otoQ Reviews 

Booked a car through discover cars from OTOQ hassle free really nice Guy checked the car out with us. Never once mentioned additional insurance as some do. On return equally as easy polite and curious hold on card returned few days later definalty use these guys again when back in Chania. Awesome thanks 😊

Scam
Is otoq
standard operating procedure

Avoid Otoq at all costs. Our experience with them was a disaster. We booked a car on DiscoverCars with Otoq’s partner, Seven Group Travel, at Tampa Airport on 22 August 2024. Upon arrival, we were unable to contact the rental company—neither we, nor the airport staff, nor DiscoverCars could reach them. The company was completely untraceable, and nobody at the airport had ever even heard of them. This ordeal started at 6:45 pm, well before the rental office’s stated closing time of 9 pm.

To make matters worse, Otoq’s headquarters were unreachable due to the time difference, leaving us stranded and forced to arrange alternative transport.

What added insult to injury was Otoq’s response. Days later, they claimed the pick-up had "waited too long." This was absurd—we arrived just 15 minutes after our booked time slot, as DiscoverCars could confirm. At any rate, Seven Group Travel had our flight information which made it possible to check the delay, and the office was supposed to remain open until 9 pm. I told all of this to Otoq and asked them to clarify how long they supposedly waited. Their response on 26 August: “We don’t have updated information yet. We will inform you as soon as it is available.” Since then? Complete silence. No apology, no compensation—nothing.

Booked through Economy Bookings, price agreed upon was way less of what I ended up paying. You refused to accept my Canadian insurance which covers rentals at the USA, ended up paying USD50/DAY for insurance only. Also, my $300 withheld deposit is not refunded yet and it's been 10 days now since I returned the car. My booking # B86503211

The original booking asked for my flight number to accommodate any delays that might happen, which I supplied, my flight was delayed for 4 hours and no accommodation was done by the rental company and we had to wait for 3 hours at their counter for them to show up. Very disappointed. As for the insurance, it was not indicated at the original booking which insurance companies are acceptable and which are not. Very disappointing

Good service in Heraklion. We enjoyed the vehicle.

My wife and I booked a car through VIP Cars with otoQ in Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Florida. What started as a simple and affordable car rental turned into one of the worst experiences we’ve ever had with a rental company.

Our original booking was for USD 142.99, which was the total amount to be paid for the entire rental period, as clearly stated by VIP Cars, with a clear indication that no additional costs would arise unless we opted for any optional extras. But when we arrived at the otoQ desk, we were suddenly informed that the total would be almost four times that amount – USD 663.90! The staff at the counter claimed that additional fees and insurances were "mandatory," even though we neither wanted nor needed them. Here’s a breakdown of the unexpected charges:

• Supplementary Liability Insurance (SLI): USD 389.87
• Process & Facility & Lic Recov & Rdf: USD 77.74
• Payable on Arrival: USD 143.00
• FL surcharge: USD 26.00
• Sales Tax (7%): USD 27.29

When we refused to accept these ridiculously high fees and made it clear that we didn’t want any additional products, we were told that we wouldn’t get the car unless we paid. After a long and frustrating discussion – including with a manager – we canceled the booking altogether. At this point, we had already wasted over 3 hours, and it was past 10 PM.

We ended up renting from another company last minute for the same period and paid much less than otoQ's outrageous USD 663.90, even with a short-notice rate.

The nightmare continued when we tried to resolve the issue with VIP Cars Support. Their customer service was absolutely disappointing. Even though we had informed otoQ in advance of our delayed arrival (via WhatsApp and email), otoQ later falsely claimed that our booking had expired because we arrived late and that was the reason why the high costs arose. This is a blatant lie! We notified them in time, and we provided the chat history as proof.

Instead of addressing our legitimate complaint and refunding our deposit, VIP Cars sent us the exact same response twice, both based on otoQ’s false claims. There was no resolution offered, no compensation for the inconvenience, and to this day, our deposit has not been refunded. Neither VIP Cars nor otoQ have made any effort to resolve this situation or to take us seriously as customers.

In summary: Beware of VIP Cars and otoQ in Fort Lauderdale! They hit you with hidden fees, and their customer service is completely unhelpful. They spread false information, and complaints are handled in an utterly unprofessional manner. Save yourself the hassle and rent from a reputable company instead.

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Update Oct. 09, 2024 in reply to otoQ comments below:

I have absolutely no interest in having a ping-pong conversation. However, I would like to make it clear that this is NOT about taxes that we were supposed to be charged extra, but about one or more unwanted insurances and other fees, that we specifically declined to pay. You are welcome to read the list above again. However, your counter agent explained to us that this insurances and fees are "required" and "unavoidable" and only applies to Florida law requirements (strangely, we did not have to pay for the mentioned insurances with the other company we subsequently rented from - how can that be?). You and I know that all this is not true. In my opinion, your counter agents are more trained to force unnecessary insurance on the customer rather than finding “the most suitable solution” for each individual customer.

Furthermore, instead of a mid-size car, we were offered a full-size car as "compensation" only because I did not agree with the price and the agent then called his manager to ask, how to proceed. I have the document in writing with all the fees listed above and it clearly states the exact car size category we previously booked.

It is also a lie that your counter staff informed us that we missed the pickup time (which is not even true because we arrived at the specified time). I also have the communication history saved where I informed your support that our flight was delayed. If your staff or technology is not up to scratch, maybe you should employ better qualified staff or invest more money in technology.

Instead of at least having enough decency to apologize to a disappointed customer, you just make excuses and lies and put the blame on us. This is pathetic. Another reason to avoid otoQ forever.

Was switched to this company by a third party agent VIP. . We had requested on airport as it was a one day hire only but found ourselves with a booking that required a shuttle. No instructions that we needed to call for the shuttle. So after we waited 30mins at allocated time at airport arrivals we managed to call. They did come and get us straight away. A rather tatty Nissan Micra was allocated ( Opel Corsa equivalent requested) with lots of scratches and bumps at 31500 km mileage so we felt obliged to buy their own insurance although we had already bought full insurance through VIP. We asked for one hour more rental time due to the delay in picking up the car due to poor instructions. That was immediately refused and an unpleasant woman argued it was not their fault. The car tyre warning light came on 15 mins after we left on the motorway. We had to drive another 15 mins before we could stop to check pressures. we called OTOQ who told us that this was a regular occurrence in a hot country. Really???? We found one tyre valve faulty though it had clearly been replaced recently so we had no clue what actual pressure in it. We filled up the tyre and reset the pressures but light came on again later so we wasted more time with calls and another garage visit. When we dropped off the car the shuttle driver asked why we hadn’t rung as they might have replaced the vehicle. And told us we shouldn’t have been concerned about a tyre warning light. Overall a stressful experience with poor customer service. And a very tatty vehicle.

The car was clean . However, I have not received my deposit back for over 2 months and am not getting any meaningful information or support. I will not be renting a car there again!

Update October 15th:
Still waiting for my deposit! As recommended I wrote an email to the email address. The only answer I get is “please contact your bank”,
When I ask for more information to share with my bank I receive no reply. My bank does not see any (blocked) transaction in the system - so no possibility to do research. The support is a disgrace!

Review of Car Rental Service on Santorini

I rented a car from this company, and overall, the vehicle was in great condition—clean, equipped with CarPlay, though there was some damage to the rear.

Upon returning the car, it was dusty both inside and out, which is understandable given Santorini’s dusty environment. We had to open the windows frequently as the air conditioning struggled to keep up. However, the company charged me €90 for cleaning due to this dust. I offered to clean the car myself, but they refused.

Additionally, I was charged €60 for a lost plastic wheel cover.

Everything went smooth. Guys from car rental were very nice and friendly. Car pick up and return went super fast. Pick up location is meters from airport

Attempted to charge me over 300 euros in additional fees, including a 200 euro "cleaning fee". They seem legitimate, but then suddenly charge extra fees on return

5/5 -Communication: Before picking up and returning the car, I received all the necessary information and confirmation about the hours. It was a very swift response.
5/5—Michael was waiting for us at the airport's arrival gates, and he was very easy to find.

5/5- The car was exactly the same as the one we ordered a few months before: clean and equipped for kids.

5/5 - no problems with return, easy and quick.

It was our first time on Crete, and it was a very good choice. Next time, we'll also rent a car from Michael.

BTW: thank you, Michael, for suggesting a place to eat before the return.

I was pleasantly surprised by the personal and good service provided by OtoQ car rental. Special thanks to Chania station! The car was new and the staff was helpful and friendly.

We rented out at Chania Airport, it's quite easy to reach the rental office (5 minutes of walking from arrivals terminals). The experience was as normal and easy as possible. The car was ready in no time,everything worked out easy. We left the car at 6 a.m with the key in the keybox and recieved the deposit in one week. Would recommend 100%.

One of the only positive experiences I've ever had with car rentals. The Chania agency is 5' away from the airport, the pickup was really smooth, we were instructed to take pictures and videos of the car (as you always should). The car wasn't the requested one, it was a *better* one. Practically new with only 7k km on it.

Handover was also extremely smooth and Michael even drove us down to the airport so we wouldn't walk with our suitcases.
Would absolutely recommend and rebook with them.

This company ripped us off for €1200 for no reason.

We rented a car in Antalya, Turkey, through the "carjet" website, and the best deal was with "OtoQ" car rental.

We collected our car on the 21st of May, 2024. The customer service was satisfactory on that day. Although the receptionist's English was not perfect, he was kind and provided us with adequate service.

We were asked to leave a deposit of €1200 because we declined their insurance, and were informed that we would receive a refund within 45 days.

After our time in Antalya, we returned the car to the rental office in a clean and tidy condition, with no additional damage. The car was inspected and found to be in perfect condition. We signed some additional documents and departed.

After waiting for over 3 months, we had not received our refund, so we contacted OtoQ to inquire about the status of our money. We were asked to wait a few more days, and if we still had not received the refund, we should contact them again.

After waiting another week, we still had not received our refund, so we contacted them once more. This time, we were informed that OtoQ does not handle deposits, but rather a partner company. We were told that the money may be held up somewhere and that we should contact our bank.

Essentially, OtoQ has taken our money and instructed us to resolve the issue ourselves. This has resulted in a waste of our time and effort, as we must now contact our bank and file complaints in order to recover our funds, while OtoQ has evaded responsibility.
Avoid this company at all cost

I am currently in contact with my bank and "Carjet". I will provide an update on the outcome of this situation and whether we will be able to recover our funds.

The rental car company is near to the airport and very easy to reach on foot (max. 5 minutes). The vehicle was almost new and had only 3000 km on it. After a short joint inspection and signing a protocol, we were able to take the car. We were even helped with loading (4 suitcases and buggy). Handover was completed in 5 minutes. We can recommend OtoQ without reservation.

Mike at the Chania airport terminal is the best! He made our first trip to Greece super stress free and easy. His guidance and advice was super helpful for our vacation here. His communication skills thru what’s app was reliable and quick. He even picked us up from arrival terminal and dropped us back off to departures after we gave back the car! This makes a huge difference when u have no idea where u are, don’t speak the language, have massive luggage, and it’s 100 degrees outside! Prices were great and my deposit was refunded promptly as promised ! Thank you again and I would highly recommend this companies services ! Give Mike at Chania station airport a raise, he deserves it !! :)

I waited nearly one month for the otoQ support team to get back to me by e-mail, but I think it is time to post my issue with them online, I have no other choice. I never usually write bad reviews but I just can't be silent on this one...
I made an online booking on the 16th of July, they seemed like a trustworthy company based on many reviews online. I received the receipt in my mailbox right away and I thought I was good to go. Well, the day when I was supposed to get my car came, our group arrived at Bergamo airport on time and we talked to the consultant about our car. He said that I needed booking confirmation and I quickly went through my mailbox and spam e-mail, however couldn't find any. The consultant was helpful and tried to solve our issue. He proceeded to make a booking manually I guess. I gave him the same card I made a successful payment with previously, but he said that my card was not eligible, I was very surprised that it worked previously but now it doesn't. Since I didn't have another card on me and my friends were worried that our trip would be ruined from now on and we would not be able to get a car. Anyway, when we got back home I contacted the otoQ support team kindly explained the situation, and asked for a refund since I don't see how I am in the wrong here. Support responded that: "Cancellation made less than 24 hours of the local pick-up time will not be refunded"
Did I cancel the booking? Also, how did my card work previously, it was okay to take our money for reservation but when we traveled across Europe with our expectations that we would get our car there we got told: Sorry, there is nothing we can do. Additionally, I asked the support team to provide evidence that they had sent me a booking confirmation. Radio silence for one month... I have provided all the details about the payment I made, yet they still have not issued a refund :( I am very disappointed with this company and can't recommend them. Hopefully, we can come to an understanding at some point.

Renting and handing back was easy and the man at the station super kind and helpful. Car worked perfect for our purposes.