Drivalia UK - LONDON LUTON AIRPORT Reviews 

Very disappointing experience. Although advertised as "London Luton Airport", the Drivalia rental office is not actually at the airport and requires a shuttle bus to an off-site location some distance away. This wasn't as clear as I expected when booking. After paying over £15 for a taxi to the collection point, I discovered I couldn't collect the car because only a credit card was accepted (a requirement I later found in the ‘voucher’ rather than being prominently highlighted during the booking process). I then had to pay another £15 for a taxi home, leaving me out of pocket for both taxis and the cost of a car I never drove. While I accept the credit card requirement was included in the terms, the overall experience was frustrating, inconvenient and unnecessarily expensive. If you're booking from Luton Airport, be aware that this is an off-airport location and make sure you have a credit card before you travel.

Excellent service with a sense of humour and friendly atmosphere

I hire a car from Drivalia luton which was amazing. As soon as you exit luton airport in front of the terminal you need to go to bay E to take a direct shuttle bus to Airparks car park. Drivalia office is located there. Upon arrival I’ve completed the check in and scanned all my docs so when I arrived at the office I filled a form the staff checked all my documents and confirmed is all good. I have to chose to have my vehicle covered by them in order to not leave a deposit on my credit card. They offered a free upgrade and they assured me on return I don’t need to wait for someone to check the vehicle and can go straight to the airport with the shuttle which runs every 15 minutes. I will rent again and I will recommend them to friends as they are hassle free.

Car hire itself was fine. However, on collection I was told drop off needed to be after 7am otherwise a £40 late drop-off fee would be incurred. I was also told that if they were late for some reason due to traffic, not to worry and drop the key in the box. I dropped off the car at 7:15am - no one was there so left the key in the box. 5 days later I get a £40 charge on my card and on enquiry was told I dropped it out of hours. What they had failed to tell me was that on Sundays the opening hours were 8am and despite messages appealing to the fact that I was clearly told it was 7am, they have been ignored. I will NEVER hire from them again. No mention of the out of hours charge was mentioned at the time of booking either - if it had of been, I would have selected an alternative hire company. And to not have the decency to reply to messages - the only way of contacting the branch btw is just rude. I do not recommend them.
Edit: their response to my review is ridiculous as they are ignoring all my messages using the route they advise I take.

Amazing and professional

Absolute thieves! We hired a car for 7 months! Spent an inordinate amount of money and then when I gave the car back they said don't worry there will be no charge all is good. And we left the keys with him. Then 3 weeks later we received an email saying we are trying to take £370 from you! Because of damage to the car. Literally no communication received about any damage - no evidence. Then they speak about debt collection. I have had no contact with them at all!

Then today they trying to take the same amount from my wife's card! Absolute fraud!

If this is not resolved this week will be taking them to the ombudsman.

Do NOT use this company.

UPDATE

they claim i should speak to customer service - however they have since tried to take money 3 times, and in addition to that the customer service number doesn't work. I had to call their 'claims' line and they fobbed me off saying they have IT issues and I will get a call back. I am now as i write calling them again on their generic number and have been waiting a week. I will be taking this to the Ombudsman tomorrow.

Truly the worst rental company I have ever used. The agent (manager Andrei) was rude and unhelpful and quibbled about marking down damage to the car when I was picking it up. They also lodged a £1500 pending payment against me credit card saying that once the car was returned it could take up to 28 days for this to be cleared but this was the credit card company that caused this. I spoke to my credit card company and it is Drivalia that specify a 28 day hold. Both when I picked the car up and dropped it off there were others there having problems. The experience spoiled my trip.
ABOUD AVOID AVOID

Fast and great service, Amarei.

Great staff and good cars
Just read the requirements and is all good

Friendly staff & great service.
Really helpful will definitely recommend and use again!

I have rented more than 30 vehicles with Drivalia and have always taken great care of them, with no previous damage issues. Unfortunately, my recent experience at the Luton branch, involving the Branch Manager, Mr Andre, was one of the most upsetting customer experiences I have had.

When returning a vehicle at the Luton branch, I was told there was a dent on the driver’s side and presented with a charge of £1,580. I disputed both the alleged damage and the valuation, particularly as I was not given a clear or consistent explanation of how this amount had been reached.

I was asked to sign the damage form, which I was willing to do, provided I could include a note stating that I disputed the charge. Mr Andre refused to allow me to add this note, claiming it would breach company policy. Instead, he signed the form himself as “REFUSED” in front of me, despite the fact that I had not refused to sign. I found this extremely concerning, particularly as it appeared that he completed the document without my authorisation.

The lack of empathy and support shown by Mr Andre made an already difficult situation worse. I urgently needed a van to move my family, especially after Drivalia had been unable to provide the van I had reserved the previous week. I was instead given a smaller vehicle, which meant rearranging my plans and effectively having to undertake the move twice.

Rather than helping to resolve the matter, I found the approach dismissive and unnecessarily confrontational. I was also directed to customer services on a Sunday, despite the department being closed.

I have since written formally to the Senior Leadership Team to raise these concerns. However, I have been extremely disappointed that nobody has taken ownership of the situation, contacted me meaningfully, or demonstrated responsibility for resolving what happened.

This matter remains ongoing. Given the lack of resolution, I am now seeking to escalate it through the appropriate financial dispute-resolution route, including the Financial Ombudsman Service where applicable. During this difficult period, I have received appropriate support and guidance from my bank, American Express.

The entire experience took around three hours, left me extremely distressed, and meant I was unable to complete an important family move. Initial discussions with reputable repair companies also suggest that the alleged repair may be significantly lower than the £1,580 charged.

I expect fairness, professionalism, empathy and accountability from both branch management and senior leadership. Unfortunately, that was not my experience with Drivalia.

Valentine was super helpful

We collected a hire car from slip end, luton on 19.6.26 and dropped off 21.6.26. We had a lovely lad help us with the car and we were given an upgrade. As we were going to my sisters wedding and taking her to the registry office we were delighted. We decked the car out with white ribbons for her, it looked lovely and with less than 500 miles on the clock was in perfcet condition. Thank you Drivalia for giving us the finishing touch to her wedding x

I reserved and prepaid for a hirecar via Rentalcars. On the booking I completed my flight number and arrival time. The flight was due in at 2305. I booked the car for collection at 2330. The flight landed 20 minutes late. I had no luggage to was out of the airport quickly. Drivalia are located at an off-airport site and they instruct you to take the long-stay car park bus. When I got to the shuttle stop and scanned the QR code it told me the bus was 17 minutes away and would then take another 14 minutes to get to the drop off. I therefore decided to take a taxi to arrive quicker (the taxi cost £30). I arrived in the deserted industrial estate where the Drivalia office is located. The taxi could only get nearby so I had a short walk. I arrived at the Drivalia office at just after midnight and they had gone home. I was left in a deserted area with no car despite having prepaid for it. It was impossible to get an Uber or Bolt to come and collect me, the local taxi firms I called had no cars available and it was only due to the kindness of one of the long stay car park staff (who called a friend who had a taxi) that I was able to get to my destination. Rentalcars blamed Drivalia, telling me that they were obliged to stay open for two hours after the booking time but had not respected this. Rentalcars refused to give me a refund. Apart from the cost issue it is also a safety issue - I would hate a tourist with little English language or a young woman alone to experience this. It should be noted that I tried to ring Drivalia before taking off to alert them to the small delay to my flight but they did not answer the phone. Whenever similar situations have arisen with other hirecar companies, if they had the flight number on the booking, they have always stayed open and waited - sometimes at a small cost but this is preferable to being stranded as I was.

Great service from Gill at Luton, very helpful.

Andrei from the Luton branch ticked all the boxes in terms of being welcoming professional and knowledgeable on everything related to the car hiring process. He sets the standard for what is expected.

Twice I hired car from them, It was a great experience each time. Everyone was helpful, and the main thing is that the 1500 deposit was released within 2/3 days, although I was told it may take 28 days.

Very well explain all details and very fast check in. Thanks Andrei and Alexandra for your full commitment and I wish you more customers satisfied like I am.

This is for Luton Branch, Andrei and Catalin are very friendly and fast serving customers, i hired cars from couple off months all ready. Thanks