Originally Posted by
darben
Bonanza36
I agree with you almost entirely the part I have a problem with is " The cancelled reservation took place on March 19, 2013. My travel did not occur until the first week of May. I had forgotten about it. How would any reasonable person think to double check a counter agent error almost two months later?"
Your job is to check the contract you are signing.
The fact you may be in a hurry or other excuses does not wash with me. You are trusting a low level commission hungry employee to do everything right and in your favor. Think about how much grief and time not taking a minute to check the contract has cost you. I check the contract every time. I Take pictures of the car every time. I get gas receipts every time. Those are the issues always cropping up so I try to prevent them. EVERYONE SHOULD READ THE CONTRACT before leaving
Broadly agree with this, BUT consumer protection will often trump the contract in a case like this. The OP had a reasonable expectation, (and has documentation to prove it) regardless of the rental agreement. CA AG is going to be the OP's best bet here if talking to Hertz doesn't resolve the issue.