Red Flags – Don’t Rent Here
Red Flags – Don’t Rent Here
I rented a vehicle from "Supercar Hire Scotland" (also operating as “Platinum Wheels”) for a special occasion. At first, the experience seemed straightforward — the owner, Michael, was communicative and personable. However, things took a concerning turn after the return of the car.
A significant portion of my deposit was withheld without any explanation, documentation, or even basic communication. Only after chasing for answers was I told that money had been deducted due to alleged alloy wheel damage. I was never shown a signed check-out/check-in report or anything resembling a proper damage record.
I requested verifiable evidence, including a timestamped report or invoice from an independent repair company. Instead, I was eventually sent a vague screenshot of a document issued by a company seemingly linked to the same individual running the rental business. This arrived several months after the rental and only after repeated demands.
Multiple red flags:
No rental contract or terms and conditions were ever provided at the time of the rental.
No invoice for the rental itself was issued.
Deposit deductions were made without notice or supporting evidence.
The alleged damage photo was undated and lacked context or proof of when or how the damage occurred.
Attempts to resolve the issue formally were ignored. Instead, I received increasingly aggressive messages when I initiated a chargeback through my bank.
Rather than engaging through the official dispute channel, the business owner continued to pressure me privately — which violates merchant conduct rules.
Luckily, I was able to recover the funds via my bank’s chargeback process. But the behaviour following that — including threats and shifting explanations — made the whole experience feel highly questionable.
Sadly, I’ve since seen that others have gone through nearly identical experiences, particularly involving unexplained alloy damage deductions. There appears to be a repeated pattern of this happening.
My advice: Rent elsewhere. Keep detailed documentation if you already have a booking. And if something feels off, trust your instincts. This business does not operate transparently or professionally.
