Can I see your gas receipt?
 

I have started renting from Dollar recently at MSP, when checking my car in this week the agent asked if I filled the tank. I replied yes then he asked "can I see the receipt". I was dumbfounded, told him I would have to find it.

He then (while looking at my like I was lying) asked "Well did you fill up more than 10 miles away" and was satisfied with my answer of no.

Is this common, because if it is I will pay a little more and go back to Hertz. I don't need to do business with a company that assumes I am dishonest.

This entire conversation occured before he even looked at the fuel guage (which was at FULL).

I had the same thing nearly happen to me last summer on a rental from Thrifty. Luckily my mom read the fine print while we were still at the gas station so I was able to run back in for the receipt.... And they asked me for it when I dropped the car off. Never had that happen with Alamo or Hertz.

This usually happens when you have driven less than 60 miles or so .
I always just get a receipt and put in my back pocket just in case.
They are just trying to find the gas cheaters. No big thing .

OP,

in the contract that you understood and signed before driving off the Dollar lot it is stated that you might be asked to show a refueling receipt from within a 10 mile radius when handing back the car. So, no problem there.
In addition, the fact that they trusted you when you said you had refueled within the 10 mile radius shows that you are dealing with a company that actually trusts your word, so the remark about them assuming you are dishonest is in my opinion not fair.

Best regards,
S.

I have had similar experiences these past THREE times when additional charges appeared on my credit card at 8 dollars a gallon even after i told them that i had refilled and the meter showed full. i think they are learning from the budget airlines and trying to squeeze more money out of the renter. as is, in many places the car rental is cheap but the taxes and petrol comes to about twice as much..
I will still rent from AVIS but will be careful about AVIS at FLL

Actually its 75 miles or less, oh and be careful, at some places they will actually take the car to their gas pump to see if it will fill up.

It only takes 3 seconds to lose a customer. Pennywise, pound foolish.

If it is on the "F" then it's full. Half the time when they give you the car it is not 100% full. Maybe I should ask them for the receipt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXpg7SgB9_0

That is an investigative reporter who goes to Dollar rent-a-car and catches them on hidden cam asking for the gas receipt despite him filling up across the street immediately before returning the car.

Guys,

from the general paperwork you get from Dollar:
"You must refill the gas tank of the vehicle within a 10 mile radius of the rental return facility and present a fuel receipt to avoid a refueling charge."

http://www.dollar.com/aboutus/generalpolicies.aspx

Why is it so difficult to accept this? Anyone who thinks this is a silly policy is completely free to rent from another provider, right?

S.

I still feel as though its dishonest, why not be upfront about it?

Just because there is some little blip of wording somewhere doesn't make it ethically or morally "right." And anyway, it is not good business sense.

From what has been described, and what is on the video - it appears to be that the rental company has found a "legal" way to con people out of a few extra bucks. That is my opinion and I'm stickin' to it.

And I will not rent from them after seeing this post! I will take my business elsewhere.

You got to remember though, Dollar is a "Budget Friendly" company, so they are going to try to get money from every which way.

"Budget" that's a competitor :)

Whether they have it in writing or not, I'd rather deal with a customer friendly atmosphere instead of a hostile one. Sometimes you get what you pay for.

Exactly, which is why I don't rent from them. I want my rental to be as hassle free as possible, and the agencies that provide that for me have been getting my business. It does seem like a short-sighted policy.

Jeez, what an irritating "reporter."

He filled up "across the street"? What's his point? Does he think the Dollar has an employee watching the gas station across the street at all times? How is the agent supposed to know this guy's telling the truth? Frankly, renting a car for just 14 miles is a red flag and the rental agent was right to be skeptical. And he never let the process play out to see if he actually would have been charged. He just acted like a bully and the agent rightfully sought his superior.

And he's wrong when he tells the agent that he can keep filming because it's a "public place." No, it's not a public place...it's private property owned by Dollar.