Price Drop ProtectorI will start from the funny part. I found out later that the price for my small car went down, but I did nothing and still got some money back. I was really surprised and it felt pretty nice. I booked the car on QEEQ because I planned a trip to Sao Jorge in Portugal in the middle of July. I was going to pick up the car around the afternoon on the 8th and return it a few days later about the same time. The rental company was ILHA VERDE and the car was a Ford Fiesta with manual gear. I thought after I booked it the price was fixed. I already paid with my card and I told myself it was fine. One day I was checking my bank messages and I suddenly saw a refund coming in. The amount was not huge but for a student it was still important. At first I thought I read it wrong. Then I went back to my email and saw that their Price Drop Protector started to work. The email said the price for my booking became lower later and they helped me book again with the cheaper price and sent the difference back to me. I did not compare anything. I did not ask customer service. I did not even know when the price changed. I just booked the car and after some days it felt like I earned some travel money for free. At that time I was planning if I should eat one more seafood meal on the island. When I checked the extra money I got back I felt it could cover part of that meal. I started to feel very close to this small amount of money. What stayed in my mind is the whole thing felt very simple for me. First I booked the car like normal. After some days I got an email and then I saw more money in my account. No extra steps and no long forms for me. In my head I could already see the small island of Sao Jorge. I imagined driving that Ford Fiesta around the roads and my mood became lighter because it felt like someone helped me push my budget down a bit. Before this I always worried that if the price dropped after I booked I would lose money and maybe I should check the website every day. Now this experience made me feel more relaxed. I just book and leave it and they watch the price for me. When it drops they give me money back. It is not a huge amount but for a student traveling abroad this kind of easy saving feels really good. The whole thing is pretty simple but it gives me one more layer of peace because I know if the price changes later it will not be only my problem.
AXA Full CoverageThat night at the hotel in Sintra, I was driving alone and trying to park the car I booked through QEEQ. The entrance to the parking lot was narrow and it was pretty dark. I just wanted to park quickly. Then I heard a scraping sound on the side of the car. In my head I went oh no did I just damage the car. I got out right away and used my phone light to check. I walked around the car a few times. Under the dim light I did not see any big clear scratch so I told myself maybe it was fine. The next morning I drove to Lisbon airport to return the car. I arrived a bit earlier than planned around six in the morning. The rental staff walked around the car. He suddenly pointed at two fresh scratches on the door and said they were new. I was confused and a bit shocked. Were they really that serious. In my mind I kept thinking about the video I took on March twenty fifth when I first picked up the car. I remembered that I did not see these scratches in that video. The staff wrote the new damage on the check in paper and then told me they would charge the maximum damage deductible which was 2100 euros. When I heard that number my heart sank. I felt nervous and also a bit angry but I knew I did hit the side the night before so I could not really argue much. I signed and watched them charge my card. At that moment I just thought my whole trip budget was broken. After I left I checked the photos and videos on my phone and compared the car from the first day. I was pretty sure the scratches were not there before. Then I remembered I had bought AXA Full Coverage through them. I started to hope this insurance could save me. After I went back home I tried to get the official damage report from the rental company. They were very slow and often did not answer my emails. I waited and waited and felt more and more worried. I kept looking at the 2100 euro charge on my bank record and asked myself what if I never get this money back. Later I finally received the detailed repair report. It said the repair cost was a bit over 1700 euros plus tax and the total was exactly 2100 euros. I collected all the papers. I had the rental contract the charge slip and the damage report. Then I sent all of them in the way their side asked for. In my head there was still a big question. Would they really pay. The amount was not small and I was dealing with this all by myself so it felt stressful. Their customer service told me they were following up with the insurer so I just kept checking my email from time to time. For a few days I kept asking myself the same thing. Will this claim be accepted. Will they suddenly say it does not meet some rule. When I finally got the message that the claim was approved and AXA Full Coverage would cover this damage I felt a huge relief. It was like a heavy stone in my chest was gone. For me 2100 euros is a lot of money. At first I thought I had to pay it all by myself but in the end the insurance took care of it. This whole story made me really feel the value of that coverage. I still remember the scraping sound at the parking entrance in Lisbon very clearly but at least this time the financial hit was not as scary because the insurance was there to back me up.
AXA Full Coverage"Did you really get the money" my friend asked me. I sent a screenshot of my bank app and said "Yes it is in my account now and it is because I bought AXA Full Coverage on QEEQ"
That evening I was standing outside the airport in Porto in Portugal. The night wind was a bit cold. I had picked up the car there about two days before. It was a Peugeot 208 automatic from GOLDCAR. It was a small car and I liked it at first. I picked it up around April 24 in the evening near seven. I pulled my suitcase along that Avenida with all the rent a car signs. The light was kind of yellow. The counter staff gave me the keys. I walked around the car and checked it. I thought everything was fine.
The real trouble came around the return time. I brought the car back at almost the same time in the evening on the next day. I returned it on the same road. The sky was already a bit dark. The staff checked the car and then pointed at a small scratch on the body. He spoke Portuguese with some English and said they needed to charge me. I was a bit shocked. I just nodded but in my head I said to myself that this was bad and I would lose a lot of money.
Some time later I saw the charge from the rental company on my credit card bill. The number was not small. I also got a paper from the rental company. There were many words and some of them I did not really understand. I remembered I had bought AXA Full Coverage and I felt a bit calm. I thought maybe I could get this money back.
In the next few days I kept checking my email and I tried to put all the papers together. For the payee address I first wrote that Avenida where all the rent a car offices are. It looked more like a company address than my home address. Later they asked me again for my correct address and then I understood the problem. I wrote my own home address clearly this time. I took photos of the paper from the rental company. I also downloaded my credit card bill and marked that damage charge. I sent all these one by one.
During this time I felt quite nervous. My English is not very strong so each time they asked for something I read their words many times. I did not want to miss a document. They used simple words so I could follow and just prepare what they needed. In my head I kept counting my budget. If the claim failed my trip cost in Porto would go way over my plan.
After some time they told me the claim was approved. I felt a big relief at that moment. When the payment arrived in my bank account I refreshed the app again and again. When I saw the number show up I said to myself many times that I was lucky I bought AXA Full Coverage. Without it I would lose so much money.
Now when I think about this whole story it feels like taking a hard test. The rental company charge was like a sudden question that scared me. AXA Full Coverage was like an answer I had prepared before. I only needed to hand in the rental paper the credit card bill and my correct address and they helped me finish the rest. I was worried in the middle but the final result shows that this insurance really helped me when I was most afraid.
One-Dollar FreezeI wanted to lock a car first and I felt a bit rushed. I also did not want to pay a big amount at once. I saw the One-Dollar Freeze option on QEEQ and I decided to try it. That time I planned to rent a Peugeot 3008 in Lisbon. I chose pick up on April 28 around 5 pm and return on May 6 around the same time. When I booked, they only took 1 dollar from my card. I checked the bill and I was a bit surprised. I also felt relaxed. It was like I just saved a spot. In the next days I kept looking at my credit card record. There was no sudden big charge so my mind was not so tense. I knew the rest would be charged before the rental started. Since it was not a big hit at one time I was not scared about my card limit or that it would jump to the max in one day. When the pick up date got close I saw the other charges come in. The amount was still under my control. For someone like me who needs to plan the budget very tight this way of paying only 1 dollar first to hold the booking made me feel no real credit card pressure and the whole booking process felt very easy.
One-Dollar FreezeI want to start from the part that made me feel really happy. When I booked the car on QEEQ, I only paid 1 dollar at the beginning. I was still in Taiwan and thinking if this long trip to Lisbon in Portugal would make my budget too tight. I saw the words One-Dollar Freeze on the page. I was not sure if it was real, but I felt I could just try because there was nothing to lose. When the bank text came, it showed they only took 1 dollar. At that moment my stress went down a lot. I thought it was nice because I did not need to pay the full amount at once and my credit card limit did not get locked up all of a sudden. A few days before the rental started, they took the rest of the payment automatically. At that time I was busy planning my trip, so I did not need to think about payment again. I also did not worry that I might forget to pay and lose the booking. When I arrived in Lisbon and picked up the Peugeot 3008 at the airport location, I was thinking that if I had to pay everything at the start, I might have hesitated to rent for so many days. With this 1 dollar first feeling, it was like I locked the car first and then slowly got ready for the trip. The whole experience felt light for me. I did not feel any big hold on my card. For an overseas traveler like me, this kind of payment plan is really friendly.
One-Dollar FreezeWhen I think about how I returned the car in Lisbon, I still feel very relaxed. It was around the evening of May 6. I parked the car at the return spot and looked at the fuel gauge and the mileage. One thought came into my head. I was glad I locked this car with just 1 dollar at the start. Maybe I would not book it at all if I had to pay everything right away.
I booked the car on QEEQ. I was traveling alone in Portugal and my credit card limit made me a bit nervous. When I first chose the car, I was afraid of one big payment. Then I saw the words One-Dollar Freeze on the page. I even talked to myself. Is this real. Only 1 dollar first. It was around April 27 and I was in my room in Taipei, just staring at my laptop.
I checked the details for a while and saw that I really only needed to pay 1 dollar first to lock this Peugeot 3008. The rest of the money would be charged before the pick up date. I felt some pressure leave my chest. It was like someone next to me was saying you can just book it first and do not stress. I clicked confirm and my phone only showed a tiny 1 dollar payment. It felt strange in a good way. My trip for the next days was already set in place but my credit card did not feel heavy at all.
On April 28 when I flew to Portugal and walked in the long halls of the Lisbon airport, I suddenly remembered the booking. I noticed I did not get any extra fee. Later I realized this plan had no interest. It just moved the big payment a bit later. Before the pick up time the rest of the cost was charged automatically. I only saw the bank message and thought okay it is time. I did not have that scared feeling of one big charge that hits all at once.
For a solo traveler like me this 1 dollar start felt very important. It was not some crazy buy. It was more like holding a seat for myself first. I drove from the airport to the city and followed the navigation to my hotel. On the road I still thought about it. If there was no way to book with just 1 dollar I might wait a few more days and maybe mess up my plans.
Now when I look back at that moment at the screen, it feels like I pressed a pause button for my wallet. I did not have to pay a lot at once but my plan was already safe. Their payment style made the whole booking feel easy and light. I did not need to worry too much about my credit card.
