<p>I rent cars frequently in the US and in Europe. I’ve had problems (minor) with all of them, but have never been scammed. I think they also keep track of frequent renters, and you are less likely to have a problem if you have a frequent renter account. </p>
<p>I’ve had a couple of dings (3 I think and all my fault), the most serious in Canada when I scraped the drivers side front bumper on a cement pillar backing out of a very tight parking space. Since it was business, I just paid the charge which was only a couple hundred dollars (Can.). The other two were never even noticed, although I did take pictures with my cell phone, just in case they tried to say the damage was worse than it was.</p>
<p>Instead of paying for the extra insurance, I figure that I’ve saved enough over the years by not paying it to make it worth my while to pay even a couple thousand $ in repairs, if necessary. You could always deposit that amount into a special account, rather than giving it to the rental company when 9 times out of 10 you don’t need it.</p>
<p>My pet peeve is being upgraded to a minivan against my will. I usually request a compact when I go to a big city. When I’m driving, and especially parking, in a strange location, I don’t want to be driving a vehicile that’s twice as big as my normal car. Usually the upgrade is “free”, but there’s a charge if I want anything other than what they offer.</p>