Indie Campers Barcelona: reviews, terms and how to complain
Indie Campers lists a location in Barcelona; several customers place the pick-up and return in Gavà, in the metropolitan area. This page summarises 13 public reviews and complaints about it, published between August 2024 and September 2026, and sets them next to what the company's terms say. Every fact links to its source and is dated. These are customers' accounts, not facts verified by this website.
In short
- Sample: 13 reviews from three sources: 9 from indiecampersopiniones.com, 3 from OCU and 1 from Portal da Queixa. They correspond to 12 separate cases, because one family posted theirs on both OCU and indiecampersopiniones.com. The main article on indiecampersopiniones.com has no visible date and concerns a 2023 rental. Collected on 12 October 2026. We left out an OCU complaint about a booking in Iceland and a Portal da Queixa complaint that does not say where the vehicle was collected.
- Most mentioned topics: slow or unresolved customer service (7 of 13, 54%), waits at pick-up (6, 46%), dirty vehicle (5, 38%) and breakdowns or faults (4, 31%).
- Address and opening hours: Carrer de la Ciència, 26, 08850, open Monday to Sunday from 08:00 to 19:00, according to the data on Indie Campers' Barcelona page (checked on 13 October 2026). Three customers from 2025 and 2026 mention Gavà (example), and the article about a 2023 rental mentions Martorell. Check the address and pick-up times in your booking confirmation.
- Limit of the sample: 13 reviews cannot give this location a rating or be used to compare it with others. People who post a complaint are, by definition, people who had a problem.
How consumer platforms score Indie Campers
These scores are for the whole company, not this location.
| Platform | Country | Score | Complaints |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCU | Spain | 50/100 (Fair) | 146 (65 in the last 12 months); 61 % closed |
| Portal da Queixa | Portugal | 4.8/100 | — |
| DECO PROteste | Portugal | 48/100 (Average) | 30 (11 in the last 12 months); 81 % resolved |
| Altroconsumo | Italy | 60/100 (Mediocre) | 38 (28 in the last 12 months); 46 % closed |
What customers say
| Scope | Reviews in our sample | Sources | Issues mentioned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barcelona | 13 | indiecampersopiniones.com (9), OCU (3), Portal da Queixa (1) | long waits at pick-up, breakdowns or vehicle faults, vehicle dirty at pick-up, different vehicle from the one booked |
| Spain (all locations) | 42 | OCU (22), indiecampersopiniones.com (17), Portal da Queixa (3) | breakdowns or vehicle faults, vehicle dirty at pick-up, damage charge after return, long waits at pick-up |
Percentages in this section use 13 as the base. A single review can mention several topics, and automatic classification can be wrong: we checked the charge cases by hand.
Dirty or incomplete vehicle: 5 of 13 (38%)
- A customer on Portal da Queixa (23 September 2026) says they received the vehicle with an unwashed exterior, no fuel, an empty fresh water tank and the grey and black water not emptied, and that, according to them, they had to sign that everything was in order before being allowed to leave. Status: ongoing.
- The main article on indiecampersopiniones.com, about an August 2023 rental, describes a vehicle with poor cleanliness, scratches and other defects at pick-up.
- Several comments on indiecampersopiniones.com (August 2025, November 2025, August 2026) describe dirt on mattresses or in corners, or a vehicle not ready at hand-over time.
Slow or unresolved customer service: 7 of 13 (54%)
Seven reviews, corresponding to six cases, say customer service was slow or did not solve the problem. A customer from September 2025 says that a month before the trip the booked campervan was swapped for a motorhome that did not fit their route plan, and that they could not reach anyone. Another, from August 2025, says the contact channel they were given did not answer and they had to go back to the pick-up point. A family says on indiecampersopiniones.com (August 2025) and, in an almost identical account, on OCU (August 2025) that, on realising the camper booked was for two people, not three, they could only speak in English and got replies hours later; at the airport they were offered an alternative in Valencia without a bathroom. According to the customer, they asked for a refund of about 800 euros and were told no, because the full amount (about 1,600 euros) had not yet been paid. The two texts are probably the same case.
Breakdowns and faults: 4 of 13 (31%)
A customer on OCU (August 2024) says the van's battery kept draining even when plugged in, and asked for a replacement vehicle and a refund of costs. Status: closed. Other comments describe faulty electrical or water supply points and a screen without the function that, according to the customer, the company advertised.
Waits at pick-up: 6 of 13 (46%)
- A comment from August 2025 describes a wait of over three hours at check-in in Gavà.
- A customer from August 2026 says the hand-over planned for 15:00 slipped to 20:00, and they lost a booked campsite (40 euros).
- Another, from November 2025, reports a delay of over two hours and that for an hour no staff member spoke Spanish.
- The customer on Portal da Queixa (23 September 2026) reports a three-hour wait.
- Two other comments (May 2025, August 2026) mention a very long check-in or a wait of over an hour.
Vehicle change: 3 of 13 (23%)
The same comment from August 2026 says that 48 hours before pick-up a camper of about 6 metres was swapped for a 7.5 m motorhome, and that on collection it had a crack of about 20 cm in the windscreen which, according to the customer, measured about 25 cm on return. They say they were told that if they disagreed they could cancel, and that they have photos from both dates. They say they have filed a complaint and are awaiting a reply.
Charges after the return
Automatic classification tagged "charge for damage after the return" on 3 of 13 reviews (23%). After checking them by hand, the picture is:
- Damage charges (2 of 13, 15%). A comment from August 2026 describes a charge of 450 euros for damage the customer says was already there, after leaving the camper at the door with the key in a mailbox; according to the customer, the company refunded part of it after receiving videos and photos and then stopped replying. The main article on indiecampersopiniones.com (no visible date), about an August 2023 rental, describes a 218 euro damage charge notified by email five days after the return, although, according to the author, the base employee had confirmed everything was fine. According to the same text, on 8 September 2023 the company said the charge had been a mistake and that it would refund it; the author kept asking for the original photos.
- Deposit charged again after it was refunded (1 of 13, 8%). A customer on OCU (25 September 2026) says they rented in July 2026, returned the camper with no issues, then received a charge of 82,242 Chilean pesos without an invoice, that after insisting the 800 euro deposit was refunded on 17 August, and that on 21 August it was charged again without explanation. According to the customer, the company told them the refund had been made on 13 July. Status: ongoing.
- Damage not covered by the protection (1 of 13, 8%). A comment from May 2025 describes hitting an overhead road sign, at a cost of about 8,000 euros that, according to the customer, no protection covers because impacts above the windscreen are excluded. This case is not a charge after the return.
The amounts customers give are 450 euros (partly refunded, according to the customer), 218 euros (which the company said it would refund, according to the author), 800 euros (the deposit charged again) and about 8,000 euros (damage excluded from the protection). They have not been verified.
What the company's terms say (European agreement, version edited on 6 October 2026, see terms):
- damage is valued using the company methodology, which the customer accepts on booking (clauses 30.5 and 30.7), and the agreement describes the amounts as standardised, non-negotiable and binding, whether or not the damage is repaired (clause 30.8);
- the time limit for notifying charges is "within a reasonable timeframe" (clause 30.6); its article on post-trip charges says most are notified within 30 days, with exceptions;
- you have 15 days from notification to dispute a charge made after account closing (clause 35.6) and 30 days from the return to make a formal complaint (clause 36.4);
- you can ask for an independent quote within 5 working days of receiving the damage report, with all costs borne by you (clauses 30.5.2 and 30.5.2.1);
- according to its article on post-trip charges, premium protection sets maximum liability at 0 euros, but all plans exclude, among other things, damage above the window line and below the door line, and the interior.
The account closing process (version archived on 12 October 2026) says it usually takes up to 72 hours, that the deposit is released on the day the process ends, and that the bank may take 5 to 7 working days to show it. The article on return requirements (version archived on 12 October 2026) adds that the depots have no waste water disposal point and that the deposit is not released on the spot because an internal audit follows. Always quote the version in your own agreement.
What is valued
None of these 13 reviews contains a positive assessment of the service. That reflects how the sources are built: OCU and Portal da Queixa are complaint platforms and the comments on indiecampersopiniones.com are mostly critical. It cannot be read as meaning that no customer was satisfied. For a wider view, see the scores in the section above and the Indie Campers reviews summary, which includes more sources.
Trend and the company's replies
- By year of publication: 2024, 1 review; 2025, 7; 2026, 4; undated, 1. The data do not allow talk of a trend.
- Public reply: in none of the 13 does a reply from the company appear on the platform itself. That only describes what we see on these pages; the company may have replied through private channels.
- Status according to the platform (OCU and Portal da Queixa only, 4 cases): 2 ongoing and 2 closed.
Tips before pick-up and at return
- Document the pick-up. Take dated video and photos of the whole exterior, roof, underside, windscreen and glass, interior and equipment before accepting the vehicle. More tips in our guide to documenting pick-up and return.
- If there is an existing defect, note it in the online validation and do not sign that everything is in order if it is not. Keep a screenshot of what you send.
- Check the vehicle you booked: size and category, number of berths, equipment and fuel and water levels.
- Check what your protection covers before leaving: ask about roof, underside, windscreen and glass.
- At the return, ask for the vehicle to be checked in your presence. Its agreement forbids returning the vehicle without staff supervision unless the company consents (clause 28.1.1.7): if you are asked to leave it out of hours with the key in a mailbox, get that instruction in writing, film the vehicle fully with date and time and email the video.
- Empty the waste water tanks before arriving (the company says its depots have no disposal point).
- Watch your account over the following weeks and complain in writing as soon as a charge appears.
If you are charged after the return
Follow our guide to disputing a damage charge. Summary for this location:
- Complain to the company in writing within the 15 and 30 days in its terms, asking for the damage report, the pick-up and return photos with their dates, and the breakdown of the amount. Check on your invoice which company issues the charge: we have not found it in the company documents we archive.
- Talk to your bank about a chargeback; its deadline runs from the date of the charge.
- OCU: you can open a complaint on its platform; it also publishes Indie Campers' score.
- European Consumer Centre in Spain: it gives guidance and handles disputes with companies in another EU country. If the company that invoices you is in another country, this is the suitable route.
- Consumer affairs in Catalonia: the Agència Catalana del Consum handles consumer queries and complaints; ask whether your case falls within its scope.
- European Small Claims Procedure: for cross-border claims of up to 5,000 euros, see the procedure on the e-Justice portal. Find out about costs and requirements first.
- Car rental conciliation (ECRCS): Indie Campers is not on the Leaseurope list we checked on 12 October 2026.
- The EU online dispute resolution platform closed in July 2025 (ECC Finland notice).
Right of reply and conflict of interest
Indie Campers may reply to this page and we offer 10 days to do so; we will publish its reply in full and correct, with a date, any error it demonstrates, through the right of reply form. Note from the site owner: they have an open complaint with Indie Campers over a rental in Dublin. This text was written with the same criteria as the pages for other locations and relies only on linked sources.
Sources
Reviews collected on 12 October 2026; scores and company documents consulted on 12 and 13 October 2026:
- OCU: August 2024, August 2025, September 2026
- Portal da Queixa: 23 September 2026
- indiecampersopiniones.com: main article, undated, May 2025, August 2025 (1), (2), (3), September 2025, November 2025, August 2026 (1), (2)
- Indie Campers: rental agreement for Europe (edited 6 October 2026)
- Indie Campers: post-trip charges
- Indie Campers: account closing process (version archived on 12 October 2026)
- Indie Campers: return requirements (version archived on 12 October 2026)
- Indie Campers: Barcelona
- OCU, ECC Spain, Agència Catalana del Consum, e-Justice, Leaseurope
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