The people working at the thrifty rental car in Orlando by the Airport are horrible. They would not let me rent a car until I agree to either a upgrade or buying one of their insurance. In addition, they rushed me when I returned the car and would not let me go back to the car to get something that I had left behind in the car. I will never rent from Thrifty again.

I just completed a rental (9/20-9/26) at MCO. I have Blue Chip membership and the whole rental experience was almost flawless. The price of $120 (which included taxes) for a week in a midsize was very good.

Only complaint was the shuttle back to MCO - WAY too long IMO.

I do not understand why ANYONE would rent from ANY company without first taking the time to join their respective frequent renter club.....

[This message has been edited by hockeystl (edited 09-28-2003).]

I must agree.

I will never rent from Thrifty at MCO again - well - at least until my memory fades and I make the mistake of thinking that MAYBE things have changed. Here are just a few examples of why go elsewhere:

Rental #1 - I wait in the "Blue Chip" line for 25 minutes and when I finally get the keys, I was given the wrong contract (different name) told to go to the back of the line. Second time around, the key provided did not match the car and back to back of the line again!

Rental #2 - Relatively fast service, drive away and half way to Daytona Beach the car freaks out and dies! A call to Thrifty service, a 75 minute wait and only to find that when they last serviced the car, the did not bother to put the oil cap/plug back in!

Rental #3 - Could not find my reservation which I made directly with thrifty.com even though I showed them a confirmation copy and number. Finally given a car and a nice upgrade. When I arrived at the hotel, a fellow guest points out that there is a huge knot in the tire. Called Thrifty and advised that I needed to return the car or I would be charged a pick-up fee. When I returned the car I decided that three times is enough and asked to just cancel the reservation. As I walked away, I noticed that not only did the cancel the reservation, they were so kind as to charge me a days rental for the broken car that I HAD to return.

OH, to top it off, I have never received any frequent flier miles for rentals at MCO (or DEN come to think of it) unless I wait the required 8 weeks, ask for them and then wait for 8 more weeks; and of course be told - What promotion???? and just get the base miles.

NO WAY!!!!

Thrifty has turned into quite a disappointment. Sometimes it's ok as with hockeystl's experience. But it's usually a crap shoot. Some of their employees are the absolute pits. Heck, the Avis shuttle bus drivers are more professional and than the counter personnel at Thrifty.

Thrifty sent me a few coupons for free rentals as a result of my complaints. But if they're transferable, I just assume sell them on eBay or trade them in the Coupon Connection. I just don't ever want to have to deal with those Bozos again, even for free!

While most of my experiences with Thrifty have been good, I would have to agree with the sentiment here rgarding Florida locations. They are some of the most un-professional and poorly run rental locations I have ever used. It must be the franchisee that owns those particular locations that's the source of the problems.


K

Concur - I've had bad experiences renting at Thrifty in MCO (and FLL/MIA).

I recently rented from MCO. Got a Serbing and it worked fine. I didn't have any problem at all. I used the WMRT code and saved a little bit. I used Thrifty because of the coupon and UA miles. 300 miles was posted to my account 2 weeks later. Again, no problem.

Agreed with other people. The ride to thrifty was too long. Next time, I might just use Budget since it's right at the airport. One time I forgot something in my car. The Budget agent actually drove me to the other side of the airport to retrieve the item. I won't forget that experience!

I feel your pain. My one MCO rental experience involved some Glengarry Glen Ross-wannabe Thrifty agent's extreme pressure tactics to force me to buy extra insurance. He finally backed down, but I had to make a scene and felt quite shaken by the whole experience.

Never again at Thrifty MCO.

They would not let me rent a car until I agree to either a upgrade or buying one of their insurance. In addition, they ... would not let me go back to the car to get something that I had left behind in the car.
Did you speak to the top manager in both instances?

In the first instance the manager could be pinned down to give a good reason for not renting to you.

I suppose you could have called the police in the second instance because detaining your property is illegal.

Travel tips:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/carrent.htm

I rented from Thrifty at MCO twice this past summer and had no problems. I did sign up for Blue Chip first. Also I tend to stay with the car for quite awhile at return time to check everywhere inside for misplaced items.