Car hire extras or insurance you did not agree to

Updated 22 October 2026
General information, not legal advice. The outcome depends on the facts of your case.

You booked a car at one price. At the desk, or on your card statement afterwards, the price grew: super cover, a damage waiver, roadside assistance, a GPS, an extra driver or an upgrade. Maybe you said no and it was added anyway. Maybe you were told it was compulsory. Extras are one of the most common rental disputes, and the law here is stronger than for most other charges.

What EU law says

The Consumer Rights Directive applies to car rental, except for the right of withdrawal (recital 27). Its article 22 is the key text:

• Before you are bound, the company must get your express consent to any extra payment on top of the main price.
• If it did not, and instead relied on a pre-ticked box or another default option you had to reject, you are entitled to a refund of that payment.

The UK competition authority said in its 2015 report that pre-ticked boxes for protection products are likely to be a breach, and that it is not lawful to take further payments from a card for products the consumer has not agreed to receive. It also said staff who exaggerate the risks of going without extra cover, or give the false impression that it is compulsory, could be acting in a misleading or aggressive way.

In 2017 the big brands (Avis, Europcar, Enterprise, Hertz and Sixt) committed to the European Commission and national consumer authorities (IP/17/86) that the price and details of optional extras, especially insurance waivers, would be clear, and that what each waiver covers must be clear before you buy it. A 2019 follow-up (IP/19/1790) repeated this.

The industry's own guidelines (Leaseurope, the code the ECRCS dispute service decides on) say the customer must not be pressured to sign, waivers must be offered in an appropriate manner, and mandatory charges cannot be presented as optional.

Common situations

• Added without asking. The extra appears on the agreement or the card, and you never chose it. Article 22 is your strongest point.
• Sold as compulsory. You were told you could not take the car without it. If it was truly mandatory, it should have been in the price you booked. If it was optional, it was sold on a false basis.
• Pressure at the desk. You signed after a long push. That is harder to prove. Write down what was said, when and by whom, as soon as you can.
• An upgrade you did not ask for. If the car you booked was not available and you were given a bigger one, you should not pay more unless you agreed to a paid upgrade. One Nordic card acquirer's rules for rental companies say an equivalent or upgraded car must then be given at no extra charge.

What to ask the company for

In your letter, dispute the charge, ask for it to be put on hold, and ask for:

• the signed or initialled page showing you chose the extra;
• the online booking record showing what you booked and paid;
• the desk contract and any electronic signature log, with the time;
• proof that the product and its price were explained to you before you signed;
• for an upgrade, the category you booked, the one you got, and whether the booked one was available.

Your own evidence

• Your booking confirmation without the extra.
• Proof of your own excess cover, if you had a separate policy and told the desk so.
• Notes of what was said at the desk, and the names of the staff if you have them.
• A photo of the agreement you were given.

The card rules

If you never agreed to the extra, Visa's "misrepresentation" dispute (13.5) can fit when the terms were misrepresented, for example an optional extra sold as compulsory. "Not as described" (13.3) can fit an extra billed but not as described. Mastercard's rules say specific terms only bind you if they were disclosed so that a reasonable person would understand them before the transaction. A Mastercard dispute (code 4853) fits a charge taken without your consent. Contact the company first. See our card dispute guide.

Where to go if the company does not move

1. Use the company's own complaints process and get its final answer in writing.
2. ECRCS is free and lists "additional cover" and "upgrade" among its dispute types. It covers cross-border rentals booked direct with its 12 member brands. Read how ECRCS works.
3. BVRLA for UK rentals with its members, and the European Consumer Centre in your country for other cross-border cases.
4. Your card issuer, if those routes are closed or have failed.

ECRCS and BVRLA will not take a case you have already raised with your bank, so choose the order first.

If you are deciding between claiming on your own excess insurance and disputing a charge, see excess insurance claim or dispute.

Honest limits

If you signed and initialled the extra with its price shown, the company will rely on that, and a claim of desk pressure is hard to prove. The strongest cases are an extra you never signed for, a pre-ticked option, or a product sold as compulsory that was not. Nobody can promise you the money back.

If you want the letters written for your rental, start with the free check. If the pack fits, the order form takes a few minutes.