Had an unpleasant incident whilst shopping there on saturday lunch time : returned to car to find door lock smashed and empty rucksack on seat....it had been in the boot. Fortunately, it was already empty and they didn't want to steal my walking boots nor hat!
Usual aggro with GNR and car hire company though : the former wanting 33€ for a report and the latter 150€ for a new lock. Hopefully the car excess insurance will refund once back in UK.
Gypsy looking lady with baby begging in carpark at the time....wonder if a coincidence?

Geoff:

That's dreadful - our hearts go out to you - you really DIDN'T need that....as you've unfortunately found out, there are some bast@@ds about - (also very nice to get some sympathy from the GNR and your car-hire company....!)

I WAS going to say, perhaps stick to Intermarche in CVO, but then realised it wasn't even slightly amusing in the circumstances...so, hope you're OK now, and remember, the majority of us are well-meaning people, just trying to enjoy our lives whilst we can!

Good luck, Geoff - I'm sorry you had to endure that - I hope things get better for you...

Best wishes

Nige

Sorry to hear that Geoff. Hope your insurance pays up without hassle. A similar thing happened to me a couple of years ago so now I take everything out of the car every time, including empty bags.I leave the boot cover off and the glove box open so the scumbags can see there is nothing to steal. It's a bit of a pain but better than having another break-in.

There is security at Intermarche, both in store and the parking lot. Obviously they have had problems like this in the past. Not good for business - did you report it to Lidl?

That's awful Geoff.....so sorry to hear that

We've been robbed in the Intemarche before & there was security, guess how useful he was. And no cctv. It was definitely gypsies on this occasion. Unfortunately the supermarkets & car parks are always targeted by thieves.

Unlucky Geoff, I should imagine this sort of thing puts a real downer on your holiday. Can you imagine the police in the UK charging you almost £30 to report a crime? What a rip-off!

Fortunately, I've never had trouble in Portugal. Once again this time I stumped up the extra €6 per day for Super CDW, which is supposed to release you from paying anything for this sort of break-in. However, I've never had to put it to the test. When you say you hope the car excess insurance will refund back in the UK, do you mean by your UK insurers?

Once again this time, the rear parcel shelf had been removed from our car (which was only 6 months old). I presume taken out by the hire company to disuade thieves from breaking in to see if there is anything stowed in the luggage area.

There is a lot to be said for a " rent a wreck " a vehicle that has obviously seen better days is not plastered in hire car labels and logos.
If I had one of these newer cars I would try and remove the hire company logo, get is as dirty as I could as quickly as I could.
You might as well have a big neon sign that says " soft target " on some cars.

jeeze is that lady still there in the carpark, i remember her when we visited in 2009

TomUK wrote:Fortunately, I've never had trouble in Portugal. Once again this time I stumped up the extra €6 per day for Super CDW, which is supposed to release you from paying anything for this sort of break-in. However, I've never had to put it to the test. When you say you hope the car excess insurance will refund back in the UK, do you mean by your UK insurers?

Once again this time, the rear parcel shelf had been removed from our car (which was only 6 months old). I presume taken out by the hire company to disuade thieves from breaking in to see if there is anything stowed in the luggage area.

Unfortunately not;

What is not covered even with optional excess insurance:
Damage to wheels and tires, glass, keys and locks.
Damage to the underside of the car due to negligent or off road use.
Damage to the interior.
Damages from deliberate violation of the terms and conditions of the rental agreement or gross negligence.

You might find insurance4carhire http://www.insurance4carhire.com/index. ... refID=1808 a more economical solution as you get a full year's* coverage for 49 GBP - this also include damage to wheels and tires, glass, keys and locks.

Thanks for the info Steen. We are always told by the hire companies that even SuperCDW doesn't cover damage to tyres, windows, underside due to off road use and loss of keys. I always thought this referred to damage caused by the customer. As regards damage to locks, I always thought that if this was caused by a thief and not the hirer, you were covered. Likewise, I thought if the window was smashed by a thief and not by me whilst I was driving, this was also covered. It makes me wonder if spending an extra €60-80 for SuperCDW is really worth it. Although I suppose you are paying to avoid the excess charges if you accidentally damage the car by reversing into a gate post or something or clipping another car in some of the narrow back streets of the smaller villages.
I've come close once or twice - but up to now, accident free (quickly touching wood here!).

TomUK wrote:It makes me wonder if spending an extra €60-80 for SuperCDW is really worth it. Although I suppose you are paying to avoid the excess charges if you accidentally damage the car by reversing into a gate post or something or clipping another car in some of the narrow back streets of the smaller villages.
I've come close once or twice - but up to now, accident free (quickly touching wood here!).

You might find insurance4carhire http://www.insurance4carhire.com/index. ... refID=1808 a more economical solution as you get a full year's* coverage for 49 GBP - this also include damage to wheels and tires, glass, keys and locks.

If I take cover with insurance4carhire.com, can I then decline the cover offered by the hire company when I am renting the car?

I don't understand? You just book a basic car rental without any additional insurance. The only inconvenience would be that you have to pay the excess and then claim it back from insurance4carhire.