IT was meant to be a budget-friendly family holiday exploring the Costa del Sol.
Instead, it turned into a nine-hour nightmare, with two terrified children stranded in the Spanish countryside as a lorry burst into flames nearby.
Alexander and Stephanie Gesswein had picked up a hire black Volkswagen campervan in Madrid in August, planning a week-long trip back to their home in Malaga.
But after just 100km, the van broke down off the A-4 motorway between Manzanares and Ciudad Real at around 8pm, leaving the German family stuck at a nearby petrol station.
“It simply stopped and the emergency lights started flashing,” Stephanie told The Olive Press. “We had no choice but to call for help.”
The family immediately contacted German rental company Roadsurfer, whose vehicles come with roadside assistance included.
But despite repeated calls, no help arrived. By 9.30pm, the petrol station where they had stopped had closed, leaving them stranded in darkness without food, water or bedding.
Stephanie also had medication she needed the following morning back at home.
Different members of staff answered their calls, but nobody called them back.
It was not until 1am that they were finally told no towing service was available.
No replacement vehicle or alternative journey home was offered, they said.
Then the situation became even more frightening when a lorry carrying mattresses caught fire just metres away, forcing a partial closure of the motorway.
Surrounded by bone-dry vegetation, the family feared the flames could spread.
“It was one of the biggest frights of my life,” Alexander said. “Imagine being alone in the dark with flames raging nearby and your children crying hopelessly. It could easily have ended in tragedy.”
With no help forthcoming, the family abandoned the van and arranged their own journey home by taxi and train, at a cost of more than €600.
READ MORE: Mallorca expat rages at car hire company Record Go’s €1,200 ‘damages’ charge
Roadsurfer has yet to issue a refund, they say, and demanded the campervan key be returned by insured post at their own expense. The family complied.
The 10-year-old firm – which claims to have 10,000 fully equipped campervans at 100 locations worldwide – has attracted hundreds of negative Trustpilot reviews, with customers complaining about breakdowns, poor communication and difficulties obtaining refunds.
Of around 11,000 reviews, 21% give it just one star.
The Olive Press has contacted Roadsurfer for comment.
Click here to read more Exclusive News from The Olive Press.