SIXT Portugal Reviews 1,847

Rented a car on holidays to Faro. Booking and collection was quick. There were some issue with the car. SIXT team replaced with a better one and collected other one. I had some misunderstanding with booking and SIXT team was very helpful to address succinctly. So shall rent again.

First time using Sixt but not the last. Treated very well by staff and car was excellent

Stop double, triple charging customers for nothing.

I rent from the Sixt in Aveiro on many occasions. Alfonso and Bruno are both very helpful and pleasant to deal with. The quality of the vehicles are great and the process is rental very quick.

Avoid This Rental Company – They Tried to Scam Me £2000

We chose this company because Sixt is supposed to be reputable, but our experience was horrific. We rented the car on 3rd October 2025 for a week, but within 2 days and just 50 miles, we noticed serious issues — a weird smell and the clutch not working. We reported the problems, and the company instructed us to return it to swap the car, confirming the car was not fit for purpose.

Almost 4 weeks after returning the car, they sent their first email trying to charge us £2000 in damages, claiming we were at fault. The email included a report of the clutch damage, which confirmed the car was still working normally, yet they tried to charge us for every single bolt and screw removed and added unauthorised breakdown cover, even though we returned the car directly to their airport location.

We disputed the email immediately and tried to block the payment, but they ignored us. They said we had 5 days to respond if we did not agree with their report, otherwise they would automatically take the payment. We responded immediately, yet four days later the money was taken, which was even less time than they claimed they would allow.

We then asked our credit card company how the payment could be taken when we had blocked it the day after the first email. Our card provider told us the payment had already come through on the same day the email was sent. This means the claim that we had five days to respond was completely untrue.

The stress and anxiety this caused on our family during our holiday was significant. Despite everything, we have received no apology and no compensation for the situation they created or for their attempt to take money from us unfairly. Communication was slow and unhelpful, and the company refused to resolve the issue directly. I had no choice but to escalate formally through my credit card provider, who eventually intervened and secured a full refund. Without their help, we could have lost a significant amount of money.

We will never use this company again in any country.

Advice for others:

Keep all emails, receipts, and communication.

Dispute immediately and contact your credit card provider if a company tries to force payment.

Avoid this company entirely – choose reputable alternatives to save yourself stress, time, and financial risk.

**Very disappointing and misleading experience with Sixt**

Today I picked up my rental car and had a very disappointing experience with Sixt.

I specifically booked a **VW T-Roc** and paid extra for it, even though cheaper cars were available. At pickup, the car was changed to a **Seat**, described as “comparable,” without offering any price adjustment or refund for the difference.

I clearly stated **three times** that I already had **full insurance coverage through Check24 for all damages**. I also deliberately chose an offer with a **low deposit of €200**, for which I paid **€100 extra**.

Despite this, **BT Prepaid Fuel (Full)** was added **without my consent**. This option was not properly explained and is clearly disadvantageous for customers, as unused fuel is lost upon return. After repeated questions, the explanation was still insufficient, and I was **assured that the amount would be refunded**, which later turned out to be false.

At this point, the situation enters the realm of **deliberate misrepresentation**.
Additionally, **BC Roadside Protection** was added **without my approval**. I was again told it would be refunded later, but after researching, this is **not the case**.

I was asked to confirm a **pre-filled PIN payment**, and the amount had effectively already been accepted. To my shock, **over €900 in additional charges** were applied. The insurance I had clearly declined three times was included in this amount.

Although the invoice was later reissued, a **refund was repeatedly stated to be impossible**. This is unacceptable, especially since I paid extra specifically for a low deposit.

There was also **no proper walk-around or damage inspection** at pickup. Only after insisting multiple times did an employee agree to check and document the existing damages.

I am now very concerned about the vehicle return process.

The entire handling of this rental was filled with **false statements, unclear explanations, and unauthorized add-ons**. This is **not what I would expect from an international company like Sixt**, and from my perspective, there were **multiple instances of intentional deception**.

I strongly advise others to carefully check every charge before signing anything.

Answer to your standart reaction:

Dear Sixt Customer Service Team,

thank you for your message.

At this point, I do not see a benefit in contacting customer service during my holiday. My time away is meant for rest and relaxation, not for resolving disputes or dealing with issues that, from my experience, point to broader quality and customer service shortcomings at Sixt Faro.

I am fully covered through ADAC, including comprehensive insurance (Vollkasko) as well as legal protection, so I am well protected with regard to the vehicle and any potential claims. Given the circumstances, I would not be surprised if claims were to arise. I will return the car with an empty tank as planned, and the insurance I selected already accounts for this.

Any official complaints or further follow-up will be handled after my return via Check24 and MyTravelCar, through whom the booking was made.

For now, I prefer to enjoy my well-earned holidays without engaging further in these matters.

Thank you for your understanding.

Kind regards

Sixt Portugal charged me €3,590 for a clutch that failed, with no proof it was my fault. They provided an after-the-fact report blaming ‘excessive use’ but I only had the car 3 days and drove it normally. They initially reversed the charge but then re-billed me and sent a collector after me. Beware of this scam – I’m fighting it through legal channels

Full insurance was added to my bill without explanation and my knowledge. I already had full insurance protection I had purchased prior. Disgusting dishonesty. This charge was added after I had returned home. If they believed I knowingly wanted insurance why was the charge not taken immediately? Clearly because that would give me the opportunity to dispute it while still in Portugal. I strongly recommend you do not trust this company in Portugal. It has put me off ever going to Portugal again. I have regularly used car hire in other companies in other countries and never experienced such dishonesty

Thank you for your copied and pasted reply. I am amazed you managed to find the e mail I did not send

I am writing a second review on this company. For the same issue! They charged me an extreme amount of money for a faulty car. After I paid, I won the chargeback, meaning I got my money back rightfully. Now they have been hunting me down (11 months later) for the same amount saying I never paid and adding more charges. They are an absolute rip off. If you want to enjoy your holiday and look back on it with good memories, dont use Sixt Portugal ever. You can see this from all the other bad reviews left by other customers as well. Save yourself months of undeserved stress.

Hear our story – and think twice before renting from Sixt

in October 2025 me and my Dad rented a Skoda from Sixt Portugal, in Madeira . During my rental there was an accident in which a motorcycle lost control and crashed into my car. Not critical, just a small dent on the car that can be fixed for 200-300EUR by any car body workshop. The police attended the scene, and the official report clearly indicates that the motorcyclist was responsible, not me. We also informed Sixt immediately. During the rent return, we were informed that they will take care of the police report and insurance.

Despite this, 2 weeks after our rental. Sixt charged 1494.79 EUR from my dad's deposit for the damage. Without even explaining the amount. I will repeat myself, 1494.79 EUR for Damages that as per OFFICIAL POLICE REPORT we are not responsible!
We immediately contacted Sixt, and on 25 November, I sent the full official police report and all evidence to Sixt (to Ms. Paula Monteiro). Another Sixt representative, Mr. Diego, told me that the insurance feedback would not take more than two weeks.

Now more than two weeks have passed, and I still have no clear answer, no timeline, and no refund. Emails receive slow, generic replies, and nobody seems to take ownership of the case, even though the documents clearly show that the motorcycle rider was at fault.

For a company that can charge a customer’s bank account in seconds, this level of customer service when it comes to refunding money is extremely disappointing. Based on the evidence and the police report, I do not see any valid reason for Sixt to keep my deposit, yet they continue to hold it while “waiting for an insurance answer”. Sixth has all the evidances showing that they charged me illegally, and now they just don't care.

I used Sixt in US, Europe, and Asia, but this experience has seriously damaged my trust in Sixt, I will think twice before renting from them again. I will update this review to let others know how Sixt handles my case.

We rented a car at the Funchal airport in Madiera. They upsold us for $100 more to a car with more horsepower and higher clearance telling us we would need it on the island. We believed them but then saw a lot of Clios, which was what we originally booked, doing fine all over the island. In fact having a larger vehicle made it difficult on many of the narrow roads.
They then tried to give us a car where my phone's navagation system didn't connect to the car, saying the problem was my phone. We insisted on a different car and my phone connected easily. The vehicle they gave us had many nicks and scatches. We took pictures. It also did not have functioning luggage cover that they didn't tell us about. We could not cover our luggage when parked.
Unfortunately the agency is closed until late in the morning and we returned the car without having it checked out in person.
Several days later they sent us a bill for $350 for some scratches that they claimed we caused that could only be seen by using a mirror under the car. We did not cause this damage, but we only took photos from a standing position, not from under the car. We are fighting their bogus claim.
BYW we had great experience with Enterprise on the Portugual mainland

I absolutely regret using SIXT for my car rental in Portugal recently. Right off the bat, we had to fight with them about getting the car seat we had booked when we went to collect the car. Then, when dropping off the car I was told that I should not fill up the tank before arriving as it can be filled at the drop off point for a better rate than the stations around the airport. This was a lie, there was no filling point and the staff there had no idea what I was talking about.
Thankfully I watched and insisted that the the staff member at drop off email me confirmation or else I would not have any booking information at all (they had some stranger's email address on the tablet). After the rental, I had to contact them for several weeks to get any invoice at all after they attempted to charge my account multiple times without sending me any bill.

Finally, and worst of all I have recently received a late toll fee from Portugal, because apparently I ignored the first toll bill, which I to date have still not seen, and which I am raising with the ombudsman.

Just a terrible experience all round.

Everything was great until I got hone and got an invoice on 205€ for etoll and extra insurrance.

When I rented the car, they said I should connect an etoll for the car. If I did not ride on toll roads, then I should not pay anything.

They did not mention, that I also signed an extra insurrance which I did not need, because I already had a full coverage insurrance. I signed, my fault, but I was not informed about the extra not needed insurrance. Thats the way to scam people.

This is a full blown scam, which you do not expect, when you are dealing with a big known brand.

Received a toll notice 7+ months after my rental for €117.63 - including a ridiculous €79 "administrative fee" on top of a €38.63 toll.

Here's what happened: SIXT attempted ONE charge on my card a month after the rental, it failed, and they emailed saying that they failed to charge, the toll company would contact me directly. Then... complete silence for over 7 months. No contact from anyone until this notice.

When I contacted customer support, they refused to help and took zero responsibility, blaming everything on the toll companies instead and hiding behind "It's out of out control, it's automatic". Absolutely no accountability for their own failure.
Dealing with a company that ghosts you for 7 months, hits you with excessive fees, then refuses to help when you reach out? Terrible customer service. Very disappointed with how Sixt handles post-rental issues. Would not recommend based on this experience.

Similar to other complaints my representative at Faro airport deliberately and fraudulently hid the insurance add-on on my booking, even though I told him I had full coverage, showed the email taken out at the time of booking. Initially, he said he would have to charge my credit card 4 times the usual deposit. When I protested he agreed to remove it. He told me it had been removed but he refused to give me a printed contract and I had to sign the tiniest handheld device with the details masked. The full insurance still appeared on my credit card bill AFTER I had returned to the UK. They have been ignoring my emails since.

Be really careful when renting with Sixt Portugal.
I returned a vehicle recently and during the inspection was informed before I left the vehicle that everything was in order !
I then received an email with a document which stated 'No change in the vehicle's condition was detected.'
10 days later I receive notification that new damages were identified and the case is under review.
Then 2 days later..... 'We are contacting you regarding the damage to the keys verified at the return of the vehicle. After a careful examination of the supporting documents, we concluded the damage occurred during your rental'.
Turns out that there was no careful review of documents as they were claiming damage for the same type of vehicle - just a different colour and a different registration number !!!!!!
Very amateur and unprofessional conduct.
Still to receive some sort of an explanation or apology and certainly will not be paying this malafide invoice.
Quite shocking experience. Be warned !!

Update 12/12
As requested, I re-fowarded my previous mail to the address below .....maybe this time I will receive a reply ?
I probably rent vehicles 15-20 times per year and no-one before has ever tried to charge me costs (read: scam me) for a vehicle I did not see, touch, nor drive.
Very strange practices and since our booking I read only terrible reviews for Sixt Portugal (1.4). What a drama for an internationally recognised rental brand.

Avoid at all costs, they will make you pay everything you will never get your deposit back, they will even because of some soil in the car to take away 118 euros for the cleaning. For 5 days of car rental almost 1000 euros

I posted a 5* review the day after the hire was complete as the staff seemed friendly, helpful and everything went without a hitch. Then a bill came through for the prepaid fuel on which matter the staff had deliberately mislead me and it ended up costing me €65 for a quarter tank of fuel. Do not use this company or if you do the do not opt for prepaid fuel it will cost you dearly.

On November 9, I made a reservation for an 8-seates Mercedes V-Class van at a price of €246.87.
When I went to Lisbon Airport on December 6 to pick up the vehicle, I was informed that, in addition to the reservation price, I would have to include full insurance coverage (due to the type of van I intended to rent), which would bring the total to over €600. They also claimed that, because of this type of vehicle (due to thefts outside Portugal), it could not be used outside the country—even though the main purpose was precisely a 3-day trip to Spain.
Since the goal was to leave Portugal, the contract had to be canceled. However, at the end of the 3 days, the amount was still charged to the credit card initially provided.
At the time of booking on the Economybookings website, none of this information was disclosed, which is clearly misleading to customers by this company.
As a solution, we ended up going to Europcar and renting the same van for only €400, with full coverage insurance, a second driver, and permission to travel to Spain. Clearly, the service at Sixt is much worse compared to Europcar.

All went well until my credit card used for the guarantee was charged a toll fee for everyday of the rental period, few days after returning home. No Comms after to explain why have I got charged for driving on toll free roads.
This causes a 1* review.