10-year Executive Elite member. 90% of my rentals are from my local airport... 30 rentals and 100+ days per year.

Picked up a vehicle this weekend and the counter agent charged (not a hold, a complete charge) the entire rental amount and put a hold of $300 on my card. I asked why the process change and she said "you're local. No return ticket, right?" I replied that she was correct and I rent from here nearly weekly. She said "we charge the entire amount at pickup for locals, and add on a $300 hold for damage or theft". I have no concerns about the amounts, but the unannounced process change was surprising. My last rental (<10 days ago) included a hold for the rental amount and no damage/theft hold.

Oddly, all of my rentals over the previous required the counter agent to see my credit card and ID, and I would always be asked to verbally confirm either a birthdate, address, or some other personal info. For this rental, no verification was required.