Autounion 

This place is a complete scam.

They confirmed my reservation in Miami, but when I showed up to pick up the car, they tried to tack on a bunch of extra charges that were never communicated to me in advance. I clearly told them I did not want the add-ons they were pushing, and they still refused to honor my reservation unless I agreed to the extra charges.

I wasted over three hours in their office trying to reason with them, while watching other customers get hit with the exact same shady tactics. It’s clear this is how they operate—misleading people with fake prices and then squeezing every last dollar they can once you're already there.

Avoid this company at all costs. They're dishonest, disrespectful, and will absolutely try to scam you too. You've been warned.

Had a great experience with Autounion in Milos & Sifnos. Both cars were clean and reliable, especially the car in Sifnos which was an upgrade and automatic at no extra cost. No issues on returning either car, would recommend.

Autounion works under the same organization as Differental in Italy. They are both total rip off companies. I would suggest anyone to avoid both as much as possible. They are charging for not washing the car and also requesting 600€ to use a credit-debit card combo.

Forced to purchase insurance for 379 after the rental was booked on Expedia. The expense was unexpected. They should have included this price in the initial booking.

Warning: Avoid AutoUnion Thessaloniki – Hidden Damage, Lies, and Forced Charges

We had a terrible experience with AutoUnion Thessaloniki and feel compelled to warn others.

When we picked up the car, we were only given the spare key—no remote. This meant we had to unlock the car manually every time, which already seemed odd. On the first evening, the door lock was stiff and difficult. A few days later, the lock stopped working entirely.

When we contacted AutoUnion, they refused to help and instead blamed us—claiming we had caused the damage—and demanded we pay for repairs. We then went to a local garage, where a certified mechanic confirmed the lock had been worn down over time, likely from overuse of the spare key. It was clear the issue was not caused by us.

AutoUnion then claimed the car was only a year old. This was a lie—we later found the registration papers, which clearly showed the car was first registered in 2022.

This entire situation felt like a scam:
✔️ Give customers a car with pre-existing mechanical wear
✔️ Blame them when it fails
✔️ Demand unjust compensation (500 euro)
✔️ Lie about the age of the vehicle to cover it up

It’s clear this company is not interested in honest business. They offer cheaper rentals up front but seem to make money by charging customers for worn-out parts they didn’t damage.

Do not rent from AutoUnion Thessaloniki. They are dishonest, unhelpful, and quick to exploit their customers. Don’t be a part of their scam business.

Avoid at all costs. Dishonest and scammers!
Lied about pick up time even with voucher prove and taxi receipt; out of hours fee never returned; booked a sat nav system that never arrived and again no fee returned; no car papers or even contract given. Shocking!
Stay away from Autounion Krakow.

If I could rate 0 starts I would. Worst rental car in the entire world. I've never experienced such a bad customer service in my life. They even called me liar!
Booked for early hours in the morning and paid extra to find a closed office and even though the time on the voucher was correct they told me they were there until 10pm but I never showed up when I had book a much later time. Had to get to the hotel by taxi in the early ours of the morning and had no reimbursement of the out of hours fee. Not even an apology. Only "mmm I only work here. Nothing I can do". Dishonest people!

I had a positive experience with Autounion in Skopje, North Macedonia, but the Autounion at the Bucharest Airport should be avoided at all costs. I had the same experience as others here. The two guys working the counter--Gabriel and friend--are scam artists. First they tried to tell me they had given my car away because I was late: I was late because it took them 45 minutes to pick me up. Only car they had for me would cost $600 more. That didn't work, so then they found a car for me for the same price as I already paid (go figure) but then claimed I didn't have an embossed credit card (I did). Just bs. Only way I could get the car was to pay $400 for full insurance (I had already purchased insurance through 3rd party). Worst rental experience ever: fraudsters. Autounion should clear house or close this branch.

If I visited this company location in England I would do a complete U Turn. I’m appalled that this cowboy outfit is on Zest Travel recommended car hire companies.

Tried to get more money out of me for a 5-8 years old car I had not requested . The car requested not available some 1 hour spent in office negotiating my rights. Car dented patched up with parcel tape & gaffer tape, poor air con, boot lid piston broken, bonnet paint discolouration.

Inability to provide a car to my liking as car pool limited - cowboy outfit.

A new scam from Autounion. Canadians & Americans especially be warned. We have paid extra damage deposits in Europe before on top of credit card coverage when arriving at the counter, however, this new scam involves requiring you to tap your phone app or credit card for payments in excess of the $250 tap limit. They don’t allow you to insert your card using a chip to get past this limit that MC/Visa or AMEX have. The card will decline the amount. Even though they have other credit machines in the office the only one allowed for these deposits will only accept wireless payments. As a result, despite reserving months in advance, you arrive thinking all is well, only to have to buy their insurance after all. I contacted Visa and their agent said we had over $35,000 credit left on the card. Visa’s agent spoke with the Autounion rep and offered at least 3 work arounds to solve this issue, but the rep refused each one. Our only option was to lose our rental fee & go to another company or buy their insurance, which once again couldn’t be paid by credit card due to the tap limit. We had to pay 290 euros cash to cover insurance for 10 days! Truly disgusted in Caphalonia, Greece!

Be really carefull when renting a car here, I've been waiting more that a month an a half and doesn't have back my deposit, I've been calling many times and they find any excuse or don't answer the phone so they still have my Eur.350!!!!!!!

A damage was recorded even though none existed. Autounion knew that there was insurance with reimbursement frommte Broker and took advantage of this.

I am writing to formally lodge a complaint regarding I had following a car rental reservation I made a 3-day rental 19-11/05 in Autounion Car Romania via Economy Booking. Upon arrival at the rental desk, the representative attempted to sell me an additional insurance package for the excessive amount of €90 per day. I clearly explained that I had already purchased full coverage insurance through Economy Booking website and did not require any additional protection. When I proceeded to pay the deposit using my credit cards (I tried 2 different ones), both were inexplicably declined. I received no notifications from my bank, and the rental staff insisted the cards were not limits, despite my never having had any issues with them elsewhere. I attempted to retry multiple times, but each attempt was immediately refused — the transaction did not even appear to be processed. Instead of providing a proper resolution, I was told that the only option was to purchase their in-house insurance for €270, which would eliminate the need for a deposit via credit card. I felt coerced into accepting this unnecessary and overpriced coverage in order to receive the car. To make matters worse, I was ultimately charged €350 — an additional €70 labeled as a "cleaning fee," which was never discussed or disclosed upfront. Adding to the lack of transparency, I was not even provided with a printed copy of the rental agreement. When I asked for it, I was told that they could not print it due to "no Wi-Fi." I then requested that it be sent to my email address instead. I later contacted Mastercard, and they confirmed that no transaction attempts or holds were ever made on my cards, proving that the issue was not on my side. This experience felt manipulative and dishonest

⭐☆☆☆☆
Disappointing and Unprofessional Experience

Unfortunately, my experience with this rental company was very disappointing. When I returned the car, the staff member checked the fuel and went straight to check under the bumper and immediately claimed a 5cm scratch that wasn’t noted in the initial inspection. The scratch was on the underside — something not visible unless you kneel down and inspect closely. It felt like he knew exactly where to look, which raises serious doubts.

I explained that we only drove the car on smooth highways and it was parked at our hotel most of the time, so the claim was completely unfounded. He insisted the damage was done by us, despite there being no logical way this could have happened during our use.

On top of that, my rental agreement clearly stated a deposit of £590, but the company charged £1000 to my card without any explanation. This unexpected charge added unnecessary stress to our trip.

This company was recommended to me last minute after my original booking fell through — a decision I now regret. I’ve rented cars globally for 30 years without issues, and this was the first time I felt scammed.

Even though I had full insurance, the situation caused frustration and left a bitter end to an otherwise great holiday. I would not recommend this company and urge others to be cautious.

This was the first time I have rented with Auto Union, what a fraudulent company. I was looking for a company that had all auto insurance coverage included, unlimited mileage and a decent price, what a let down. Got the car and the explained to us since we are Florida residents we wouldn’t qualify for unlimited mileage.That’s discrimination unacceptable. That’s how it was advertised with unlimited mileage , that’s the reason I booked with Auto Union, why would I question that, somewhere in the small print I didn’t even find the information until he showed my husband. My husband picked up the reserved car drove home the brakes gave out horrible grinding when he used them , he turned around and drove back to Auto Union. He ended up late for his meeting because he had to wait for a replacement, he ended up with a smaller car , no I am sorry or discount for the inconvenience.
This company will definitely never get a dime from me again

This company are an absolute scam.

We followed all the rules to pick up vehicle which we prepaid for (never do this via a broker - Opodo) and they stated we couldn’t have a car due to our credit card not having embossed numbers on it. Another couple weren’t allowed their card because their credit card had a slight crack in it. They had clearly over sold cars and were dropping ours to earn greater returns.

We were left in a dusty car park in the middle of nowhere with several other desperate customer. Truly awful

Quick, not bothering with own insurance issues, as other companies do. Brand new car much bigger than the one initially ordered. Price contained. Two smart ladies at counter, delivery quick and no hussle for reimbursing deposit. Usually people leave a review when dissatisfied. I feel they deserve a good review. Best company among the ones I tried at Rome Fiumicino airport.

Big problems with deposit return. First they say it’s 2-3 days, and after two weeks they claim it to be 24 WORKING days. So, it is more than a month!
They try to say it’s my bank problem, but I never had and issues with deposit return when I use this card for booking.
They stoped to answer my questions and don’t want to explain anything.
Can be a good company, but very bad in service.

They charged a $300 hidden cleaning fee due to hair on the back seat.

They have hidden insurance costs when you show up

Cars are in poor condition, my engine light came on mid way through rental. Terrible.

Booked and prepaid AutoUnion using DiscoverCar.com. Upon picking up the car they required toll services nearly tripling car rental when toll services were not needed. They would not honor the original car rental agreement so I had to return to the airport to get another car rental which honored their agreement. I request a refund and have not received the refund yet. I submitted the complaint to the Better Business bureau and my credit card company.