USAflyer

In the Avis Preferred terms, it states that Avis will automatically convert the rental fee to the renter's home currency, and add a 3% fee, unless one declines this dubious "service." How can one decline this? Normally, I reserve online and just pick up the keys at the preferred counter, so there isn't an opportunity to decline.

sdsearch

It's not quite so dubious in some circumstances.

Some/many (most?) credit cards now add the same kind of 3% fee if it's NOT billed in your home currency. But some of them don't itemize it (they just put all such "foreign currency conversion fees" in as an "interest charge"), making it hard for people to get reimbursed by their company for that.

If Avis doing this avoid this problem (by making the 3% fee part of the billed cost that you'll clearly get reimbursed for), AND if they bill it IN your home country (or your credit card doesn't also charge a fee for billing from a foreign country, even if it is in your home currency!), then it'd be a wash for people with the 3% foreign currency conversion fee on their credit cards.

But obviously, if you have a card that only charges 2% (or THIS MONTH still only 1%), or if Avis sitll bills overseas and your card charges you a fee for that, then it's not such a great value, agreed.

(I just looked at my last statement where I had an overseas Avis rental, which was about a year ago, and while it mentions the Denmark location, it was billed in US$, and my Diners Club MC credit card did not seem to charge me any fee for that being a "foreign transaction". It's a little hard to figure out, given that it's one of those cards that doesn't itemize foreign transaction charges per charge, but if I add up all the actual Euro and Danish Kroner purchases on that trip, they seem to account for the whole "interest charge" appearing on that statement.)

Oh, and I just thought of another way this could be a good value: You earn points or miles (if using a card that earns those) on that 3% by Avis doing it for you, whereas you certainly don't earn it if the same 3% if assessed as a "fee" by your credit card.

... As for declining, I would call them and ask. It could be that you simply decline to EVER have this done, rather than on a per-rental basis. (But if so, it could be you have to call, because they don't want to call attention to the fact that you could decline by making such an option easy to find online! )

khkchan

I recently had a rental at US and I am a Canadian. That's what is shown on my receipt:

RANSACTION -
CURRENCY xxxxx CAD
EXCHANGE RATE 1.141300
~I HAVE CHOSEN NOT TO USE THE
MASTERCARD CURRENCY CONVER-
SION PROCESS AND AGREE THAT I
WILL HAVE NO RECOURSE AGAINST
MASTERCARD CONCERNING THE
CURRENCY CONVERSION OR ITS
DISCLOSURE.

Yes, the rate is market + 3%, and I would rather they bill my CC in C$ and let the CC to do the conversion. I didn't remember Avis gives me option to choose though. I think as soon as one says his country of resident is the same country as renting, the automatic conversion will not occur.

ezmonee

Unsure of preferred in this department, I see very few international perferrreds with Credit Cards in foriegn denomination (or if it happens, It hasn't happened to me).

But if you go to the counter and rent non preferred, the final act before the contract is printed, the computer will prompt the agent "would you like to be billed in [fill in currency type]?" and then gives the current currency exchange rate +3% amount.

Answer yes, and your receipt will reflect just like the previous poster. Answer no, it will not exchange it, and your CCARD will do the exchange at the time of billing.

CMW

Which is the better choice?

im_blue

It's better to let your credit card handle the currency exchange, since you'll get the best wholesale rate. The foreign merchant can exchange at any rate it chooses, and it's adding on the same 3% your credit card does anyway!

ezmonee

The only difference between the two is AVis' exchange rate is locked in at the time of car pickup. Let your CCARD do it, the Exchange rate is the prevailing rate when the charge posts to the card.

In some markets, that can be significant, so its really up to you.

Youll get that charge anyway, it just depends on who and how many pennies difference will you pay.

sdsearch

Again, it depends.

If your card has a much better rate than 3% (but many don't), then having the card do the conversion is better.

If your card has the same 3%, but your earn points or miles on every dollar spent, but not on such fees, then having Avis do the conversion is better, because the card then can't "see it" as a fee, and does give you points/miles on that 3% (without you having paid a single penny more).

But you have to do the math yourself depending on whatever card(s) you could use. (And if one card has worse percentage fees, but it has far better insurance coverage, you have to do the math on that too! A card that lets you decline CDW with no worries can save you a LOT more money per day of a car rental than 1% or 2% or even 3% in most cases.)

sam

I find this currency conversion really annoying as my credit card only charges 1% on ForEx transactions. Avis does not allow Preferred renters to opt out of it. The new rental agreement cheekily states that you acknowledge that you were 'offered a choice of payment in € but chose to be billed in £'. I have never been offered the choice. I only get it if I ask for it and even then the staff often do not know anything about it. I can see why Avis make this difficult as Avis effectively makes 3% extra on every rental. I do not, however think that Avis is operating ethically.

Jenniferpa

I just want to comment on this, as a warning to others (it's my own fault that this happened, just put it down to jet-lag). I recently rented from avis at LGW, and bearing in mind this thread, when I was asked do you wish to be billed in dollars or sterling I firmly answered sterling. However, on reviewing the rental agreement subsequently, I discovered the "choice of payment" statement as sam indicated. Despite being asked the question and answering it, I was billed in dollars! Now as I said, I consider myself to blame: I signed the damn agreement after all, but in my own defence, if you're asked a question, and then immediately presented with the agreement, the assumption is that they took notice of your answer. However, it was my fault that I didn't check. I have no idea if this was a failure on the part of the clerk, or if it is some failure (intentional or otherwise) on the part of the billing software, but it's important to double check.

Jennifer

ezmonee

If you catch it before you return the car, go into customer service and either demand a credit to offset the 3% or demand them to rewrite the contract with the correct denomination.

I bet they would just give you 3% off the whole bill and send you on your way.

gj83

I recently had an avis rental from ELM (NY) to YYZ. I'm from the US and when i dropped my car off I was told Avis always bills in the currency of rental origin (so US dollars in this case). I did not notice any currency conversion charge.

If the situation had been reversed (CA->US for a US Avis member) would I have still been charged in US $ (because i'm american) but with the 3% fee (because the currency of the country of origin is not US$) ?

sam

If you catch the problem before check in the rental location should be able to change the contract. The problem is that rental location customer service staff are not well trained in this policy and the systems do not support refunding and rebilling after the car has been booked in.

After check in you have to contact central customer service after the reservation to get the mistake rectified. They will usually refund the amount despite the fact you signed the agreement. This is a pain in the next for what is usually just a few £, $ or € (however sometimes they can be more generous and give you a voucher as compensation).

ezmonee

Its not that the agents don't know how to do it at the local level its that in the training (and I administered the training for FXNOW!, the program Avis uses) it states (I am looking at the exact paperwork, the all caps is in the paperwork) "ONCE YOU SELECT YES OR NO TO USE THE CURRENCY CONVERSION, IT CANNOT BE CHANGED."

So if you were able to get it changed at central billing, I am amazed. Typically its easier to give vouchers for 25 or to credit the difference.

ezmonee

Until late in 2005, there was no conversion. Avis always billed in the currency of the location of contract origin. (one way rental from US to Canada is billed in US. dollars).

At that time, FXNOW! was introduced. It read the currency of the credit card used for the security hold. If it was different than the country of contract origin, it promped the agent to ask "
Bill in Euro? Y/N:
Current Exchange rate is 1.34324324222"

*rate made up, dont waste your time msg me about it.
At that point, the agent will ask "do you want to be billed in Euro or US Dollars? If you say "u.s. dollars", they hit no. Euro, they hit yes.

sometimes the agents skip this step and just hit "dollars." honestly, its not spec, as if the customer truly wanted it billed in the other currency, they CANNOT CHANGE IT, at least at the location level.