I will say upfront, the rental certificate stated '10:00'.

Now, I'm a trusting person and I assume that when I buy, book, order something, the information or preferences I have selected will be honoured. I booked the hire car for 10pm, roughly the time I was due to land in Pisa, Italy on the evening of Wednesday 6th September 2023.

Upon reading the rental certificate, I noticed the time listed as '10:00'. This could have been due to the way the system processed the time or the rental company's preferred time format. It might have also been a default setting of '10:00' for pickup and drop-off times, which would have covered my needs whether it was AM or PM.

I don't rent cars enough to know this or to know how these companies work, this being the second car I have rented in my 20 years of holding a driving licence.

When I arrived at the rental counter at Pisa Airport around 10:10 PM on the 6th, the representative from 'Italy Car Rent' informed me that my reservation had been canceled at 11:00 AM due to a "no-show." I was surprised and in disbelief, repeatedly verifying what he told me. Unfortunately, it was true, and there were no available replacement cars.

We asked around at other rental counters, and the only car available was a £1000 Citroën C3 for the 6 days required, from the Avis counter, a sizeable increase from the £205 promised for the Italy Car Rent car from Enjoy Travel.

With no other cars available, for either that evening or the following morning, it was a very sad, very expensive 25 minute taxi ride (€70) to our hotel, just outside of Lucca. What followed were a series of attempted bookings, and phone calls to try and arrange a car for the following morning.

Thankfully we did get a car, however it wasn't thanks to Enjoy Travel, nor was it thanks to anyone else we spoke to that evening. Our white knight came in the form of a lovely lady at the Rental Plus lot the following morning, who, despite yet another booking fail, saw our plight and honoured the booking, issuing us with a backup car.

So where were Enjoy Travel when I needed them in my hour of need?

"Our phone-lines are now closed, please call between 8:30am and 5:00 pm, or through our online chat"
I tried to use the online chat - unavailable.
Calling the next morning during the opening hours was also pointless; I needed a car and I needed to dedicate all of my time, which I'll stress was holiday time, to finding a car. And I wasn't going to waste time with a company that had already let me down, probably the wrong attitude I know, as I should have demanded that they sort something for me. Instead I decided to write a long email, explaining everything, how I'd clearly been misinformed, and how it seemed nothing could be done. I said that the least that could be done was to return my £42.86 deposit for my troubles, and we could go our separate ways.

The response I received earlier today (12th) was the following:

"Thank you for the email and we're sorry to hear about your experience.

However, please review the terms you agreed to at the time of booking (below in link) and that were subsequently sent in an email over 2 months before your rental started, where we advised you to check important terms such as location details, accepted payment methods etc. As you did not check the information and we were not contacted for the adjustment of the times, we're unable to offer any refund.

Best regards,
[Enjoy travel customer service rep]"

Now, I expected this response, the Terms and Conditions state as much in regards to them taking responsibility. It's also quite clear that they weren't going to be overly sympathetic. However, my point still stands, I'm no car rental expert. I booked my car for 10pm, with a drop off on the 12th by 10am. If the rental certificate comes back saying 10:00 pickup, 10:00 drop off, how do I know that this isn't what the default times are? How do I know that this isn't intended to be PM and AM, but just doesn't say so.

I also find it quite frustrating that once the booking was cancelled, Enjoy Travel had washed their hands of it. There was no email to say that it was cancelled, no option to rearrange, nothing. Had I been told as much earlier that day, I could have queried it. Instead the whole attitude is, "check the information, even if you don't know what you're checking".

I live a busy life, I work long hours, I look forward to my holiday like most people. I don't have time to pour over every detail. I booked a 10PM pickup, the hire certificate said 10:00. I just want to trust it.
Based on my experience, they get 1 star, it's the lowest I can give of course, but it's also well deserved in my mind. Book with Enjoy Travel by all means, but just remember, if the details are "wrong" and you're left stranded, "it's all your fault"…

Was the easiest experience I have had using Drivalia at Edinburgh Airport, would use again in a heartbeart