Hiring a car whilst visiting the Maltese islands is the easiest and fastest way to discover all the beautiful hidden spots and simply move along in own pace. Choosing the right car hire in terms of service, quality and price becomes essential ensuring a smooth and carefree holiday. However, as in any other destination, the car hire industry in Malta is not without ‘bad apples’ and there are several aspects one should pay attention to whilst taking a decision about car hire. Having gathered feedback from our previous guests during the years, here are the most common issues encountered.
#1 Long waiting time at the airport after arrival.
Car hire desks tend to get very busy with incoming flights and picking up your rental car can become a lengthy process.
#2 Cars very old or in a poor condition
Some car hires in Malta are using rather old and outdated cars.
#3 Booked car not available
It happens occasionally that the car hire claims your booked car is not available and offers you a different car of inferior class or quality (without discount).
#4 Unfair fuel policy
Some car hires in Malta charge for the full tank fuel and ask to return the car empty. What they guests do not know is that it would take weeks driving around on the islands to actually consume the full tank. So the cars are never returned with empty tank and not consumed fuel will not be refunded.
#5 Suspiciously cheap deals
Everyone likes the cheapest deals, what the visitors often find out only on arrival is that in order to get the cheapest rate, they would need to leave an extremely high personal guarantee (excess blocked on credit card – often as high as €1500) or pay an extra high charge per day to waive the liability, making the car hire double the price than initially anticipated.
#6 Charges for already existing damages
Blaming the already existing damages on new clients – the old ‘good’ car hire scam.
After extensive research and testing of different car hires, we have found an excellent local car hire partner for our guests staying in our accommodations and are also delighted to recommend the company to anybody else. It is CB Car Hire which addresses all previously highlighted common issues:
- The guests are met at the airport immediately on their arrival and signing the contract and receiving the car takes as little as 10 minutes. No queues, no waiting times;
- All cars are from recent years and in very good condition;
- You get, what you have booked, unless previously agreed otherwise;
- Fair fuel policy – you receive the car with full tank and return it full, or with the same fuel level as received;
- The personal excess is €950 and it can be reduced to €250, when paying €9 extra per day. As simple as that, no other hidden conditions;
- All previous damages are marked on the contract and new clients are not made liable for that.
Testimonials from previous guests:
For a few days we rented a car. Everything was perfect, including the car-seats for the children. (Hubert from Switzerland)
The rental car we booked with Birgit was great- everything was wonderfully organised! (Katrin from Germany)
The hosts were great and very helpful – including arranging our pickup from the airport and helping us out by recommending a great car rental service. (Robert from Romania)
When contacting CB Car Hire, we recommend to use the keyword ‘MaltaVillageHolidays’ for a good deal.
Have fun and drive safe!
