Originally Posted by
nollag
As a tourist from the UK, I hired a car from King Shaka Airport in Durban, South Africa last month, which I returned early morning on the due date.
I had refuelled the vehicle to a full tank in Durban on the previous evening, so it was returned to Avis with a virtually full tank. I paid for the fuel in cash, so do not have a receipt.
The operative in the airport checked the vehicle over, and said all was fine. I asked him if any paper work was required and he said it was not necessary. He even helped me and my pregnant wife to carry my bags to the check in desk.
I was very surprised therefore to be charged a refuelling cost and for a full tank of petrol when they emailed me my final invoice a few days ago.
I called Avis in the UK and got a very non-committal response from them saying they would revert in 10-15 working days. I can guess what their response will be.
Personal learning: take a photo of the final fuel gauge and keep the fuel receipt before dropping the car off.
What does your rental contract say about fuel charges? If it says that you're going to be charged for a full tank of gas when you return the car, it doesn't matter whether you top off the tank, do or don't get a receipt (I don't know about South African gas stations, but I've certainly been able to get a receipt when paying cash at a gas station in the U.S.), or have a photo showing a full fuel tank at return.
If your rental agreement essentially requires you to purchase a tank of gas -- either at pick-up or at return -- there's obviously no point in topping off the tank.