Experiences with Silvercar

Old Jul 2, 2015, 9:42 am
  #16  
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On return at PHX, they drive you directly to the terminal in your rental car. No need to "connect" back to the regular shared shuttle bus.

In other words, I figure you lose about 5 to 7 minutes on pickup (thanks to the extra hop over to Silvercar), but then gain more than that (maybe 10-12 minutes) on the return, because you don't have the variability and wait for a shuttle bus back to the airport.

I'd totally do this again. The thought of losing a few Hertz points or airline miles would not deter me in the slightest.
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Old Jul 2, 2015, 3:58 pm
  #17  
 
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Originally Posted by takeshi74
I personally prefer the wheel in Audis and BMW's. A keyboard isn't practical and touchscreens just get filthy. Did you not opt for the quick orientation?


You don't have to after your first rental as long as your card and DL don't change.
Don't you always have to since they come collect you at the passenger load/unload area? Or is that just unique for locations where SilverCar is off site?
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Old Jul 2, 2015, 4:34 pm
  #18  
 
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I was a Silvercar evangelist up until this afternoon. At this point, I would be very cautious about renting from them ever again.

Over two months after a rental from the DFW location, I received an email from a collection agency saying that there was damage to the vehicle I rented from Silvercar and they were collecting a debt. First, there was no damage to the vehicle upon return. I can only imagine that the damage, if there really was any, occurred after the employee dropped me off at the terminal in the same car I had driven. Second, no one from Silivercar ever called me to discuss this with me and they've had about 75 days to do so. For the first communication to be an aggressive letter from a collection agency seems a little much, especially in light of Silvercar's image as a "cool" company.

I called the DFW location and they looked at the reservation and could find no notes on the reservation noting any damage. They're still researching the issue and promised a call back, but to say I'm a little turned off is an understatement. I've never once in my life received a collection letter and certainly not from a rental car company. I drive rental cars more than I drive my own car and this has never happened before. I love the nice, new A4s, but Hertz has never tried to shake me down 2.5 months after I rented for unsubstantiated damage.

Renters beware.
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Old Jul 3, 2015, 8:43 am
  #19  
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Two other bits I noticed about Silvercar:

- The agent processed my return and I had my emailed receipt without any discussion of the fuel. I didn't refuel myself, so I didn't mind, but if you *did* refuel the car you might point this out to the agent before she closes your rental out.

- Silvercar promises street prices plus $5 for refueling They calculate this from your mileage driven - my bill was for a precise 1.6 gallons of fuel at $2.99/gallon. Unfortunately, I didn't notice my mileage...whatever they use for the divisor didn't matter much in my case. (The U.S. government says 27 for a 2014 A4.) However, the street price for fuel in Phoenix right now is more like $2.55, not $2.99. I noticed several stations in the $2.50's and I was staying literally walking distance from the edge of airport property. In short, if you drive a full tank of gas, you might want to go ahead and fill it up yourself...the cost is going to be a lot more than $5 if you don't.

Interested to know from someone who lets Silvercar bill them for fuel, and who did notice their mileage, what divisor they really use.
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Old Jul 3, 2015, 9:43 am
  #20  
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Originally Posted by pinniped
Two other bits I noticed about Silvercar:

- The agent processed my return and I had my emailed receipt without any discussion of the fuel. I didn't refuel myself, so I didn't mind, but if you *did* refuel the car you might point this out to the agent before she closes your rental out.

- Silvercar promises street prices plus $5 for refueling They calculate this from your mileage driven - my bill was for a precise 1.6 gallons of fuel at $2.99/gallon. Unfortunately, I didn't notice my mileage...whatever they use for the divisor didn't matter much in my case. (The U.S. government says 27 for a 2014 A4.) However, the street price for fuel in Phoenix right now is more like $2.55, not $2.99. I noticed several stations in the $2.50's and I was staying literally walking distance from the edge of airport property. In short, if you drive a full tank of gas, you might want to go ahead and fill it up yourself...the cost is going to be a lot more than $5 if you don't.

Interested to know from someone who lets Silvercar bill them for fuel, and who did notice their mileage, what divisor they really use.
Another data point: at DEN I filled at the gas station across the street from their facility before returning and they were able to tell that the tank was full without looking at the dashboard (the clerk told me straight out "full tank, no filling fees").
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Old Jul 3, 2015, 9:52 am
  #21  
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Originally Posted by tmiw
Another data point: at DEN I filled at the gas station across the street from their facility before returning and they were able to tell that the tank was full without looking at the dashboard (the clerk told me straight out "full tank, no filling fees").
Interesting. So they just saw you over there at the pump and trusted that you really filled it up?
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Old Jul 3, 2015, 10:19 am
  #22  
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Originally Posted by pinniped
Interesting. So they just saw you over there at the pump and trusted that you really filled it up?
It's unlikely because you have to pull into a covered garage to return the car. I guess they could have had security cameras though.
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Old Jul 6, 2015, 3:36 pm
  #23  
 
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As a follow-up to my earlier post, I have now talked to three people at Silvercar about the supposed damage to the vehicle and no one can find any record of damage to the car. They all promise to research the issue and call me back, but not a single person has followed up.

One interesting, and alarming, thing that one rep told me today was that Silvercar's SOP is to automatically file a claim with your personal auto insurance policy if they note any damage to the vehicle after you return it. I was so shocked that they would just automatically file a claim without speaking to their customer about it and confirming whether or not the damage was done by the renter and/or asking if the renter would want to pay for the damage out of pocket. I asked her to confirm this info twice since I was so surprised by it and she reiterated both times that this was their procedure and she was surprised that I hadn't received a notice from my auto insurance that they filed a claim. She made it sound like the first time I would have heard about this alleged damage is from my auto insurance carrier and not Silvercar.
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Old Jul 6, 2015, 4:33 pm
  #24  
 
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Originally Posted by Royiv
As a follow-up to my earlier post, I have now talked to three people at Silvercar about the supposed damage to the vehicle and no one can find any record of damage to the car. They all promise to research the issue and call me back, but not a single person has followed up.

One interesting, and alarming, thing that one rep told me today was that Silvercar's SOP is to automatically file a claim with your personal auto insurance policy if they note any damage to the vehicle after you return it. I was so shocked that they would just automatically file a claim without speaking to their customer about it and confirming whether or not the damage was done by the renter and/or asking if the renter would want to pay for the damage out of pocket. I asked her to confirm this info twice since I was so surprised by it and she reiterated both times that this was their procedure and she was surprised that I hadn't received a notice from my auto insurance that they filed a claim. She made it sound like the first time I would have heard about this alleged damage is from my auto insurance carrier and not Silvercar.
How do they even know who your insurance is with? Do you have to give them insurance information when you pick up the car? What if you have primary coverage through your CC. I hope you keep us informed as to how this is resolved. I would expect that they would compensate you somehow for all the trouble they're causing especially if they notice there was not damage made to the car. It all sounds rather disappointing for a company that touts itself as a car rental company that "doesn't suck."
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Old Jul 6, 2015, 7:14 pm
  #25  
 
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Originally Posted by Big4Flyer
How do they even know who your insurance is with? Do you have to give them insurance information when you pick up the car? What if you have primary coverage through your CC. I hope you keep us informed as to how this is resolved. I would expect that they would compensate you somehow for all the trouble they're causing especially if they notice there was not damage made to the car. It all sounds rather disappointing for a company that touts itself as a car rental company that "doesn't suck."
I wholeheartedly agree with you regarding your assessment regarding a car rental company that "doesn't suck." That's pretty much been my reaction as well. It's too bad because this is a company that I really wanted to like -- and did -- but this is totally unacceptable. I still haven't received a return phone call so I guess I'll have to call them again tomorrow. As far as them knowing your insurance, it's a required field when you set up your account in their app. I don't remember having to give them my policy number, but I did have to give them the name of the carrier.
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Old Jul 6, 2015, 8:00 pm
  #26  
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So here's something weird. I was looking at my statement online and saw the following for my recent Silvercar rental (phone number omitted):

Merchant: A1 RENT-A-CAR
Merchant Information: SILVERCAR INC xxx-xxx-xxxx TX 78701

What's with the "A1 Rent A Car"? Anyone have an idea?
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Old Jul 7, 2015, 7:51 am
  #27  
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Hmmm. Surely these few Silvercar locations aren't franchises? Or are they?

A1 Rent-A-Car sounds like the name of a third-tier agency that called itself that back in the 1980s when people would flip through a phone book looking for an alphabetized list of agencies!
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Old Jul 8, 2015, 6:06 am
  #28  
 
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They probably knew the tank was full with a sensor, Avis style.
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Old Jul 8, 2015, 6:34 am
  #29  
 
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Rental at SFO

Has anyone rented at the SFO location? After reading about the $20 "AirTrain" fee, Silvercar still charges a mandatory transportation fee. I submitted a question to support and they claim it cover all transportation, i.e. use of shuttles, etc. The reply also said that a customer takes the shuttle to the Park N Fly location, no AirTrain. I don't know if they have an agreement with Park N Fly or if it is a shuttle operated by the airport. I'm tempted to say I am local (which would get the fee waived) and use Uber credit to get to the location. Has anyone rented from them, arriving at SFO, and challenged the fee?
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Old Jul 8, 2015, 7:41 am
  #30  
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So I clicked on one of those net promoter requests and gave them feedback about the refueling charges. To my surprise, I actually got a response from the local manager.

His response was that they always refuel the cars with 89-octane fuel, which is why they actually prefer that the renter not refuel, because they're aware that renters always put 87 into rental cars. Audi does indeed recommend 89 in their cars, so that part is certainly believable. I didn't investigate whether you could buy 89 in Phoenix for less than $2.99, but I'll assume it was close to that.

They actually refunded my whole fuel charge, even though I certainly didn't ask for it or expect it.

I'll take their word for it. If I ever decide to refuel a Silvercar, I'll use 89 since that's likely what I was given at the start of the rental. But knowing this, I do feel a bit better about just bringing it back without refueling.
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