Centauro Rent a Car Reviews 

⚠️ BEWARE! Avoid Centauro!

They push expensive full-coverage insurance. If you refuse, they will charge you an excess for alleged damage even when you have clear before-and-after photos proving there was no damage.

No evidence from them, no response to any attempts to contact them.

Extremely dishonest and unacceptable. Stay away!

Unfortunately, our experience with Centauro at Alicante Airport was extremely disappointing.

We arrived together with my parents, who had booked a separate rental car. Coincidentally, both reservations were under the same surname and in the same vehicle category.

Centauro's staff somehow managed to mix up our two reservations, which caused considerable confusion during the collection process.

My parents-in-law were correctly offered the choice between paying for additional insurance or having a €1,500 deposit blocked on their credit card. Since we had already arranged full insurance coverage through EasyTerra, we intended to use the deposit option as well.

However, we were never offered that choice. Instead, the employee simply instructed us to pay an additional €388.80, without clearly explaining that this was optional insurance.

We paid, believing it was necessary to collect our vehicle.

Shortly afterwards, the reservation mix-up became apparent, partly because of confusion surrounding the child seat we had booked. We immediately raised the issue and requested a refund.

Centauro refused to refund the €388.80 at the desk, telling us that this could only be handled after the rental period.

We returned the vehicle on 27 September in perfect condition, without any damage. Since then, we have sent multiple emails and formal complaints, explaining the situation in detail and requesting a refund. Not a single response. Absolutely nothing.
Mistakes can happen, but what really makes this experience unacceptable is Centauro's complete lack of customer service and willingness to resolve a problem caused by their own staff.

We ended up paying €388.80 for additional insurance we never intended to purchase, following an administrative error and a failure to clearly explain our options.

My advice: avoid Centauro Alicante Airport. If you do rent from them, be extremely careful about additional charges and insurance products at the desk. Make sure you understand exactly what you're paying for before signing or paying anything.

Very disappointing experience. We certainly won't be renting from Centauro again.

Car rented near Madrid Airport for the period of October 4 to October 12, 2026. As this was my first experience with Centauro Rent a Car, and having read several reviews, I admit I was a bit apprehensive. Fortunately, everything was top-notch; the car pickup process was quite simple and fast, and the staff was extremely professional and answered all my questions. I received exactly the car I wanted—a nearly new Audi A1; it is a real pleasure to drive, quite economical yet agile at the same time. The handover process took a few minutes, and I received the €36 fuel deposit back after three days. I should mention that I booked the car directly through the Centauro website, opting for the zero-risk premium full-coverage insurance—something I highly recommend. I highly recommend Centauro's services in Madrid, based on the 5-star experience I had.

STAY AWAY !!!! YOU WILL BE VICTIM OF FRAUD Alicante Airport
Positives - Very quick collection process lasting no more than 4 minutes. Car was high quality albeit had damage so spent time videoing vehicle upon collection to ensure not charged at end.
Negatives - Thieving, fraudulent and rude staff at customer services. As stated collection process was very quick and supports my account of not being informed. Essentially checked details, my DL then what i thought signed for vehicle and provided Credit Card details as deposit to cover potential damage. When i received invoice it shows i had agreed to additional Insurance Costs and Petrol - I definitely had not & not even spoken about by agent (probably spoke 10 words throughout process. Having lived in Spain for a period so having basic understanding of language there is no excuse of my understanding, no discussion English or otherwise re additional charges.
Called Customer Services immediatelyafter discovering costs & whilst they apologised advised to send email to seek refund. I have done this & i am still awaiting any acknowledgement nor contact after 3 weeks. As with others expect reply from Centauro to contact Customer services!!!!
Shocking service and having hired vehicles in Spain on many occasions over a 20 year + period this is the most shocking encounter and sadly duping many innocent people out of significant amounts of cash.
I wonder if they have new owners as Centauro were always a good company.

These people are scammers! We washed and vacuumed the rental car before returning it in Alicante. When we asked for an inspection, they said they were “too busy”.

Afterwards, they deducted €75 from our deposit for “extra cleaning”, without providing any photos or documentation to justify the charge. When we contacted them to dispute it, they simply ignored our emails.

Charging customers from their deposits for no reason, and then refusing to respond should be considered a criminal act. I’m shocked that this company is still allowed to operate.

We took the full premium package, received banged up car full of damage, luckily we took pictures at start of rental. Fuel and an additional amount was not returned and deducted without any explanation and car was returned with a full tank. Contacted the service desk but after 7 days not even a response of acknowledgment. We are a regular returning customer but will be looking to rent from other agencies, there is plenty to choose

Recently rented from Centauro a 20 day rental, the car rental price was acceptable with no excess and no deposit down, has I have had bad experiences from other similar rental car companies in Athens, where they rip you off and keep as much as they want from your deposit without providing any type of proof of damage. My pick-up could have been quicker as we live in the digital world, my drop-off was smooth and I was overall help with the rental. The car had 10K KM and was reliable. I look to rental from them again.

Like many others, my concern was with feeling cheated upon the car collection process. The positive was the car was very good and practical for my needs. Unfortunately when at the checking desk the agent was very aggressive when I questioned what I was signing for, and in fact never saw a content of the document to be signed, other than to to be rushed to sign an electronic pad which contained no information whatsoever. other than the charge amount. I questioned what I was being asked to sign but received a short sharp response. I explained that I had taken out separate excess cover on the UK but that fell on deaf ears. I appreciate that there can always be a language difference as I don't speak any Spanish but normally those agents are very good at English. I expected for them to keep a holding charge for both any potential damage and petrol, and assumed that was what the charge was for; unfortunately not. It was only checking my credit card and speaking with my son that the charge was for an excess damage charge and to make matters worse, when I returned my car having filled up about 2 mile from the airport I was further charged for petrol!!! I have challenged this with all parties concerned Easyjet, Centauro and Car Trawler so I await an update and outcome.
It was only when I returned the car and asked for a copy of the contract that I received anything setting out the charges. To me this borders on fraud and from speaking and reading up on other users, now not unusual. Hirer beware!!

Worst car rental ever rented a car for 150 euro with full insurance and when picking up the car the agency added a smart cover for over 200 euro, I thought this was a deposit I would get back but I was never refunded and never got the option to not buy it and after contacting them they will not refund me! Keep away from this company! They will respond that I should contact them but have done that 5 times now! And they wont refund!

I have been renting off this company for years...with no problem. But in August my fuel was not refunded. I emailed and emailed..Phone cut off..l finally got an email back saying it had to have a special clean.This resulting in no £70.00 fuel back. I gave the car back spotless ..l had only been to the beach and shopping. They sent me pictures of the car with all dog hairs over it and what looked like white plaster in it This wasn't the car l returned. I've asked for dated photos ..but nothing. These wasn't pictures of the car l left.It looks like now they are scamming people and telling lies.BEWARE.. TAKE PHOTOS OF THE WHOLE CAR WHEN RETURNING...OR THEY MAY NOT REFUND YOUR PETROL MONEY AND SCAM YOU WITH FALSE PICTURES TO KEEP IT.

1/5 stars – BEWARE OF EXTRA INSURANCE CHARGES AT CENTAURO MALLORCA AIRPORT

I would give zero stars if I could.

On 10 October 2026, we arrived at Centauro’s Mallorca Airport office to collect a car that we had already booked and paid for through Booking.com.

We had paid 1,710 DKK, including 480 DKK for full protection insurance.

At the counter, Centauro told us they would not release the car because we had a Mastercard Debit rather than a credit card — unless we paid approximately €280 EXTRA for their own insurance.

We felt completely misled. We had already paid for both the car and insurance, yet were suddenly facing an enormous additional expense.

The customer service made an already frustrating situation even worse.

In our experience, the staff were rude, dismissive and incredibly slow. Their explanations in English were difficult to understand, and the interaction felt more like a rehearsed insurance sales pitch than genuine customer service.

When we tried to involve a Booking.com manager over the phone to resolve the problem, the staff ignored our attempts and passed us between colleagues instead of helping.

We understand that rental companies may require a credit card for a security deposit. But the difference between paying for insurance through Booking.com and meeting Centauro’s deposit requirements was far from clear to us when booking.

My warning to other travellers: Booking.com’s full protection insurance does NOT necessarily prevent Centauro from demanding a credit card or charging you for their own insurance at collection.

What looks like an affordable prepaid rental can become significantly more expensive at the counter.

An extremely disappointing experience. I would strongly advise other travellers to consider a different rental company.

Editing: The reply of Centauro to my review is BS. The address in it leads to the same automated response with a dead end. My agreement number is GR26047963. Check it, and then YOU contact me!

Disappointing Service and Ignored Complaints - Unjustified Fuel Deposit Deduction

I have been a long-standing customer, but this experience has been extremely disappointing.

When I rented a car in Kefalonia, Greece, on 17 September 2026, I paid a prepaid fuel deposit of €80.66, which was supposed to be fully refunded if the car was returned with the same fuel level. I returned the car with the exact same fuel level, if not slightly higher, yet only €64.53 was refunded. The remaining €16.13 is still outstanding.

I have photographic evidence of the fuel levels at pickup and return, and the local Kefalonia office explicitly confirmed in writing via WhatsApp that the remaining amount would be refunded. Nevertheless, the refund has never been processed.

What makes this even worse is the complete failure of customer service at head office. Every time I contact them, I receive an immediate response from an AI system, with an option to reply if I am dissatisfied with the answer. I do reply, explaining the problem and requesting action, but nothing happens. No meaningful follow-up, no resolution, and no refund.

An automated response offering the possibility of further communication is meaningless if customer replies lead nowhere. A company should not make commitments it fails to honor, nor should it leave customers trapped in an endless loop of AI-generated responses.

I am still waiting for my €16.13 refund, despite the evidence and the written promise from the local office.

I cannot recommend a company that handles customer complaints this way. The amount may be relatively small, but the lack of accountability and the failure to resolve a straightforward issue are unacceptable.

I clearly told Mrs. Menager that I did not want to purchase additional insurance, but guess what? The insurance was added anyway! Everything was rushed, and I was quickly asked to sign the documents and pay for the fuel deposit, with the insurance included in the total. This was not transparent or professional at all. Not a nice !!

Great car for the trip, but customer service in Bilbao needs a complete overhaul
I rented a Seat Arona, picking it up at the Centauro office at Bilbao Airport on September 15th at around 10:00 AM, for an 11-day trip, driving about 2000 km across Northern Spain from Bilbao to Finisterre. Overall, the car performed very well and allowed me to travel with total peace of mind. Unfortunately, the customer service and the initial condition of the vehicle left a lot to be desired.
Upon arrival at reception, the girl at the counter was unhelpful and unfriendly, making zero effort to overcome the language barrier. When I accidentally presented the wrong credit card, her attitude became even more rigid and completely lacking in customer support. In the end, she handed me the keys without even looking me in the face, simply stating the car was outside, without explaining any basic features (which is important for a long-term rental).
Once inside the car, I noticed some warning lights on the dashboard. I asked a guy working in the parking lot for help, and he was very polite and helpful, even changing the navigator's language for me. While he was helping us, the receptionist came out for a smoke and spoke to her colleague in Spanish: from what my wife and I could clearly gather, she told him to avoid giving too many explanations since I didn't speak the language anyway. We found this behavior highly unprofessional and disrespectful toward a customer.
The condition of the vehicle also had several initial flaws: the bodywork was not new, showing various dents and clear signs of past hail damage; inside, the seat was dirty, there was no windshield washer fluid, and the spare tire was missing.
Final verdict: The Seat Arona turned out to be a great car and ran perfectly throughout the trip, but customer management at the Bilbao branch and vehicle maintenance before delivery definitely need more attention.

Centauro, please don't just keep posting generic replies to my messages; I want you to actually contact me after the way you severely scammed me (see my post from yesterday). You forced me to take the Smart Cover, or else I wouldn't get the rental car! I had already taken out insurance through Ryanair. I was faced with a choice: either walk away without a rental car or accept the Smart Cover under protest. The very next day, I reported your aggressive, coercive sales tactics regarding extra services. You are doing absolutely nothing about it; you consider this behavior normal, which is unacceptable! I am asking you not to post a standard reply—"sorry, please contact..."—but to actually review my file (JA33-KPCC-INS) and resolve this matter properly!

I've had mixed experiences from Centauro, also depending on the car rental office. I've rented from the 3 times. First time 5 stars, second time 2 stars, third time 3 stars. Last time I got a new Seat Ibiza and the person at the desk only informed me about the insurances, did not push me. In General I would say it's a positive experience, just make sure to stand your ground and get the car category you are supposed to.

Excellent service from Centauro Murcia airport. Upgraded car in great condition. No pressure to buy additional insurance as I have my own insurance. Deposit returned within 30 minutes of returning the car. Highly recommend.

Have been charged €570 for supposed damage caused during the rental period for minor damage to the bonnet and bumper. I took lots of photos on collection and was told that damage under 5 cm was not to be noted on damage report.
Honsty and transparency is all that is required but very much lacking if you don’t accept Centaura Alicante Airport inflated additional insurance at the rental desk

Best Rent a Car! Good cars, fast service, good price!

Scam !

We had to pay 350 euros for a damaged we didn’t do it !
Unfortunately we didn’t take photo and video underneath the bumper.
We had a proof of the picture driving away 15 mins after the large scratch was there. They didn’t accept it.
Make sure you take a picture underneath all over !
Not recommended.
Many customers complains I’ve read.