Hertz - Rate difference between hertz.com, rental agreement, and final receipt after drop off

I've made several Hertz reservations, and have noticed that the rental cost quoted by hertz.com is displayed totally differently than what's printed on the rental agreement when picking up the car, and also what's displayed on the final receipt.

Below is a recent example of what I saw when I made a reservation online tonight vs. what the rental agreement showed when I picked up the car and what the receipt said after I dropped off the car.

My main question is: why doesn't Hertz standardize the way in which this information is displayed? It seems completely counterintuitive and confusion to show me a rate of $14.48 online, while the rental agreement when picking up the car shows a rate of $16.46, with a 12% discount of $3.95 below the subtotal line. I also don't understand why Hertz doesn't show the PC discounts on the rental agreement, and why the taxes can't be accurately estimated ahead of time.

Is Hertz following similar business practices to the other major rental car companies, or does anyone else find this strange?

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Here is an example of what I see when making a reservation online:
Discounts
CDP Name : AAA EAST CENTRAL
CDP Rate : Your Rate has been discounted based on the Hertz CDP provided
Promotional Coupon; : 20.00 USD
for 165970 Promotional Coupon has been deducted from base rental charges applied
2 weekend days at 14.48 USD 28.96 USD
Rate Details
Airport concession fee recovery 1.37 USD
Vehicle license fee recovery 0.70 USD
TRANSPORTATION FACILITY FEE 5.10 USD
ENERGY SURCHARGE 1.03 USD
Vehicle Subtotal 19.57 USD
Taxes 3.07 USD
Total Approximate Charge 22.64 USD

However, my rental agreement says:
Rental rate: $16.46/day @ 2 days: $32.92
PROMOTIONAL COUPON 165970 APPLIED AT RETURN
SUBTOTAL: $32.92
DISCOUNT - T 12% APPLIED TO TIME/MILEAGE CHGS: -$3.95
CONCESSION FEE RECOVERY 11.11%: $3.33
TRAN/MVL/VLC: $11.80
ENERGY SURCHARGE: $1.03
TAX 7.750% ON EST. TAXABLE TTL $45.13: $3.50
TOTAL ESTIMATED CHARGE: $48.63

And my final receipt after returning the car says:
Rental rate: $16.46/day @ 2 days: $32.92
PROMO COUPON: -$20.00
SUBTOTAL 1: $12.92
DISCOUNT - T 12%: $1.55
SUBTOTAL LESS DISCOUNT: $11.37
SERVICE CHARGES/TAXES
Concession fee recovery: $1.37
TRAN/MVL/VLC: $11.80
ENERGY SURCHARGE: $1.03
TAX 7.750% on $25.57: $1.98
TOTAL AMT DUE: $27.55

There have been many threads about it, and many different reasons listed in those threads. I've usually found the reservation and the final cost to be within pennies of each other, and the rental agreement just fiction.

They don't apply the coupons until the end probably because most of them have conditions, and if you don't meet those conditions you won't get the discount.

Could they just show the final number? Most certainly. But they choose not to.

They are actually proud that in September they moved to a more friendly rental agreement with better estimated charges

https://www.hertz.com/rentacar/productservice/index.jsp?targetPage=rentalagreement.jsp&leftNavUserSelection=globNav_3_5_1&selectedRegion=United%20States

There have been many threads about it, and many different reasons listed in those threads. I've usually found the reservation and the final cost to be within pennies of each other, and the rental agreement just fiction.

They don't apply the coupons until the end probably because most of them have conditions, and if you don't meet those conditions you won't get the discount.

Could they just show the final number? Most certainly. But they choose not to.

They are actually proud that in September they moved to a more friendly rental agreement with better estimated charges

https://www.hertz.com/rentacar/productservice/index.jsp?targetPage=rentalagreement.jsp&leftNavUserSelection=globNav_3_5_1&selectedRegion=United%20States

Interesting. Thanks for the info. I wish my rental costs were just pennies off from the original rate quotes. Though my Hertz rentals seem to be $2+ more per day than what is quoted to me online. And that's nice to hear that Hertz has a strategy to be more transparent. Though (in my opinion) they should be doing more to make this pricing look the same at all phases throughout the rental process.

If anyone finds any other posts that discuss this in detail, let me know as I searched and couldn't come up with much.

There have been many threads about it, and many different reasons listed in those threads. I've usually found the reservation and the final cost to be within pennies of each other, and the rental agreement just fiction.

They don't apply the coupons until the end probably because most of them have conditions, and if you don't meet those conditions you won't get the discount.

Could they just show the final number? Most certainly. But they choose not to.


In Australia, they do show the final number, so indeed they definitely can do so. Definitely a deliberate decision in the US to not show applied coupon codes

I end up paying pretty much what the total "estimated charge" shows on the online reservation. Agreed it is whacky the way the RA shows things. But I' cheap and don't like to be cheated so I usually check carefully, and I've not been screwed Hertz.

I end up paying pretty much what the total "estimated charge" shows on the online reservation. Agreed it is whacky the way the RA shows things. But I' cheap and don't like to be cheated so I usually check carefully, and I've not been screwed Hertz.
I edited my original post above to include the costs listed on the receipt after dropping the car off. I ended up paying close to $5 (or 22%) more than what hertz.com quoted me originally for this 2-day rental.

Maybe this is a unique problem when renting from Hertz in CLE? Here's the end result from my most recent Hertz rental:
1) Online reservation made via hertz.com: $22.64
2) Printed rental agreement when I pick up the car: $48.63
3) Actual charges on the receipt after I drop off the car: $27.55

After reviewing my documentation and receipts throughout this process, I have identified exactly where the discrepancies are:
a) The online cost estimate when I made my reservation on hertz.com showed a "transportation facility fee" of $5.10 and a "vehicle license fee recovery" of $0.70, for a total of $5.80. However, my rental agreement when I picked up the car AND the receipt when I return the car both show a "TRAN/MVL/VLC" fee of $11.80. This discrepancy means that I paid $6 more than the quote provided to me by Hertz.com.
b) The printed rental agreement when I picked up my car does not include the promotional coupon dollar amount (it simply states the PC will be applied at return). That also causes the consession fee recovery and 7.75% Ohio/Cuyahoga County sales tax amounts to be estimated incorrectly.
c) The sales tax quoted to me when making the reservation on hertz.com is $3.07. However, when I returned the car, the sales tax listed on the receipt is $1.98. That means I paid $1.09 less in taxes when I returned the car than what Hertz.com quoted me when making my reservation.

In the end, I ended up paying $4.91 more for the rental ($2.45/day) when I returned the car than what hertz.com quoted me when I made my original reservation.

Have others experienced anything similar at other Hertz locations other than CLE? If this is isolated to CLE, one would think this would be an easy problem for Hertz to fix.

I also e-mailed this information to Hertz, so we'll see what they say.

Have others experienced anything similar at other Hertz locations other than CLE? If this is isolated to CLE, one would think this would be an easy problem for Hertz to fix.

I also e-mailed this information to Hertz, so we'll see what they say.

I experienced this too at DCA, and it drove me crazy.

I'm not sure why Hertz can't provide an accurate statement of charges, or chooses not to. National doesn't seem to have any problems doing so.

**But, the Platinum desk was always able to adjust my charges to equilibrium, so at least thankful for that.

In Australia, they do show the final number, so indeed they definitely can do so. Definitely a deliberate decision in the US to not show applied coupon codes
They usually do show the final number in the U.S. I think cordelli was suggesting maybe they could just show the final number, and not the detailed calculations, and maybe that would cut down on the confusion.

They usually do show the final number in the U.S. I think cordelli was suggesting maybe they could just show the final number, and not the detailed calculations, and maybe that would cut down on the confusion.

Personally, I'm happy they provide the detailed calculations. It helped me to identify exactly where the errors are. I just want Hertz to offer accurate pricing on hertz.com compared to the actual cost when the car is returned. Apparently that is easier said than done.