Welcome to the Money blog, Sky News’s consumer and personal finance hub. Today, we answer another Money Problem – this time about a car hire experience which ended up costing a reader an extra 500 euros. We explain what they could have done.
Tuesday 16 September 2025 07:07, UK
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Every Tuesday, we get an expert to answer your financial problems or consumer disputes – you can WhatsApp us here or email moneyblog@sky.uk. Today’s problem is…
We booked a Goldcar rental via easyJet for our holiday to Pisa. When we arrived at the desk we were told the booking was made on my wife’s card and that she should be the main driver. This wasn’t explained in the booking process and we have never had this issue before with Goldcar or other firms. So we had to make a brand new booking, which was much more expensive at €500 (400+100 deposit), and we lost the money for our original booking, which they put down as a “no show”. Extra charges were not explained to me. Can the Money blog help?Martin Payne
Your email was probably the 10th relating to car rental this year.
When hiring a car, you’re often in a vulnerable position when you arrive, whether that be having restless kids in tow, being tired after a long flight or just being in an unfamiliar country.
In your case, you told us it was around 10.30pm at night, you were facing driving to your hotel in the dark and just wanted to get in a rental car and go.
First up, you say you weren’t asked to nominate a named driver during the booking process and that you were not informed of the “main driver” rule.
You later realised, however, that it was mentioned in the terms and conditions – and you guys had ticked the box to confirm you’d read them. 
What is clear from a lot of the emails we receive is that often firms fall back on “our terms and conditions do say…” so it’s vital that consumers take the time to read them.
In this case, this wasn’t made particularly easy for you. You sent us a contract that included 29 pages of terms and conditions – and the font was quite small.
A further illustration came in Goldcar’s response when we got in touch. Their response started with:
“Goldcar has investigated this case and can confirm that its terms and conditions – which can be found here – do specify that the name on the booking and the credit card must be the name of the main driver.”
If you click on the link you’ll be taken to the terms and conditions – in Spanish. When I tried switching to English I was taken to a different page entirely.
We asked consumer disputes expert Scott Dixon for his thoughts and it is his belief that you have a strong case under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which states key terms must be prominent and transparent, not buried in the small print.
“If the booking form allowed a payment to be made by someone who was not the main driver without warning that the booking may be invalid, it could be argued that it is misleading,” says Dixon.
He says the timing of your collection is also crucial.
“You had no realistic choice and put under duress to accept it, which could be considered as an unfair and aggressive commercial practice under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.”
What can you do?
Dixon says initially you have to complain to the firm itself – explain some of the above and request a refund, giving them an opportunity to resolve the issue.
You say you haven’t really got anywhere with Goldcar, so the next step, because you paid on debit card, could be to raise a chargeback with your bank.
Dixon says: “Tell them that they failed to make a key term prominent and clear during the booking process, which is a breach of contract under the CRA 2015 and the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.”
There is a 120-day limit for chargebacks and evidence is key.
“Provide screenshots, booking pages, emails, photos, videos, receipts and any other evidence with a bullet-point timeline of events to prove your case,” advises Dixon.
“Chargebacks are often rejected on the first attempt and car rental disputes will be particularly difficult due to firms saying the customer signed and agreed to the terms and conditions, so push hard and stick to your guns.”
Industry bodies
Goldcar is not a member of the European Car Rental Conciliation Service, so there’s no route there. It is a member of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association, but that organisation can’t assist with overseas rental disputes, so you cannot go down this route for redress.
The most important advice we could give
The biggest single piece of advice we could offer is: do your research and vote with your feet.
Goldcar came bottom of this year’s Which? annual car hire survey and has a Trustpilot rating of just 2.2 – a quick Google before you make this kind of booking could end up saving you a lot of hassle.
What Goldcar told us
Goldcar looked into your case after our intervention and we managed to get you some redress.
But the firm did maintain:
“The company, therefore, believes that sufficient information was available for the customer to be aware of the requirement for the booking to be paid for in the name of the lead driver,” a spokesperson said.
On the second booking, the spokesperson went on: “The company is sorry that Mr Payne does not believe the extra charges were explained to him – although it has his signature on the rental agreement as authorisation. Given the circumstances, the company would, therefore, like to refund these costs – totalling €255 – as a gesture of goodwill.”
Goldcar seemed to accept it could improve its customer service – it said work had been ongoing on this since it was taken over by Europcar Mobility Group in 2017.
A lot of its business comes from customers looking for a cheap, no-frills option via brokers – therefore, it isn’t always in control of the information customers receive.
But, after our intervention, it pledged to “review its terms and conditions, both on its own website and on that of brokers offering its services”.
This feature is not intended as financial advice – the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:
The windy and sunny September weather has allowed British Gas to give some customers half price energy for two hours tomorrow. 
Households on the PeakSave tariff will be charged 50% less on the electricity they use between 11pm and 1pm as part of the company’s Green Flex Event. 
It means the more you can shift regular activities such as washing, cleaning or cooking to this time, the more you could save on your energy bills. 
British Gas launches the events when there’s lots of renewable energy available due to the weather
It uses its own forecasting to set the event times to test the potential savings and impact on the energy grid. 
It said the deal is available to new and current PeakSave customers, with eligible bill payers contacted to opt in. 
PeakSave customers also get half-price electricity every Sunday between 11am and 4pm without needing to opt in. 
You can read all the terms and conditions here. 
Pope Leo has criticised the amount chief executives get paid salaries, taking a swipe at Elon Musk’s recent $1trn pay package from Tesla. 
In excerpts from his first media interview released this weekend, he said: “CEOs that 60 years ago might have been making four to six times more than what the workers are receiving … 600 times more [now]. 
“The news that Elon Musk is going to be the first trillionaire in the world – what does that mean and what’s that about? 
“If that is the only thing that has value any more, then we’re in big trouble.”
Under the Tesla plans, Musk will be given shares worth as much as 12% of the company if it meets certain performance targets including massive increases in car production, share price and operating profit. 
If approved by shareholders, the new pay package could make Musk the world’s first trillion dollar executive. 
To receive all the shares offered, Tesla’s market value needs to rise to $8.5 trillion – double that of the world’s most valuable company now, chipmaker Nvidia.  
Musk would also need to remain with Tesla for at least seven and a half years to cash out on any stock, and 10 years to earn the full amount.
Interest rates are expected to be held at 4% until next year over concerns about the state of the economy, economists have warned. 
The Bank of England’s policymakers will announce their latest rate decision on Thursday, with a hold at 4% all but guaranteed. 
It comes after inflation rose to 3.8% in July, from 3.6% in June, largely driven by food and drink prices rising. 
Interest rates are used by the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee to control inflation and bring it down to the 2% target. 
In August, the committee emphasised future rate cuts will need to be made “gradually and carefully” due to uncertainty about the economic outlook.
Thomas Pugh, chief economist for auditing firm RSM UK, said: “The committee will stick to its gradual and cautious guidance, as it continues to try to balance rising inflation with a weakening labour market.”
Philip Shaw, an economist for Investec, said he was expecting rates to be held at 4% until the end of the year, with the next cut in February.
He said recent economic data would be “unlikely to disperse the committee’s collective doubts over whether the inflationary coast is clear to resume easing” monetary policy by November.
Rob Wood, economist for Pantheon Macroeconomics, said recent remarks from the Bank’s governor Andrew Bailey indicated he was happy with the financial markets pricing in only a 40% chance of another rate cut this year.
“The late budget will likely also encourage the MPC to wait until December at least before considering another cut,” he said.
Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, will deliver her autumn budget on 26 November. 
Paying an extra £21 a month into your pension could leave you £26,000 better off in retirement, according to Standard Life. 
For someone earning £25,000 a year, that’s a 1% increase on the standard 5% contribution from the age of 22, which could take their pension pot from £210,000 to £236,000, the company said. 
If you increase your payments by £42 a month to around £147 (7% contribution), your pension could amount to £262,000, it said. 
The pension provider has urged graduates to think about making small top-ups to give their future selves a financial boost after a survey of 6,000 people found 31% of adults pay more than the minimum contribution.
Dean Butler, managing director for retail direct at Standard Life, said: “Starting early and contributing consistently is key, and some employers will match additional contributions, giving your savings an even greater lift. If you’re able to save more, your future self is likely to thank you.” 
One-off contributions were also found to offer a valuable boost. 
For instance, Standard Life found someone who makes nine payments of £500 every five years between ages 25 and 65 could be  £5,000 better off in retirement. 
Those able to contribute more – for example £5,000 every five years – could see their pension pot grow to £264,000, an increase of £54,000 compared to standard contributions alone. 
The calculations done by the firm assumes an average investment growth of 5%, salary growth of 3.5%, and 2% inflation. 
By Sarah Taaffe-Maguire, business and economics reporter
After a rally this morning, sterling hit its highest point against the dollar in more than two months. 
For the first time since July, £1 buys you $1.36. 
This morning, you could also buy more euro than at any point since the end of August. After it fell back, you can now get €1.1564.
It could all change in the coming days as we enter a crucial week of economic data and monetary policy announcements domestically and in the US. 
Official figures will tell us what it’s like in the UK jobs market, how much prices are rising, what spending and borrowing figures are in public finances and how much we’ve all been spending. 
Most impactful on currencies will be news from central banks, the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve, known as the Fed. 
Odds are we’ll get the first fall in US borrowing costs this year and see no change to UK interest rates. 
Late designer Giorgio Armani has instructed his heirs to gradually sell his legendary fashion house or seek a market listing. 
His will, Reuters news agency reports, has laid out the instructions, sounding the starting gun on a race to control one of the world’s best-known brands.
The document divides the Armani Group between his close family and the Armani Foundation, which was established in 2016 to preserve his legacy.
It specifies that a 15% stake in the business must be sold within 18 months, with preference given to French conglomerate LVMH, cosmetics brand L’Oreal and eyewear giant Essilor-Luxottica.
Then, within three to five years, an additional 30% to 54.9% should be sold to the same buyer.
The designer, known in the industry as ‘King Giorgio’, died on 4 September at 91 with no children to inherit his fashion empire.
Throughout his life, he consistently refused to sell his namesake company, keeping hold of 100% of it, so the details of his will have come as a surprise to many. 
Industry analysts have valued his business at between £4.3bn-£10.4bn. 
All three companies named in Armani’s will have issued statements suggesting they were open to the possibility of a deal. 
LVMH, controlled by French billionaire Bernard Arnault, said it was honoured to be named as a potential partner. 
EssilorLuxottica, controlled by the heirs of Italian entrepreneur Leonardo Del Vecchio and with commercial ties to Armani, said it would consider a possible deal. 
French cosmetics group L’Oreal, which holds a licensing agreement with the Armani group until 2050, also said it will study the opportunity. 
Britain has experienced its first annual drop in house prices since January last year, according to Rightmove. 
The average asking price for a home in Britain is 0.1%, or £502 lower, than a year ago, the property website found.
The annual dip is being mostly driven by London – and to a lesser extent, the South of England.
This is because sellers in the South of England are facing stronger competition, with the number of homes for sale up 9% compared to this time last year.
This is compared to 2% across the rest of Britain.
Here’s a look at the price changes across the country… 
However, when compared monthly, average house prices have increased. 
Across Britain, the typical home comes with a £370,357 price tag – up 0.4%, or £1,517 since the start of August. 
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove said: “Prices have now dipped slightly from where they were at this time last year after a summer of competitive pricing by sellers, and it’s the South of England which is driving this small dip.
“It’s the sensible and attractive seller pricing we’ve been reporting which has been helping to drive more sales activity compared to last year. Static house prices, rising wages, and lower mortgage rates all assist buyer affordability, which has led to an increase in the number of sales agreed compared to a year ago.”
Lloyds is launching a market-leading £200 bank switching deal tomorrow – here’s everything you need to know… 
The free cash is available to new and existing customers who switch to one of the following accounts: 
To qualify for the deal, you need to use the current account switch service to complete the changeover.
You need to have three active direct debits from your old account being switched to Lloyds – any set up after the change will not count. 
The cash will be paid directly into your account within 10 working days of your switch completing. 
If you have received a switching deal since April 2020 from Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland, you will not qualify. 
The deal will launch tomorrow, and there is no end date at present. 
Club Lloyds and Lloyds Premier customers can choose from a range of benefits, including 12 months of Disney+ Standard With Ads, a choice of Vue or Odeon cinema tickets, a magazine subscription, or a digital Coffee Club and Gourmet Society membership. 
You’ll also be able to access the Club Lloyds Monthly Saver, which pays 6.25% AER on savings of between £25 and £400 a month. 
The Lloyds Premier accounts have been designed for people with income or assets over £100,000. 
You can access a range of benefits including Bupa Family GP & Wellbeing subscription service, cashback up to £10 each month and a 0.2% discount on residential new mortgages and remortgage rates. 
To qualify for this account, you must pay in £5,000 each month or have £100,000 of savings or qualifying investments with Lloyds Banking Group. 
Read all the terms and conditions of the accounts here.
What other deals are available? 
The Co-operative Bank is offering £175 to customers who switch to a standard current account, Current Account Plus, Privilege, Privilege Premier or Everyday Extra account.
You’ll get £100 within 30 days of switching, followed by £25 a month for three months. If you opt for the Everyday Extra account, you’ll get travel insurance, breakdown cover and mobile phone insurance free for three months.
There are a few requirements you need to meet to qualify – check them out here. 
First Direct is also offering £175 for those who use the Current Account Switching Service to open an account. 
Your new account needs to have at least two direct debits or standing orders, at least £1,000 in it within 30 days of opening, and you need to register for online banking. 
Read the full terms and conditions here. 
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