absence of any real support caused unnecessary stress and additional costs, as I was forced to rent another vehicle on the spot, which was significantly more expensive than booking in advance online.

My experience with goldcar in faro is as follows
Car was rented online and we picked up 10 pm at night had to pay over €1800 deposit at the office before collection, car was not correctly checked out with us by a member of staff, we took a video of the car under a streetlight in the carpark and received an email from goldcar highlighting existing scratches/marks on the car (25 in total) drove the car for 9 days short trips only without event and returned the car to the airport at 6am on date of our flight back, again no staff to check car! we were instructed to leave keys in a letterbox on the wall,
Returned home got another email from goldcar with another diagram highlighting pre existing damage and seemingly "new damage" my deposit was returned a few days later and i thought no more about it until 5 weeks later i was informed by email that "goldcar" would be taking €220
From my account for damage to the car i was given 2 weeks to dispute the charge which i did and didnt hear back from them again for 3 weeks when i asked for a photo of the damage they sent a picture of a miniscule scratch below the number plate i couldn't see whether it was there or not in the video i took and by the next day they had taken the money anyway
They have not replied to my emails since
Do not use this company

Never book with Doyouspain or Goldcar!
This is a scam: the website promises “full insurance, zero excess,” but at the counter they demand up to three times the price, refuse to honor the insurance you already paid for, insist on credit cards only, and mislead customers.

We – along with several other families – were cheated the same way. Our holiday started with stress and wasted time, and no money has been refunded. Doyouspain does not respond to complaints at all.

👉 Please share this with others. Avoid these companies if you don’t want your trip ruined!

Goldcar Faro Airport
No problem with the car!
Be careful when dropping off the car at Faro airport when the office is closed. No one to inspect the car, just leave it in an unguarded car park and leave the keys in a box.
I then receive an email alleging damage to the car, and invoice for 109 euros, despite no one at Goldcar to carry out the check in process stated on all the documentation.

Worst car rental experience ever – Goldcar Madeira
Avoid this company at all costs. The staff was rude, aggressive, and pressured me into signing papers without giving me any real choice. I was lied to about the charges: what they said was the “vehicle cost” turned out to be expensive, useless insurance I never asked for.

This is nothing but a scam with hidden fees and dishonest tactics. Customer service hides behind “you signed the contract” instead of taking responsibility for misleading customers.

If you value transparency, respect, and fair treatment – DO NOT rent with Goldcar.

Good experience with Goldcar Tenerife. Easy to find. Lorena was friendly .. Nice car! Easy procedure

Lies about security deposit amount saying I had to pay a 2000 euro deposit despite suv type r being £1379.52. So forced me to take out a £300 none returnable full £300 deposit and then added another £95 premium location fee. I hire cars 3-4 times a year and have never had this. Please stay away, I wish I’d read the reviews. I will not use again as they don’t answer emails. Very poor.

I almost never write reviews, but I felt I needed to do so on this occasion to dissuade others from using Goldcar in Portugal.
The car was hired via easyJet.
Goldcar withheld a deposit for guarantee, fuel and the toll reader. I returned the car with a full tank, I didn't go through tolls and the car was not damaged (as confirmed by Goldcar), but they didn't return the guarantee in full. They withheld another 110 Euros with no explanation. I have contacted them repeatedly to ask for clarifications and they replied that they have already explained the charges and that they have no control over the currency conversion process. The difference of 110 Euros cannot be explained by the conversion rates from British pounds to Euros. When I asked them how to raise a complaint, they ignored my emails.
Please stay away!!

Please don’t get scammed like me. They gave me a car in Lisbon that hadn’t been serviced - the tyre pressures were all different and one tyre was so high, and one tyre so low, I could have had a blow out (on the motorways at high speed) at any moment. It was so dangerous.

There was also not a single drop of water to wash the windscreen. It was totally empty. They obviously don’t care about providing roadworthy, safe vehicles.

And then to top it off, they scammed me over 200 euros for a scratch that was already there - on a car that had over 50 dents and scratches!!! They assured me that the paperwork accounted for them all because there were so many you couldn’t count them.

My paperwork shows over 20 separate sections on the car that have damages, dents and scratches. I wanted a different car that wasn’t so damaged and they assured me they were all accounted for.

They are saying that one of 6 scratches on a damaged section belongs to me! I had found two extra scratches (on top of the over 50 already listed) and they said they would add them on and then didn’t.

This company is dangerous and providing unsafe cars that haven’t been serviced- please avoid them so the same doesn’t happen to you!!!

I can’t believe EasyJet recommended them and have partnered with them. I thought I could trust a company they were recommending for EasyJet car rental. I have also complained to EasyJet.