Some trips end with a small amount outstanding. You brought the car back with less fuel than you picked it up with. You went through a toll. The boot needs a proper clean after the beach.
Your host can ask you to settle it in cash instead of putting it through Sync. It's faster for both of you, and you skip the card charge.
One rule makes it safe, and it exists to protect you: the request and your agreement have to be written inside the trip conversation on Sync.
If it isn't in the conversation, you don't owe it
A host who asks you for money next to the car, over the phone, or on WhatsApp is breaking Sync's rules. You can refuse. Tell them to write it in the Sync conversation, and if they insist, report it to us.
This is what keeps you safe. The host has to state what they want and why, in writing, where we can read it. That way a €20 fill-up doesn't turn into €80 on the kerb, and a host can't charge your card later for something you already handed over in cash.
Never hand over cash before the amount is written in the conversation. If you do and something goes wrong, we have nothing to look at and we can't get your money back.
You're not obliged to pay in cash
Cash is an option, not an obligation. You can always reply "please put it through Sync" and the host has to follow the normal process.
When they do, Sync reviews the request, you get a notification, and you can dispute it if you think it's wrong. We decide based on the trip photos. None of that changes because the cash option exists.
What a host can ask you for in cash
Fuel or charging, if you returned the car with less than you picked it up with
Kilometres beyond the limit on your booking
A late return
Cleaning, when the car comes back in a state beyond ordinary use
Tolls, parking or charges billed to the host
A smoking policy violation
Most of these have a ceiling set by Sync. The cleaning violation fee is €80, not €150. The smoking policy violation fee is €50. Refuelling is the cost of the fuel plus a €10 facilitation fee. If the amount your host is asking for looks higher than the policy allows, refuse and ask them to submit it through Sync.
What a host can never ask you for in cash
Request | What to do |
A deposit or a guarantee | Sync doesn't hold deposits, so your host can't either. Refuse and report it. |
The rental itself, or extra days | If a host offers you a better price off-platform, the protection plan doesn't cover you for those days. Neither does roadside assistance. And you have no proof of what you agreed. Refuse and report it. |
Damage to the vehicle | Damage goes through the claims process so the insurer sees it. The host opens a claim, you both upload photos, and it can perfectly well be settled by agreement afterwards. Cash with no claim file leaves you exposed if the repair turns out to cost more. |
Anything without a written explanation | "You owe me €60" with no reasoning isn't a valid request. Ask what it's for and ask for the photo or the receipt. |
How to do it properly
Read what the host wrote in the conversation. If it's unclear, ask for the receipt or the photo before you agree to anything.
Say yes inside the conversation, if you agree with the amount.
Pay.
Write one line in the conversation confirming it. The amount, the date, what it covered.
That last line is what protects you. It's the reason the host can't come back and charge your card for the same thing.
Giorgos (host), 14:20: Hi Maria, the car came back with the tank at about a third, and it was handed over full. The refill cost €38 and there's a €10 facilitation fee, so €48 in total. Receipt and a photo of the gauge attached. If it suits you, you can give it in cash.
You, 14:41: Yes, that's fair, sorry about that. I'll bring it to you tomorrow morning.
You, 09:15: Just gave you €48 in cash for the fuel.
Giorgos (host), 09:16: Received €48 in cash on 27 July for the refuelling. Nothing else outstanding on this booking.
If you're charged a second time
Open the charge from your email or from the booking page, scroll to the bottom and tap Dispute. Say you've already paid in cash and point to the date in the conversation.
We read the conversation. If your payment is confirmed there, you don't pay again, and the host hears from us.
If you don't agree with the amount
Say so in the conversation, and say why. The host can withdraw it, lower it, or submit a charge request to Sync.
If they submit it, we look at the before and after photos. Take yours no more than 24 hours before the booking starts and no more than 24 hours after it ends, and upload them to the booking page. Those photos decide the outcome.
Being asked for money the wrong way? Message us from the chat window on any Sync page, or email help@thesync.com. Reporting costs you nothing and the host doesn't see who reported them.