Car Rentals UK

Dear Car Rentals,

We rented the car to be collected from London Stanstead o for two weeks (to be returned on 29th August),

As you will see in the confirmation it clearly states that A) the car has been paid for in full ('PAID IN FULL') and B) the car has been provided with insurance ('Your rental includes Insurance'). However, when we arrived at the airport we were asked to pay upfront 283.40 GBP due to us not having a credit card. At the time, we were informed that this was required as part of the insurance (minus £60 for petrol) and we would not be able to take the car, if we did not pay this. I would like to add, it was midnight so of course we had no choice but to pay. I would also like to add that the lady we dealt with was very rude and unhelpful.

I spoke to one of your customer service advisors regarding this incident, as we were very distressed by being put in this situation. We were advised however, that as we were asked to bring a credit card with us in the T&C's (which I would like to add is right at the bottom of 17 paragraphs), we will not be able to get a refund. This is absolutely ridiculous as the T&C's do not stipulate that without a credit card, we would have to pay a further £223.40 in order to be 'covered' insurance wise, despite already paying for insurance. I understand, based on the conversation I had with your adviser, that had we had a credit card, it would have been charged with £850 as a deposit incase of an accident. At the time of booking, this was not stated anywhere on the website, T&C's or other, and there are many people who do not have a credit limit of £850 on their credit cards, so I would like to know what you have been doing in these circumstances? I see that since my conversation, the excess fee has been added into the T&C's, however it was definitely not there at the time of booking - we also checked before calling and it was not in the T&C's at all.

Your T&C's also state: This deposit usually takes the form of a credit card, although cash is an option at some locations so please contact a member of our team if you require this facility as this must be confirmed prior to collecting the vehicle. Whilst I understand that we did miss this, you need to understand that this is right at the bottom of your T&C's. I would assume this is a VERY important sentence, as it has an affect on what the customer has to pay, therefore why is it not a requirement of the booking, to tick a box which requires you to confirm you have a credit card - this way if you do not, alternative arrangements can be automatically organised by yourselves - I do not think this should be left to the customer. In addition, If arrangements can be made to pay this excess in cash, why can we not get a refund for the amount charged on our debit card??