This article is the subject of a complaint made by Green Motion International.
I recently hired a car at Malta airport from Green Motion which I'd found through an internet "cheap car hire" search. It asked for a deposit of €1,500 (£1,216) which it said would not be charged unless there was any damage.
When I collected the car it had a plastic rim missing from a wing mirror, which I told them about.
On return, with no incident, staff said everything was fine and asked me to return a form to the Green Motion desk in the airport where I was asked for my credit card to return the deposit.
Weeks later I discovered the €1,500 had been taken from my card – confirmed by my receipt which I then dug out. I sent copies of all the forms and receipts requested by Green Motion in Malta and its HQ in UK, but the firm has not responded to my complaint.
I took my case to my card provider, RBS, but its legal department says that, as I entered the pin in the transaction, it cannot help. I have Insurance4carhire cover and I'm hoping it may step in.
It has asked me to fill in a claim form - but the problem is, Green Motion doesn't respond. MA, Newark
We have all handed a car back to the hirer while anxious to get our flight. However, this case shows why you have to watch the staff like a hawk, and make sure that the paperwork matches up with what you are expecting.
We asked Green Motion to explain why it had charged this amount to your card, thinking that, maybe, it could have been an honest mistake. We got no explanation as to why it happened – just a note from "Harry" at the company to say that the matter had been investigated and, following our intervention, you had now been refunded. That is the outcome you wanted. Like you, we found Green Motion very difficult to get through to.
However, you are still concerned how this charge ended up on your card, as most deposits or card authorisations used by car hire firms automatically expire. You reasonably point out that if it were a mistake, the firm would have quickly rectified it when you complained. The fact that RBS – your card provider – wouldn't take action, given the circumstances, is very disappointing, but not unheard of.
Other car hirers this summer take note of this experience – and don't be one of the hundreds of complaints we get at the end of each summer.
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