Hazel Smith, Sliema
Rip-off culture shock
Some weeks ago The Times reported an incident where a young foreign tourist was treated rudely by a bus driver – as an example of how the tourist industry can be damaged by individual acts of thoughtlessness.
It was clearly regrettable that the young person was not treated well but on the other hand Malta does have a cheap and extensive public transport system which, on the whole, is well-appreciated – and even well-loved by many who associate travelling on a Maltese bus with a little adventure and part of what can be a very pleasurable and memorable “Malta experience”. It was also laudable that the Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism responded so promptly to these concerns.
This incident received a lot of publicity but it does not reflect the real reasons why tourists don’t come back to Malta – and especially the high end tourists with money to spend. The main reason is the increasing systematic, pervasive and cynical rip-off culture which underpins the provision of tourist “services” these days in Malta. Here are two examples.
NNG promotions sold tickets to tourists (and Maltese) via the Agenda bookshops to the Joseph Calleja concert in July but did not tell them that if the concert was postponed and they were booked to leave the island they would not receive a refund of their tickets.
When asked after the event, the agent Maltaticket informed the tourists that this condition is printed on the back of the ticket. The purchasers however received the tickets after they had paid their money and so did not know about the condition when they bought the ticket.
No person would buy tickets with these conditions attached to them if they knew they were leaving the island days after the scheduled date of the concert. When the purchaser tries to phone to pursue the matter, no-one from Maltaticket or NNG promotions answers the phone numbers given or phones back when a number is left on the answer phone.
Most non-package tourists to Malta and visiting business women and men book rental cars in advance over the internet. Most of these contracts inform the visitor that all charges are included in the payment made. When the visitor arrives at the airport it is an entirely different story – with a whole host of different mechanisms used to fleece the unsuspecting visitor.
The most egregious is the fuel scam. Some rental car firms operating at the airport routinely offer a fuel policy which states that they provide a half tank of fuel and the car must be returned empty of fuel. The fuel is then charged for at the airport on top of the payment already agreed for car hire. It is first of all an additional charge of which the consumer has not previously been informed.
Secondly, the car cannot be returned empty, if it is to actually reach the airport, so money is made by the firm on the extra fuel left in the tank. Thirdly, the fuel is charged at way above the local rates so more money is made on the fuel charge which has already been introduced as an “extra” charge at the airport. Fourthly, for those coming on a short business trip to Malta, it is also impossible to use a half a tank of fuel in a weekend so there is always fuel left over, again from which the car rental firm profits.
The Malta tourist industry is not damaged by a few thoughtless individuals who occasionally lose their temper or short change a tourist by a few cents. This can happen in any country. The problem inhibiting real growth in Malta as an attractive modern tourist destination and hub for international business is the systematic entrenchment of contempt for paying customers combined with the attitude that I can get away with anything I want to as nobody is going to do anything about it in Malta.
For a country which has always been able to pride itself on maintaining decent human, family and community values and morals and which is why, at the core of it, Malta is so attractive to many non-Maltese, these developments are terribly counter-productive for the society as well as for business, as well as very sad.
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Joseph Galea
Aug 28th 2010, 19:37
The 'pay-for-the-gas-up-front-and-bring-the car-back-empty' is indeed a rip-off. I fell for this once in Calagary - but then it wasn't imposed, but just offered as one method, and I stupidly fell for it. Trying to return the car back near empty can be harrowing and dangerous if one mis-calculates. I almost ended with an empty gas tank in the middle of nowhere in the Alberta badlands. I was never so happy to find a combined general store/gas station in a small village that hardly appeared on the map. This scenario is unlikely to happen in Malta but the 'get-the-car-with-a-full-tank-return-it-with-a-full-tank' system is the only and fair way to go.
Karl Consiglio
Aug 28th 2010, 14:52
To make that quick extra buck overnight they miss out on all the profit they could be making in the future because you don't go back to them. When a client is happy on the other hand not only do they come back but they recommend to others. That is what these people need to learn.
C Cassar
Aug 28th 2010, 14:51
....Contd ....
so both Hertz & Avis have lost a very profitable customer due to the greedy small minded idiots working for them in Malta. Another thing is that the cars are often terrible, some with 30k miles/Km full of dents/damage, steering wheels misaligned, suspension completely shot, tyres way too low on pressure etc. The business model behind these large companies is brand name. They are the McDonalds of the car rental world. This means consistency no matter which part of the world you choose to use their services. This is definitely not the case in Malta and I really wonder if their European/Worldwide management know what's going on? I hope they read this blog.
C Cassar
Aug 28th 2010, 14:47
I agree on the rip-off car rental charges at MIA. I gave up renting from there due to the "it comes with half a tank" issue. I challenged Avis who said it was decalred on the website. Of course it wasn't and when I pointed this out by sending them a screen shot of the page they sadif it appeared on I never heard back from them again. What a surprise when a few weeks later, the condition was specified but not in exact words. Something like loca charges may apply which basically meant they could charge anything they weanted to after you made a reservation.
Hertz have changed their policy and you get a full tank and you brink back a full tank. However, their trick is to add a charge of €16 if you pick the car up out of normal office hours, which again wasn't mentioned at all on their website. I'v now also dumped them. I used to rent with Avis & Hertz 20-30 times a year worldwide but due to their nasty practices in Malta I don't rent with them any more .........
TRW O'Neill
Aug 28th 2010, 14:19
Another rip off , is drinks at bars in Hotels. O.K. a Hotel is expensive to run, but..................
5Eu 40cents for 2 small bottles of Iced Tea! Too much profit ! In the U.K. bars must list the prices of ALL drinks , so that potential customers know wheter to buy or not. Are Bars breaking the law in Malta ? Or does the Govt overlook this also? I will not mention the name of the Hotel as it will not be published. QED.
Anton Zahara
Aug 28th 2010, 09:48
This is the sort of constructive comment we should listen to and put right. Tourism is our sustenance! If people break the law harming this life line, caught, the punishment should be more severe. How many times have we heard not to infect the water we have to drink from? If we allow a person to rob tourists he not only is robbing them but the rest of us because these people will not return and we will wait and wait to get a decent cent from them but they went to Greece instead. I believe that there is a racket lately of a young man or more who boards the bus from the airport to Valletta, sits down with these new arrivals and pickpocket one of them and climbs down the bus. I am sure that the bus drivers have grown wise of this.
My last add on. I am very proud of our police force. I hope though that in their permanent formation which I am sure the force gives them; special mind will be given to care for the tourists, who after all are our life line.
Tony Gatt
Aug 28th 2010, 09:33
On the car-hire theme, the firm I hire from has no particular policy on how much fuel one should leave on returning the car- consequently I often wonder if I'll make it to the nearest garage from the airport when I hire.
In the U.K. when I've hired a car it has had a full tank and one must return it full or make up the difference
W Spencer
Aug 28th 2010, 09:50
Ditto...................We always hire a car at Gatwick Airport, and the car always has a full tank of fuel. No hidden costs or small print !