Hertz - Gold counter agent may have lied to me -- should I complain?

I rent from Hertz 80-100 times a year, so I'd like to think I know most of the rules, especially thanks to FT. ;) So today at LAX was an interesting encounter...

Executive Summary (:D): Gold counter agent gave me a bunch of wrong information, then proceeded to charge me for a car that was a different class than offered, and should have been given to me as a free PC upgrade.

Detailed Rant: I arrive and my name isn't on the board -- so off to the Gold counter it is. The agent offers a Taurus on a F reservation, so I ask about any Prestige upgrades available. I get an offer of a Volvo XC90 for $90/day or a Cadillac Escalade for $120/day. :eek: I joke that if I take one of those, I won't be able to rent from Hertz anymore because I'll be fired from my company. :D I also mention that I just had an Escalade for $50/day last week on a F reservation, which the agent says is impossible.

I show him the receipt from last week, and he acknowledges it, but then he says I'm under 25, and can't rent Prestige cars. :confused: Considering that I've been renting Prestige cars since '05 and that he just offered me two Prestige vehicles (albeit at ridiculous upgrade fees), this is news to me (my corporate contract allows minimum age 18 across all classes, including Prestige). I ask about my corporate rate for the Lincoln Town Car and he tells me that there is none, and that it would be $60/day over the F rate (at this point, I know that's not true).

So I finally ask what I can get for my F rate or for a little extra. He says there is nothing he can give me a PC upgrade on, and offers a Charger for $15/day, and I ask whether it is a V6 (YF) or Hemi (H). He said it's a fully-loaded Hemi, and then proceeds to tell me that it is actually a higher level than H. At this point, I really don't want a Taurus, so I agree.

Now here's the problem -- I go outside and check the key and it's a base model and classed YF -- and to add insult to injury, it has a huge scrape on the passenger fender and the interior reeks of cigarette smoke. If this is a YF, shouldn't I have gotten this as a PC upgrade (that the agent had claimed didn't exist) -- and if so, why was I charged an upgrade fee on something I was supposed to get as a benefit? And why did he tell me it was higher than H class, when the computer had it classed as YF?

All in all, I'm thinking this was an agent that just wanted to make more commission $$$ on the upgrade fees, hence all the misinformation. Of course, just for kicks I just called the Hertz Gold line and they confirmed that the minimum age on my CDP for all classes (including Prestige) is 18, and that there is a corporate rate for the Town Car, which is $10 more than F. :rolleyes:

But what do you guys think -- should I complain about getting a car that was not what was described, and should have been given to me as a PC upgrade anyway? My thought is to turn in the car tomorrow, talk to the manager and ask for the upgrade fee to be taken off and to be switched to something else. Does this sound reasonable, or am I being too demanding here?

Thanks for reading my first Hertz board rant.... :D

I'd definitely complain (1) to the manager and then (2) on hertz.com

You should have definitely had the pc upgrade, since it is based on availability, and considering he offered you the charger, that means they had vehicles available.

As I usually say, the upgrades fees really depend on how greedy the Hertz agent is, since they have a whole chart on their screen they can look at, and it depends on them on how much they want to screw you... not sure what the commission rate is, but I've heard of a few people getting some nice fat bonus checks at the end of the month...

I don't think I would have even taken the charger after going outside and seeing it was the non-hemi version, I would have gone right back to the agent and would have had a nice little chat... but that's just me.

Does this happen regularly? Or just a one time thing...I think if this is the only time, I would let it go (me personally). It sounds to me, at least from your post, that they employee was new ... not knowing about the prestige for your company, outrageous upgrade charges, not knowing the vehicle classes, etc. If that was the case I would definately let it slide.

i've had this situation happen once; in that case the agent on duty at 1AM at DCA was trying to force me to purchase neverlost because that was "all that was left." in the end, after some ugliness on her part, i called 800CARGOLD and made a new reservation on the spot, and she suddenly was able to find a fullsize car without neverlost.

I definitely sent an email to hertz, not looking for compensation but letting them know about this person's attitude. I got a letter from the manager in return, nothing more, and that's all I wanted.

i've had this situation happen once; in that case the agent on duty at 1AM at DCA was trying to force me to purchase neverlost because that was "all that was left." in the end, after some ugliness on her part, i called 800CARGOLD and made a new reservation on the spot, and she suddenly was able to find a fullsize car without neverlost.

I definitely sent an email to hertz, not looking for compensation but letting them know about this person's attitude. I got a letter from the manager in return, nothing more, and that's all I wanted.

hahahaha thats halarious.. what did she say when she gave you the paperwork? "oh we just got that one back"

haah

I would complain - no question about it.

I can sort of understand them hanging on to Prestige cars. A Prestige upgrade isn't guaranteed on every PC rental. But the charade with the Charger is unacceptable.

As for MikeBU's upcharge for an add-on because "nothing else is available", I'd also complain about that. I've had many Hertz cars that had either GPS or a satellite radio in them when I didn't book them (and no upcharge). It's Hertz's problem if they are out of cars that don't have GPS - not the renter's.

In practice, this is rarely an issue - I've had literally dozens of cars over the years with this stuff - clearly Hertz at the corporate policy level agrees with us. Sounds like another employee who saw dollar signs - the commission for selling a GPS upgrade is probably very good.

i've had this situation happen once; in that case the agent on duty at 1AM at DCA was trying to force me to purchase neverlost because that was "all that was left." in the end, after some ugliness on her part, i called 800CARGOLD and made a new reservation on the spot, and she suddenly was able to find a fullsize car without neverlost.

I definitely sent an email to hertz, not looking for compensation but letting them know about this person's attitude. I got a letter from the manager in return, nothing more, and that's all I wanted.

I have had the same thing happen at RIC before. Twice. There is one great and nice woman that works there and says they have to try to charge for it but If I turn it down then nothing is left they are soposed to just give it up for free. Although I had a rude person that said I have a KIA Sorrento and an Escape with Neverlost. Told her no KIA and the Escape would be fine. She said I will have to charge you for NL. I said no thanks then. About 5 minutes of silence and the Kia is offered again. I say no again. Look outside and the lot is full and it is 11PM at night. Tried to sell me a premium 300, which is a HEMI. Said it would be 10 bucks extra a day, but I say wait I want to go see it. It is only a 300 Touring...YF. She said woops, saw 300 and thought Premium.

I'm not a complainer per se, but I would definitely complain in this case.
Your plan to go back for an upgrade, and have the charge removed is perfect.^

Maybe a little OT, but as a general course of policy, I wish Hertz employees would not initiate their paid-upgrade schpiel with 5* or PC members. Yeah, I know they get their commissions, but they should know that we also know the drill a little bit. If we really need a specific specialty upgrade, we know where to find the Hertz Gold desk to start the haggling process.

Just had a Manager flat out lied to me as to why for my last 4 rentals at MCO my name was not on the board. She told me that I would need to indicate on my rental that I wanted Gold Services. I just said fine I will check next time. Not sure why I would need to do that when I already have Hertz Gold Service and I use my account number when renting.

Two weeks later I am back at the same location and sure enough my name wasnt there. This time I had my reservation print out with me and showed it to the very same manager. Incredibly she took it - played with the computer a bit and said - "Mr. Jamflyer, your car is in stall 120" - she did not even blink an eye. I said thank you...and oh by they way I will be renting from Avis from now on.

You've got my vote on grounds for a complaint. How to approach it is another story. You shouldn't pay extra for an upgrade for which you are entitled. They should give you an upgrade based on what you paid for or refund the difference in the two classes on the Charger. I wouldn't have accepted a smoker and if the agent was misinformed on the Hemi, I'd go back to the office.

Does anyone get a response when giving feedback on hertz.com?

From your other posts, LAX seems difficult. If the cocky new kid just sold a string of upgrades, he assumed you would be another easy mark. When he started with the back and forth on the Prestige and other incorrect facts, that is the time to ask for a senior agent or manager.

With as much as you rent, I can't believe you aren't on a first name basis with all managers on the west coast.

I agree with pinniped, drop the sales pitch, it's not a used car lot.

Thanks for the input, everyone! ^ I'll stop by later today and see what happens...

I'm pretty sure the agent that was there has been around for some time -- I have seen him before over the past few months while passing through to the stalls, and I think I have dealt with him at the counter once before as well. In retrospect, I should have gone back once I figured out the situation, but I was already running late, and the line looked to be getting pretty long.

LAX seems to get mixed reviews. I have only been renting there regularly for 5-6 months now, but I remember most FT posts in the past either called it efficient or a nightmare. Occasionally, I get excellent service and upgrades, but more often than not there can be long lines, dirty cars and billing issues. In the past two years, I have complained to Hertz CS twice, and both times it was about LAX. However, there are three great Gold agents there (two at the counter and one at dispatch), and I usually get great service when at least one of them is there.

Before I moved back to LA, I used to live in San Francisco and SFO has always been excellent (probably because they know me better). In fact, I just had my last "frequent" rental there (got upgraded to an H on a C reservation), and I wrote up a general thank-you letter for them that I need to copy to Hertz CS. ^

Another update:

Called Hertz CS in OKC to confirm that the complaint was legitimate -- they agreed and directed me to talk to the duty manager at LAX when I arrived there.

Showed up to the customer service desk at LAX, and requested a manager -- but I waited 20 minutes and no one came. So the customer service agent took off the charges and gave me another YF (Dodge Magnum with Sirius).

No acknowledgement of an issue or apology, though -- in fact, the agent said she would only remove the charges this time around as an "exception." :confused: She also mentioned that while F --> YF is considered an upgrade, management pushes them heavily to upsell on the YF 300s/Magnums/Chargers as part of the Fun Collection. I think this means that LAX tries to charge upgrade fees for the base YF cars as if they are actual Fun Collection 300Cs, Charger R/Ts and Magnum R/Ts (which are classed differently as H). :eek:

So overall, problem solved -- but now I'm even more confused (and to be honest, more annoyed) as to the way the car classes are being sold at LAX. I'll probably write an email to Hertz CS to get their take on it...

Another update:

Called Hertz CS in OKC to confirm that the complaint was legitimate -- they agreed and directed me to talk to the duty manager at LAX when I arrived there.

Showed up to the customer service desk at LAX, and requested a manager -- but I waited 20 minutes and no one came. So the customer service agent took off the charges and gave me another YF (Dodge Magnum with Sirius).

No acknowledgement of an issue or apology, though -- in fact, the agent said she would only remove the charges this time around as an "exception." :confused: She also mentioned that while F --> YF is considered an upgrade, management pushes them heavily to upsell on the YF 300s/Magnums/Chargers as part of the Fun Collection. I think this means that LAX tries to charge upgrade fees for the base YF cars as if they are actual Fun Collection 300Cs, Charger R/Ts and Magnum R/Ts (which are classed differently as H). :eek:

So overall, problem solved -- but now I'm even more confused (and to be honest, more annoyed) as to the way the car classes are being sold at LAX. I'll probably write an email to Hertz CS to get their take on it...

Yea, I understand that this is at a giant Hertz location (LAX) but really, PC's give Hertz so much business, the least they can do is comp you to an H (or hell, even to an I) for the hassel with the board and send you on your way. Instead, they jerk you around on a base Charger and try to kill you with a rediculous upsell on the Escalade....

Send a letter to Hertz.com anyway prashok.

They should at least comp you with a $75 certificate for your troubles.

Do the agents even care about status anymore? Jeez, PC means you spend MONEY with them. Treat them right! I'm only 5-Star, but they can look up your entire rental history and see exactly what you paid and what not. I don't think, in my last 10 rentals, haven't paid an upgrade charge to get something nicer. EVERY rental. $$$$.

They need a 5-Star and PC just for Prestige cars. lol

i've had this situation happen once; in that case the agent on duty at 1AM at DCA was trying to force me to purchase neverlost because that was "all that was left." in the end, after some ugliness on her part, i called 800CARGOLD and made a new reservation on the spot, and she suddenly was able to find a fullsize car without neverlost.

I had an agent at ABQ try that. I had accidentally scheduled the wrong date by one day (i.e. the car wasn't reserved until the next day), and when I asked them to either modify the reservation or just give me a one-day rental, the agent tried to claim all they had was a vehicle that ran 3x-4x what the car I had the next day was.

So I went back over to the terminal, pulled out my laptop, went to Hertz.com, and just modified my reservation. Voila! Suddenly they "magically" had a car "just returned" that was at the rate I'd reserved it.

:rolleyes: :mad:

If I understood correctly earlier, F --> YF is what you should have received with PC upgrade based on availability.

What you paid for or thought you were paying for was a Charger R/T, but ended up with a base model not in the best condition.

Agreeing with nwaaok, you should have received an upgrade to anything on the lot below Prestige, a voucher for your trouble and the courtesy of the duty manager. If he/she couldn't make it to the counter within 20 minutes, authorize the CSA to do what it takes to satisfy you as a PC customer within reason, not give you another incorrect explanation on the car classes and make it seem as though she is doing you a special favor.

Hope the Magnum is an R/T, let us know what you think.

UPDATE: Thanks again for the input, all -- I sent an email to Hertz and they responded back with the standard apology and the $50 coupons ($25x2). Most importantly though, they did confirm that all the incorrect information I wrote about to them was indeed wrong, especially the F --> YF upgrade. So I am vindicated on knowing the rules of the game at Hertz... :D

Im confused a bit, as a PC member, isn't the 1 class upgrade a guarantee at time of booking rather than "subject to availability" or is the US programme different?

Dave

my corporate contract allows minimum age 18 across all classes, including Prestige

Hertz has actually changing the minimum to 25 this year on all contract renewals. If you are under 25 they want to charge $27.00 a day fee for age differential.

Im confused a bit, as a PC member, isn't the 1 class upgrade a guarantee at time of booking rather than "subject to availability" or is the US programme different?

I'm pretty sure it's the same, but the upgrade is only assigned on the same day or at the time of pickup I think. Not sure if it's the same across Australia, though I have noticed that BNE and Brisbane Downtown seem to assign your car several days in advance of your booking. ^

Hertz has actually changing the minimum to 25 this year on all contract renewals. If you are under 25 they want to charge $27.00 a day fee for age differential.

Could there be exceptions to this? The Hertz Gold representative told me that our contract is immune to such limits because of our size (IBM -- I'm pretty sure we're one of the top three Hertz corporate contracts).

I'm pretty sure it's the same, but the upgrade is only assigned on the same day or at the time of pickup I think. Not sure if it's the same across Australia, though I have noticed that BNE and Brisbane Downtown seem to assign your car several days in advance of your booking. ^

Under the PC terms for Australia, the upgrade of 1 class is guaranteed . If I book a group D , then I will get a group F ( upgrades go A-B, B-H, H-C, C-S, S-D, D-F) . There is no "subject to availability" clause and I cannot remember the last time that the upgrade was not automatically provided. I would have expected the same in the US

Dave

Under the PC terms for Australia, the upgrade of 1 class is guaranteed . If I book a group D , then I will get a group F ( upgrades go A-B, B-H, H-C, C-S, S-D, D-F) . There is no "subject to availability" clause and I cannot remember the last time that the upgrade was not automatically provided. I would have expected the same in the US


Pretty sure it's the same "guaranteed" terms in the US, I think in practice it's just not followed well and the multiple classes of cars make it more confusing.

In Australia, I don't believe there is any of the "special" YB/YC/YF classes, so an upgrade for B/C/D/F is pretty clear since there are only one or two car choices in each class (except for B/C, I think).

Pretty sure it's the same "guaranteed" terms in the US, I think in practice it's just not followed well and the multiple classes of cars make it more confusing.

In Australia, I don't believe there is any of the "special" YB/YC/YF classes, so an upgrade for B/C/D/F is pretty clear since there are only one or two car choices in each class (except for B/C, I think).

There is now S in Australia too. istr that the only class that currently has 2 car types is D with the Ford Falcon and the new Toyota Aurian

Regardless of whether there are more groups in the US, that would give no excuse for a 1 class upgrade not to be given imo whichever car in the group is given imo; it is hardly a complex task

Dave

Regardless of whether there are more groups in the US, that would give no excuse for a 1 class upgrade not to be given imo whichever car in the group is given imo; it is hardly a complex task


Agreed, but I think the difference here is that there is some confusion on what actually constitutes a "one-class" upgrade. For example, on F reservations I have gotten the standard G upgrade, but sometimes I get YF (special fullsize with leather/sunroof) F4 ("Green Collection" fullsize) cars and even Q (small SUV), all of which I don't really consider a one-class upgrade (more like half-class). However, Hertz seems to think they are -- so now there is a disconnect between what Hertz thinks is an upgrade, and what the customer expects.

In Australia, it pretty much seems like if you book F, you will get a G car. But here, you could get a YF, F4, F6, G, or sometimes Q or Q6 -- so now it becomes more confusing because you don't know if you are truly getting an upgrade or not.

On the other hand -- at some locations I frequent (DFW and SFO), I get H or even I on F reservations because the staff knows me. Not sure if such multi-class upgrades beyond the standard PC policy is common for frequent renters in Australia as well?

In Australia, it pretty much seems like if you book F, you will get a G car. But here, you could get a YF, F4, F6, G, or sometimes Q or Q6 -- so now it becomes more confusing because you don't know if you are truly getting an upgrade or not.


Actually, if you book an F you will get a Fairlane (F) since that is the highest group offered in Australia; if you book a D , you will get an F though and I have never had any issue getting it ( except once where they were completely out of Fairlanes so had to give me the PC Upgrade unavailable compensation voucher of 1000 FF miles ). I still find it hard to understand how the US locations cannot understand what the class ordering is

Dave

Agreed, but I think the difference here is that there is some confusion on what actually constitutes a "one-class" upgrade. For example, on F reservations I have gotten the standard G upgrade, but sometimes I get YF (special fullsize with leather/sunroof) F4 ("Green Collection" fullsize) cars and even Q (small SUV), all of which I don't really consider a one-class upgrade (more like half-class). However, Hertz seems to think they are -- so now there is a disconnect between what Hertz thinks is an upgrade, and what the customer expects.

Well, it should be clear to you that a R(minivan) or Q(escape, et al) are considered a larger car than F. People don't think so, but I can't think of ANYONE who would say they are directly equivalent to a full size car (despite a few BS complaints I heard).
YF is pretty much a half class upgrade, since that is what the Y means. Not sure how I would classify the F4 or how they would classify it....since they do deserve a seperate class but probably wouldn't fit as an upgrade.

However, all this aside, I actually think the large portion of the problem is that american consumers in general are too accustomed to little perks everywhere and expect upgrades, special treatment, et al......even when they are told it is capacity controlled or that not everything is available all the time.
Case and point--I just signed up for SPG and got a comp "gold" status for the next year or so. Both my mom and the website told me about how I'd be eligible for upgrades during my stays. However, I am going to make reservations for what I want and expect what was reserved. If I get something more, that is wonderful, and I'll be very happy. But even if I was "guaranteed on a space available basis," I wouldn't let myself get upset that I didn't get something better than I had booked.

Does that make sense? A lot of people on here should listen to themselves talk about how they expect something more than what they paid for/reserved/booked. No offense, but a bunch of posts sound utterly ridiculous when it concerns "I'm a 5* and only got upgrades on my last 6 of 8 cars, what is wrong with hertz?"
If it bothers you that much, send HTZ a "dear john" letter and go somewhere else. Oh, and good luck with that.

However, all this aside, I actually think the large portion of the problem is that american consumers in general are too accustomed to little perks everywhere and expect upgrades, special treatment, et al......even when they are told it is capacity controlled or that not everything is available all the time.
Case and point--I just signed up for SPG and got a comp "gold" status for the next year or so. Both my mom and the website told me about how I'd be eligible for upgrades during my stays. However, I am going to make reservations for what I want and expect what was reserved. If I get something more, that is wonderful, and I'll be very happy. But even if I was "guaranteed on a space available basis," I wouldn't let myself get upset that I didn't get something better than I had booked.

Does that make sense? A lot of people on here should listen to themselves talk about how they expect something more than what they paid for/reserved/booked.

Your analogy is flawed against President's Circle. SPG offers upgrades "subject to availability at check-in" , so if you want to guarantee a higher grade room, then you need to book it. This is a fair analogy to 5* membership

PC membership is supposed to have a GUARANTEED upgrade at time of booking, not on a subject to availability basis and to not get an upgrade is wrong

Dave

Actually, if you book an F you will get a Fairlane (F) since that is the highest group offered in Australia; if you book a D , you will get an F though and I have never had any issue getting it ( except once where they were completely out of Fairlanes so had to give me the PC Upgrade unavailable compensation voucher of 1000 FF miles ). I still find it hard to understand how the US locations cannot understand what the class ordering is.

My mistake -- I could've sworn that D = Camry, F= Falcon (and Maxima, before they were taken out) and G = Fairlane, but I must have gotten the classes mixed up...

Well, it should be clear to you that a R(minivan) or Q(escape, et al) are considered a larger car than F. People don't think so, but I can't think of ANYONE who would say they are directly equivalent to a full size car (despite a few BS complaints I heard).
YF is pretty much a half class upgrade, since that is what the Y means. Not sure how I would classify the F4 or how they would classify it....since they do deserve a seperate class but probably wouldn't fit as an upgrade.

I can agree with you on the R, but not necessarily the Q. Most Q vehicles are small SUVs whose interior dimensions aren't any larger than a Fusion or other midsize sedan. I don't mind some of them, but considering that many people book F because they have to carry passengers, I can see why the difference between an Escape and the Five Hundred would cause a complaint.

IIRC, F4 is the Green Collection -- it seems many YF cars (such as the Lacrosse and Camry) went to this class once this was started.

However, all this aside, I actually think the large portion of the problem is that american consumers in general are too accustomed to little perks everywhere and expect upgrades, special treatment, et al......even when they are told it is capacity controlled or that not everything is available all the time.
Case and point--I just signed up for SPG and got a comp "gold" status for the next year or so. Both my mom and the website told me about how I'd be eligible for upgrades during my stays. However, I am going to make reservations for what I want and expect what was reserved. If I get something more, that is wonderful, and I'll be very happy. But even if I was "guaranteed on a space available basis," I wouldn't let myself get upset that I didn't get something better than I had booked.


I'm with Dave Noble on this -- the hotel programs are more equivalent to 5* because they are subject to availability. The PC terms are "guaranteed" -- if that is also subject to availability, then what makes it "guaranteed," and what would be the difference between 5* and PC?

Loyalty programs have terms and conditions for a reason -- if I had 39 rentals/year or $6,999 in revenue, I wouldn't expect Hertz to give me PC -- so if Hertz has listed certain benefits in return for the qualification criteria for that elite level, why wouldn't they be expected?

Of course, sold-out situations happen -- but the policy should be written with that in mind, as other travel companies do. Hotels don't guarantee upgrades, but some do guarantee things like arrival gifts or room type (and take the appropriate steps to ensure it). If Hertz is going to guarantee a certain benefit, they should either institute the proper process to ensure it happens or they could create an alternate PC benefit (such as ZE1 points or a $10 gift certificate) if an upgrade is not available (such as Marriott giving $$$ if the Platinum Gift is not offered, or Hilton offering breakfast coupons if the Executive level isn't available).

I just want to say how hard is it to have a Grand Marquis on hand for PC upgrades?

No one wants them. I see them everywhere.

President's Circle is supposed to be a one class guaranteed upgrade. The only thing that has changed is that in the past that meant F->G .. now it can mean F->YF. I've had the same spiel spouted to me at ORD that the upgrade is 'space available'. When I complained to Hertz CS they confirmed that for PC its guaranteed (for 5* its on availability). My company makes me rent C class so I got a ratty old Taurus (24k miles) as my car yesterday at PHL. I can't complain since its still an upgrade to F but it SUCKS!

Could there be exceptions to this? The Hertz Gold representative told me that our contract is immune to such limits because of our size (IBM -- I'm pretty sure we're one of the top three Hertz corporate contracts).

Prashok -

The IBM Contract is 18+ and will remain so.

Prashok -

The IBM Contract is 18+ and will remain so.

Thanks. ^ All of us entry-level GBSers would be stuck taking the bus if that were to ever happen... :D

President's Circle is supposed to be a one class guaranteed upgrade. The only thing that has changed is that in the past that meant F->G .. now it can mean F->YF. I've had the same spiel spouted to me at ORD that the upgrade is 'space available'. When I complained to Hertz CS they confirmed that for PC its guaranteed (for 5* its on availability). My company makes me rent C class so I got a ratty old Taurus (24k miles) as my car yesterday at PHL. I can't complain since its still an upgrade to F but it SUCKS!

They made mention in my email that the only a few F to YF is only true on a few vehicles. Didnt give me a list but loaded non hemi 300's and chargers are two.

I believe I have had some loaded 500's and Grand Prix's as a YF as well.. maybe even a Lacrosse... sometimes not loaded, but have NL

You need to complain.
Sometimes the agents don’t realize who is dong who a favor. The customers or the agent!