Prepay and no show

Old Oct 14, 2017, 10:44 am
  #1  
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Prepay and no show

Any experiences with an Avis prepay reservation and then a no-show?

I'm talking about a rental worth around $20 for a day. Small chance I might be a no show. Reading the terms and conditions it said $150 no show fee.

If it's really $150, then saving a few bucks on a $20 rental prepay doesn't make sense. I'd rather go for pay at counter rate.

Looking for experiences, thanks!
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 11:05 am
  #2  
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No personal experience, but I see no reason not to take Avis at its word.

If you cancel the prepaid reservation at least 24 hours in advance, isn't there a lower penalty?
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 11:51 am
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"Experiences" are meaningless.

If you are offered a rate with a $150 no show penalty, expect to be charged that and be pleased if you are not.
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 12:05 pm
  #4  
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By the way, I've sometimes seen prepaid rates available as little as one or two days before desired pick-up date. YMMV.
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 8:25 pm
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Check the Terms and Conditions on your reservation. You should see this text.
"Unlike other car rental company or 3rd party websites, an Avis Prepay reservation allows you to make changes at any time, even multiple times, with no fee. Permissible changes include car type, options (GPS, protections, etc.), rental period dates/times and many changes to your rental location."
That just might be your "get out of jail free" card for this situation.

As long as you're somewhere with internet access, just log on and chance the reservation to a later date. That way, you can keep the money or possibly cancel it instead of being a no-show.
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 8:26 pm
  #6  
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Thanks guv1976 for your helpful response. I see this specific prepaid rate 1 day before pickup.

Its only saving me few bucks, but the risk of $150 no-show tells me not to go for it.

You're right - for cancellation before 24 hrs, the penalty is $50. Within the 24 hr window you cannot cancel, and will be hit with $150 if you're a no-show. I doubt if this will be enforced, so was looking for experiences.
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 8:28 pm
  #7  
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Originally Posted by writerguyfl
Check the Terms and Conditions on your reservation. You should see this text.
"Unlike other car rental company or 3rd party websites, an Avis Prepay reservation allows you to make changes at any time, even multiple times, with no fee. Permissible changes include car type, options (GPS, protections, etc.), rental period dates/times and many changes to your rental location."
That just might be your "get out of jail free" card for this situation.

As long as you're somewhere with internet access, just log on and chance the reservation to a later date. That way, you can keep the money or possibly cancel it instead of being a no-show.
Brilliant ^, will test it out
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Old Oct 14, 2017, 8:52 pm
  #8  
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Originally Posted by writerguyfl
Check the Terms and Conditions on your reservation. You should see this text.
"Unlike other car rental company or 3rd party websites, an Avis Prepay reservation allows you to make changes at any time, even multiple times, with no fee. Permissible changes include car type, options (GPS, protections, etc.), rental period dates/times and many changes to your rental location."
That just might be your "get out of jail free" card for this situation.

As long as you're somewhere with internet access, just log on and chance the reservation to a later date. That way, you can keep the money or possibly cancel it instead of being a no-show.
It's prepaid, how can you "keep the money"?
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Old Oct 15, 2017, 9:27 pm
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Originally Posted by IAHtraveler
It's prepaid, how can you "keep the money"?
I should have written "keep some of the money". As noted, the cancelation fee isn't as severe as the no-show fee.
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