I recently had a troubling experience in Ireland (apparently notorious for scamming tourists). I rented a car from the Dublin airport, a VW Golf, and it was acting funny from the start. It stalled when the clutch was almost fully depressed and the gears would grind even when the clutch was fully depressed. At first I dismissed the stalling as learning a new cars behavior. But after only driving the vehicle for 9km, the clutch burnt out leaving me stranded. Keep in mind I have years of experience on a stick shift as it was the first car I learned how to drive. I filled out an incident report and was told I would be contacted within days if there were any issues. I left Ireland for the USA 16 days later. 6 weeks after THAT, I received a bill in the mail. They had already charged my credit card $1801.13!!! This was over $200 to tow the vehicle from Dublin to Galway (apparently there are no car shops in the country's capital?) along with $700 for 8 hours of labor, plus parts, an a "loss of car hire" fee. Even insurance companies get to assess damage before paying. Why wasn't I afforded this opportunity? I was never given a copy of my own statement, OR a copy of the investigation report concluding I was at fault. I was never even notified they were holding me liable or given information regarding where and when the vehicle was being repaired. There is no way I burned out a clutch in only 9 km and there is no way it should cost almost $2K to repair. I'm stuck because I can't fight an international battle. Budget of the U.S says they have no jurisdiction. I've filed a complaint to the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission and have sent certified letters to the car agency. It sucks because for the last month I have been raving about how wonderful Ireland was. So beautiful and everyone was so nice. I even had my coworker convinced she would retire there (she retires next month). I have since learned that Ireland is notorious for doing this to international renters. I was told just today about this man who traveled to Ireland every other month for years and his company was charged with these types of bills left and right, but it was cheaper for them just to pay it than to fight it. This has completely ruined my impression of the country and of Budget. To them, $1800 is less than they will lose from my office not renting from them anymore... but to me, $1800 is everything!

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