One-Dollar FreezeTo be honest, when I booked this car through QEEQ, the thing that made me happy first was not the car, it was the way I could pay. I saw a plan called One-Dollar Freeze and it said I only needed to pay 1 dollar first to lock the booking. I looked at it and thought this felt really easy. There was still some time before my trip to Germany and I had other things to pay for. If I paid the full rental at once my credit card would feel a bit heavy. I even told my friend and said I only pay 1 dollar now and the rest will be charged later before the rental starts. My friend thought I was joking. When I made the booking I really only got charged 1 dollar. I checked my bill again and it made me feel calm. It was like I just saved my spot. As the days got closer to the trip I sometimes remembered this booking but I was not nervous. I knew the rest of the money would be charged automatically before the rental started and I did not need to do anything. One time I checked my credit card limit and I felt this way of paying in different times really helped. The pressure on my card was much smaller because it did not take a big amount at once. Later I saw the final charge went through and the amount was just what I saw before. There was no extra cost and no interest. That felt pretty nice. For the whole time I did not worry much. From paying only 1 dollar first to the later auto charge everything went smooth and the timing felt right. When I think about this booking now my main feeling is that the order process was very relaxed and my mind did not feel tight from a big payment at the start. For someone my age this kind of payment plan fits really well. It made me feel I was in control of the timing instead of being pushed by a big bill.
One-Dollar FreezeLet me complain a bit first. I really hate it when a big amount is charged right away when I book a car. On business trips I still need to do expense reports and watch my credit card limit. This time I had a business trip to Munich in Germany. I booked through QEEQ. I planned to pick up a car from Europcar in the city around noon on about May twentieth. It was a small SUV like a Volkswagen T ROC with automatic gear. I would return it in Munich in the early evening around May twenty second. My schedule was already full with flights, hotel and meetings. I felt a bit stressed. If the rental payment also blocked a big part of my card limit I would be even more nervous.
When I placed the order I saw a thing called One-Dollar Freeze. At first I was not sure about it. I thought maybe there were some hidden rules later. I still tried it. The system only asked me to pay 1 dollar in advance. When I used my card I checked the bank message. It only showed the 1 dollar booking fee. No other amount was taken. At that moment I felt quite relaxed. At least my credit card did not suddenly lose a big chunk of money.
Some time passed. My departure date was getting close. I suddenly remembered that I had not paid the full rental fee. I got a bit worried and thought maybe the booking would be canceled if I forgot to pay. I opened my record and saw that they already set it to charge the rest automatically before pickup. I did not need to click or change anything. I also did not see any extra fees. When it was close to the pickup day I checked my bill. The charge was done and the amount was the same as the one I saw when I booked. There were no strange items.
For a business traveler like me this way of only paying 1 dollar first and locking the booking makes the pressure much lower. I can secure the car first and then handle company approval. During this time my credit card is not fully used in one go. So on this Munich trip the whole rental part felt quite smooth. The payment part was actually the easiest part for me.
Price Drop ProtectorWhen I first saw the bill I stopped for a second and thought to myself, did I not book at a higher price before. I booked my car through QEEQ because I planned a short trip to Hahn in Germany. I would pick up the car around the evening of June 2 and return it on the afternoon of June 7. It was a Toyota Corolla automatic from Flex To Go. When I placed the booking at the beginning I did not care too much about the price. I just wanted to lock a car because my flight and hotel were already fixed and I did not want any problem with the car. One day I was checking my email and I saw a new booking email from them. My first reaction was nervous. I said in my head please do not tell me they charged me again. Then I read it carefully and saw that the Price Drop Protector made a new booking for the same car with a lower price than my first booking. In that moment I was a bit surprised and it felt like I suddenly got free money. I did nothing and I did not sit there checking prices every day. They just changed it to a cheaper booking for me and the price difference would be returned. The amount was not very big but in my mind I started to count. Fourteen euro is already enough for a simple dinner in Germany. At first I thought this kind of protection service was just some extra thing that I would never really feel. When it happened to me the feeling was really different. At that time I was also looking at other travel plans and my credit card bill made me feel some pressure. Seeing that I saved this money made me feel more relaxed and less stressed about this car booking. Now when I think about it the whole thing for me was only one booking. I did not worry about how the price changed or how they rebooked it. They handled everything on their side and the result was that the final amount was lower. This kind of service where I do nothing but still get a real benefit feels very nice for an overseas traveler like me who often forgets things.
One-Dollar FreezeI only noticed on the day I returned the car in Frankfurt that this trip felt easy from the very start. It was around the evening of May eleventh when I gave the car back to Wheego and I was thinking that if I had to pay everything at once at the beginning I would be very worried about my budget. That time I only paid 1 dollar first.
I booked the car through QEEQ and my trip started around the night of May ninth. It was a business trip so I had to think about company refund and also my own cash flow. When I saw the One-Dollar Freeze option my first thought was “Really only 1 dollar first”. I felt a bit unsure but I also thought it was worth a try.
On the day I made the booking I had just finished an online meeting. My head was a bit tired and I was also worried about my credit card limit. After I chose this plan I saw only 1 dollar charged as the booking fee. The pressure in my mind went down a lot and I thought to myself that at least I did not need to pay a big amount at that moment.
When it was close to the pickup day I checked my bank statement and saw the rest of the payment was charged automatically. There was no extra interest and no strange fee. I checked the total again and it was the same as I expected so I felt quite safe. For a business traveler like me this kind of flexible payment helps me a lot because I do not need to lock a big amount on my card too early.
The whole story is not very dramatic but it is very useful for me. I only needed to make sure I had enough limit on my card at the right time and then I could pick up the car without stress and without extra cost.
Dedicated customer serviceThat morning I was standing in line at the SIXT counter in Frankfurt airport with my family. My kid was asking for water. I was pulling our luggage and trying to read the contract at the same time. I booked the Mercedes Vito through QEEQ because I wanted more space for the family. It was early and my head was not very clear.
When it was my turn the guy at the counter kept pushing extra services. He talked very fast. I was still thinking if my kid left the water bottle on the chair. I just nodded to some of the things he said. When he finished with my card I looked at the amount and froze. It was much higher than what I remembered from the booking. He told me they charged 500 euro more by mistake and that I would get it back in cash in about twenty minutes. He even showed me a paper that said the deposit was zero and that they would give the 500 euro back in cash. I did not fully trust it but my family was waiting and I did not want the kid to get impatient so I took the car and drove away.
We returned the car in Paris at another branch a few days after that at the beginning of May. That morning we parked the Vito. I took my kid out of the child seat and checked the return paper again. In my head I kept thinking about that 500 euro. Later that day at our place I opened my banking app. I checked the history again and again. There was no refund. My bad feeling got stronger. I felt like someone played with me.
So I contacted the customer service and told them the whole story from the counter in Frankfurt to the missing refund. I sent photos of the receipt that showed deposit zero. I also told them the staff said they would pay back the 500 euro in cash. I was a bit angry on the phone and they could probably hear that.
After that one person kept following my case. It was not a different person each time. It was the same voice or the same style of message. That made me feel less lost. At the start I talked in a very direct way. I complained about the pressure from the counter staff. I said I hate this kind of trick. The person did not push any process words on me. They just let me finish and then asked some simple questions. They wanted to be sure how the counter staff explained the 500 euro to me.
Some time later they told me they had checked with the rental company. The answer from the car rental side was that the 500 euro was a deposit and that I had extra mileage so the final bill used that money. When I heard this I got angry again. At the counter the guy promised something else. Now the company called it a deposit. For me this was two different stories from the same company.
I said all this to the person who followed my case. I also told them I saw many bad reviews of that branch online and that I did not like how they played with words. They did not cut me off. They explained slowly that in the final invoice the extra part was counted as extra mileage. They were honest that since I really drove more than the limit it would be hard to make the rental company refund it. I still could not accept it. I kept asking why the counter said one thing and the email later said another thing.
Those days we talked a lot. Sometimes every day. Sometimes I spoke quite hard. I told them I did not feel I owed the rental company money. I just did not like being treated like that. I even asked if they were on the same side as the rental company. Every time they answered with patience. The person reminded me that if I refused to pay at all the company might try to collect the money and that could make more trouble. They also said they respected my choice. I could feel they stood in the middle but they always passed my feeling and my words to the other side.
One night after I put my kid to sleep I got another message from them. They said they tried again with the rental company. The rental company still said everything was correct and they would not return the 500 euro. I was tired and upset. From the day I took the car in Frankfurt I felt this problem follow me like a shadow. I was really sick of it. The only thing that calmed me a bit was that this person did not just say that nothing could be done. They told me they would talk to their own manager and see if there was any way to help me from their side.
The next day they came back with a new message. They said they had talked with their supervisor and got a special solution. They could pay me 250 euro as compensation. That meant they would cover half of my loss themselves. I was sitting at the table when I read it. The light from the phone shone on the paper contract. For a moment I felt my chest relax. I was still unhappy with what the rental branch did. I still felt they fooled me. But I also felt that the person who followed my case really tried their best.
During the whole time the thing that impressed me most was this feeling that someone did not forget about me. It was not like a call center where every time a new person asks you to repeat everything. It was one person from the beginning. From the moment I complained about the pressure at the counter to the time I said I was talking with the branch manager they always knew what we talked about before. On the days when I was more emotional they did not disappear. They just explained again in simple words. The final result was not a full refund but they got a middle way that I could accept.
As a parent traveling in Europe with a kid I really hate when my time is eaten by money problems. Those days I felt very close to breaking down. If there was no one following my case like this I think I would have given up or just kept the anger in my heart. Now when I look back I am still disappointed by the rental company but I remember clearly how someone stayed with my case from start to finish helped me talk with the rental side and finally got some compensation for me. That part made a big difference to me.
AXA Full CoverageWhen the bill for the tow and storage came to my email I was shocked. Over four hundred euro felt like a big hit for me because I was traveling with my kid. I told my family right away and said this is bad and we may need to pay a lot more. My kid stood next to me and asked if the car was broken again and I felt very stressed.
I booked the car on QEEQ. It was an Audi Q3 from Europcar in Frankfurt and I picked it up around March twentieth in the morning a little after ten. I returned it in Frankfurt in early April. I usually drive very carefully especially with my child in the back. One day in the city I was in a rush and I parked in a place that looked okay to me. When we came back the car was gone. I just froze there. My kid kept asking where the car was. I had to ask around and then I learned the car was towed away.
One question stayed in my head. Does this count under AXA Full Coverage. When I made the booking I saw this service and it said it covers damage theft and also parts that normal full insurance does not cover. I even told my wife that it is better to buy this because we have a kid and we should not try to save this small money. So when the bill came I collected all the papers and I was thinking what if they say it is not covered.
I contacted their customer service and sent them the tow bill and the storage fee receipts. I was a bit nervous because my English is not perfect but I tried to explain slowly that the car was towed and now I had these extra costs and I wanted to know if this is part of the damage. The person on the other side spoke in a calm way and told me to send all documents. I sat with my phone and answered their questions. My kid asked me if we had to pay a lot of money and I told him we should wait for the result.
They kept in touch with me and sometimes asked for more details like where the car was parked and if I had talked to the local office. During this time my feelings changed a lot. Some days I felt it might be okay and other days I was afraid they would say no. I checked my email every day and when I saw a new message from them I opened it right away.
They finally gave me a clear result and they paid the part that was under the coverage. I felt so relieved. It made me feel that buying AXA Full Coverage was the right choice. When you travel with a child your budget is already tight so this help took a lot of pressure away. I told my wife that it was good we added this insurance or this time we could not handle it. My kid saw me smile and he smiled too and said it is good that the car is fine.
After this I take these extra insurances more seriously. For this situation they helped my family move from panic back to a normal mood so we could keep our trip going.
