Dollar - Problems in BOS

Booked a Dollar car for a business trip to Boston. Even though I am a Dollar Express member I had to endure the full check in process. Same when I returned the car. No check-in personnel outside and I needed to check-in at the counter. Very inefficient for an airport as large as BOS.

After the rental I checked my Dollar Express account and found that my account was not credited for Renter Rewards for that rental. I called Customer Service and was told my complaint was not the first one from BOS. Customer Service fixed the credit.

Anyway, if you rent at BOS, pay attention to your Dollar Express rewards.

By the look of the terms and conditions and other things I know to look for, Dollar BOS appears to be franchised, not corporate.

Due to the way Dollar's back-end system works, franchised locations must process frequent flyer mileage credit requests separately (different software vendors do it differently, but the one I know about has a special option to export a batch file which is then emailed into corporate HQ).

If the location doesn't create and email this file, customers' mileage (and Renter Rewards credits) will not post. Sounds like BOS needs to be whipped into shape.

Interestingly, even though Dollar and Thrifty have been merged now for, what, almost 20 years, the back-end computer systems are not fully merged. Thrifty's systems automatically go into their franchises every night and pull out the rental contract data and frequent flyer information, so this problem shouldn't occur on the Thrifty side even of a dual-branded location.

Also, even though Thrifty's Blue Chip and Dollar's Dollar Express programs are virtually identical in procedures, Thrifty's has an extra feature not mirrored in Dollar Express: a satisfaction guarantee. If you're not 100% satisfied, you will get a free day on your rental. (However, Dollar Express has a technological edge (strange, given that the Dollar computer systems are years behind Thrifty's)--you can view past rental details on the Dollar website.) All other things being equal, I'd choose Blue Chip, personally.

I do not keep a car in Boston, because I live in town and I'm on the road so much.

I've finished my second two-day rental, started on Sundays, thus meeting the terms of the WN45 promotion offering 1.0 Rapid Rewards credits, instead of the normal .5. In both cases, it's been like pulling teeth to get the promo fulfilled, after entering it at reservation, confirming at the counter, and confirming on return.

First, it's taken more than two weeks for the .5 credit to post. Then, Southwest says it's up to Dollar to report that I've fulfilled the terms. Then, Dollar Express's customer service says they don't know what the problem is, maybe it's because BOS is a franchise. When I went back to BOS, they said they sent in everything they were supposed to, and, "We don't know what they do with it." So, I have sent copies of my contracts/receipts to Southwest. That, combined with the .5 that they could see, got them to manually enter my .5 bonus. I have been this persistent because a Southwest Companion Pass rides on these rentals.

What bothers me the most (well, maybe not the most) is that the promo has no limitations whatsoever with regard to "...at participating locations". Moreover, if it is the case - albeit obfuscated - how do we know what stations are participating when we book online at either the Dollar or Southwest sites?

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I do not keep a car in Boston, because I live in town and I'm on the road so much.

I've finished my second two-day rental, started on Sundays, thus meeting the terms of the WN45 promotion offering 1.0 Rapid Rewards credits, instead of the normal .5. In both cases, it's been like pulling teeth to get the promo fulfilled, after entering it at reservation, confirming at the counter, and confirming on return.

First, it's taken more than two weeks for the .5 credit to post. Then, Southwest says it's up to Dollar to report that I've fulfilled the terms. Then, Dollar Express's customer service says they don't know what the problem is, maybe it's because BOS is a franchise. When I went back to BOS, they said they sent in everything they were supposed to, and, "We don't know what they do with it." So, I have sent copies of my contracts/receipts to Southwest. That, combined with the .5 that they could see, got them to manually enter my .5 bonus. I have been this persistent because a Southwest Companion Pass rides on these rentals.

What bothers me the most (well, maybe not the most) is that the promo has no limitations whatsoever with regard to "...at participating locations". Moreover, if it is the case - albeit obfuscated - how do we know what stations are participating when we book online at either the Dollar or Southwest sites?

in my experience, bonus mile promotions (as opposed to promotional discounts and rates) rarely, if ever, are limited to any specific locations.

As far as I've ever seen, all the bonus stuff happens behind the scenes at DTG central. Dollar franchises don't even see any promo codes appear in the reservation--I always assumed HQ matched up the reservation's promo code and final rental details in their systems after the fact, because there was no way for the franchise to send any extra details about promos, etc.

Sounds like the system is broken, and when DTG customer care says that it's the location (BOS) that needs to send something, you need to tell them no, it's not, and it's something *they* need to fix. And they should be the ones calling BOS to tell them to fix it (if it is a BOS problem)--that's what they're there for! They shouldn't be making you play phone tag and chasing wild geese. Tell them they next time they give you an issue!

I've rented from corporate locations and rarely, if ever, had a promo code entered on the web show up in their system. Not even Bluechip Free Day certificates (I realize this is the Dollar forum but I thought it to be relevant).

Thank you kindly for the encouragement. Errr... what does DTG stand for? I don't know that one. :o Thank you again.

(By the way, I've had the promotion bonus show up with the base .5 credit after rentals at other stations in the last couple of months.)

Thank you kindly for the encouragement. Errr... what does DTG stand for? I don't know that one. :o Thank you again.

(By the way, I've had the promotion bonus show up with the base .5 credit after rentals at other stations in the last couple of months.)

DTG - Dollar-Thrifty Group, it's also sometimes known as DTAG, Dollar-Thrifty Auto Group

Thank you again, again... :)

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Thank you kindly for the encouragement. Errr... what does DTG stand for? I don't know that one. :o Thank you again.

(By the way, I've had the promotion bonus show up with the base .5 credit after rentals at other stations in the last couple of months.)

DTG - Dollar-Thrifty Group, it's also sometimes known as DTAG, Dollar-Thrifty Auto Group

Er yes, sorry...and often used to denote corporate HQ as opposed to franchised locations.

Re: BC promos: not sure about corporate DTG locations, but Thrifty franchises, strangely (even at dual-branded locations) *do* see promo codes. The BCFD promo code does appear in the reservation, but it's sort of a useless code--it doesn't affect your rate or anything, and it doesn't help the rental agent in any way--they can't process the certificates until the renter arrives (the agent doesn't even know how many certs will be used until they are physically presented at the rental counter).

Other codes, like the AAA, Sam's Club, Senior and other discounts do appear in the Thrifty systems, but as the promo codes are often in a numerical code, the agent probably doesn't know what they mean, much less whether the customer actually qualifies. Fortunately, percentage discounts like those automatically apply to the rental, so really, the agents pretty much ignore the promo code field--if something's in there, it'll take care if itself. Promo codes for triple miles, etc., also show up, but again, the agent probably doesn't know what they are and the bonus *should*, in theory, apply automatically, when DTG uploads the rental data after the franchise closes it out.

Dollar systems, on the other hand, do not transmit the promo code, at least in any visible form, to the franchise's computer system. Pecentage discounts (i.e. 5 or 10% off) do get transmitted, but no promo code comes along to describe what the discount is for. In the case of bonus miles, etc., or the confusing AMEX $25 gift card promo several months ago, I'm not sure how the promo code is matched up with the rental. After reading this thread, I'm beginning to think it isn't...so please complain to DTG customer care...that's the only way it will get fixed! (I'll tell you there are a LOT of issues with Dollar's computer systems and how they relate to franchises...)

1) I can testify that I rented from Thrifty, and whsht-whsht, everything worked just fine. This after two awful experiences with them 2-3 years ago at a city station in CA, where there were no cars when I turned up. But that's another story. I rented here at BOS, so the downside risk was manageable.

2) So's this: Still problems getting that pesky Southwest bonus .5 credit at the BOS Dollar. (The .5 base credit posted.) I was contacted five days ago by DTG, interestingly from a return email address that was my rental agreement number, asking for the rental information that was on a string of emails between her/him and the counterpart at Southwest RR. (Including the RA# itself, come to think of it...) I only mention the string of emails because all the information was down below on the originating one from me to Southwest. I replied with the info. But I think I made a mistake when I added - with the information - that I have had another rental that had the same problem. I probably sent them into a tizzy by doing this, as I haven't heard back, and nothing has shown up in my Southwest account.

To be clear here (I hope) I had contacted both Dollar and Southwest, but it was Southwest contacting Dollar that got them going (I think they're going).

I do feel silly, at this point, over .5 RR credit (now x2). But each time, I think I'm sooo close.

EDIT: I just wish it would work in the first place, as it did with Thrifty. Or, as I've said elsewhere, put in the t&c that one of the requirements is to follow up.