Disputing a Sixt damage claim

Updated 15 October 2026
General information, not legal advice. The outcome depends on the facts of your case.

Sixt usually sends a damage claim by email some days or weeks after the rental, often with photos and an amount. If you think the claim is wrong, you can dispute it, and for many rentals there is a free dispute body that can bind Sixt. This guide is not linked to Sixt in any way.

Reply in writing, and ask for the proof

Use Sixt's complaint route on its help centre, or reply to the claim email, and keep a copy. In your reply:

• say clearly that you dispute the charge and why;
• ask for the charge to be put on hold while the dispute is open;
• ask for the check-out and check-in reports, the timestamped photos, the time of the inspection after your return, and at least 2 repair quotes or the real repair invoice;
• ask how the amount was calculated.

The company has to show that the damage happened during your rental and what it really costs to repair. Pointing out that you were not at fault is a weaker line, because most rental contracts make you liable up to the excess either way. The strong questions are "show me it happened during my rental" and "show me the amount is real".

Get the final answer

Keep going until Sixt gives you its final answer in writing. You need it for the next step, and the free dispute body will not take your case without it.

ECRCS: free, and binding on Sixt

Sixt takes part in the European Car Rental Conciliation Service (ECRCS). You can use it if:

• you live in the EU or the UK and rented in a different EU country;
• you booked directly with Sixt, not through a broker;
• you have Sixt's final answer, and you file within 12 months of it;
• you have not raised the case with your bank or a court.

ECRCS is free, and its decision binds Sixt but not you. Read how ECRCS works before you file.

If you rented in Germany

For rentals governed by German law, the rental company's claims for damage to the car become time-barred 6 months after it got the car back (section 548 of the German Civil Code). If Sixt raises a claim for a rental in Germany long after the return, check the dates.

If ECRCS is not open to you

If you booked through a broker, or the rental was in your own country, the usual routes are the European Consumer Centre (for cross-border cases in the EU, Norway and Iceland), BVRLA conciliation for a rental in the UK, and your card issuer. See our card dispute guide.

In short

1. Dispute in writing, ask for the evidence and the hold.
2. Get Sixt's final answer.
3. ECRCS within 12 months, before any bank dispute.
4. Your bank, if ECRCS is closed or fails.