Renting a car with Centauro: cancellation, deposit, payment and cashback
Centauro Rent a Car is a Spanish car hire company with more than 50 years in the business. Its head office is in Finestrat near Alicante, and its stations are at airports, train stations and in city centres in Spain, the Balearic Islands, Portugal, Madeira, Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, mainland Greece and Crete. It is a service, not a webshop, so nothing is shipped. What counts instead is where you can pick the car up, what you pay on the day and how cancelling works.
Countries and pick-up
You collect and return the car at a Centauro station. In Spain these include Barcelona, Ibiza, Mallorca, Valencia and Alicante. In Portugal there are offices in Lisbon, Porto, Faro and Funchal on Madeira. In Italy you find Rome (Fiumicino and Ciampino), Milan Malpensa, Bergamo, Pisa, Olbia, Cagliari, Palermo and Catania. In Greece the company operates in Athens, Thessaloniki, Chania and Heraklion.
At pick-up you show a passport or national ID card and a credit card in the main driver's name. For some car groups, and for bookings made less than 48 hours ahead, two credit cards may be requested. Returning the car to a different station is possible if you say so when you book, and it comes with a supplement.
Driver requirements
Drivers need a full licence held for at least one year and must be at least 19. Drivers aged 19 to 24 pay a young driver supplement, and drivers aged 75 and over must take a senior supplement. Licences from EU states count, and so do licences from other countries that are recognised as valid in the country where you rent.
Cancellation and changes
If you book directly on centauro.net, you can cancel on the website without charge up to 48 hours before the scheduled pick-up. After that no refund applies. You can take a refund or a coupon for later. To change anything beyond extras or the flight number, the shop asks you to cancel and book again, and price and availability may differ then.
Deposit, cover and payment
The price includes compulsory collision and theft cover with an excess. If you pay with a card and do not choose the optional Smart cover, a deposit of between €900 and €2,100 is held on your card, depending on the car group, and it is released after the car is checked and found free of new damage. In Portugal the shop takes an additional €100 deposit on your card to cover possible toll charges through Via Verde. Smart cover removes the deposit and the excess.
Centauro accepts Visa, Visa Electron and Mastercard. It does not accept prepaid cards, American Express, Maestro or Diners Club. Cash is possible in Spain and Portugal, together with a credit card for the deposit, but not in Italy or Greece.
Fuel, mileage and borders
You choose between the full-empty and the equal-equal fuel option, and the tank price, from €70 to €250, is shown when you collect the car. Mileage is unlimited for rentals up to 29 days. Driving to another country needs cross-border cover. From mainland Spain it allows Spain, France, Andorra and Portugal, and ferries to islands are not permitted.
| Topic | Centauro |
|---|---|
| Countries | Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece |
| Free cancellation | Up to 48 hours before pick-up |
| Minimum driver age | 19, with supplement under 25 |
| Cards | Visa and Mastercard, no Maestro or Amex |
Cashback with Centauro
Open the Centauro page at daily cashback, press the shop button and make your booking on the Centauro site in the same visit. The current cashback rate (1.5%) is shown on that page. In your free account the amount shows as open and turns confirmed after the rental has been completed and reported by the company. If you cancel the booking, the cashback is deducted. Current offers are listed on the shop page, and we check them every day. A code from another site can cost you the cashback.
As of October 2026.