Originally Posted by
goldengate
After the 2020–2021 period, Hertz had a well-documented meltdown, so I switched to Avis and for a while was genuinely pleased—newer vehicles and solid service. Unfortunately, starting in 2024 I’ve seen both steadily erode.
My most recent rental at BNA was awful, and it’s now the second bad experience I’ve had at this location.
As we were approaching the airport, I selected a car in the app, not realizing that Avis would start the rental clock at that moment. As a result, the rental technically began before we even landed. When we reached the Presidents Club area, the assigned car—a brand-new Volvo—had an enormous dent in the hood (roughly two feet across). Obviously not acceptable.
I selected another vehicle, and since we were running late, I confirmed at the counter that the rate would remain the same. The price had increased because the system showed I had “picked up early,” but I explained that I was physically picking up the car at that moment and would be returning it seven days later at roughly the same time. I was told there’s a grace period and sent on my way.
That haste turned out to be a mistake. The app now shows my return time as exactly seven days after the original in-air selection time, not the actual pickup. I tried calling the BNA location directly to make what should have been a simple 45-minute adjustment. I couldn’t reach anyone locally and was routed to offshore customer support, who opened a ticket and asked for “proof” of when we left the garage.
Fortunately, I had taken a photo of the gas gauge as we exited, complete with timestamp and geolocation, which I provided. I never heard back. I called again and reached another agent with such a heavy accent that communication was extremely difficult, and they clearly did not understand the issue. The only response I got was “fix it when you drop it off,” which is not a reassuring solution.
Long story short: Avis seems to have prioritized automation and revenue protection over common sense and customer service. I know all rental agencies have issues—and customer service in the U.S. is generally declining—but Avis has become particularly frustrating.
After checking multiple sources (including Flyertalk threads, Yelp, and yes—even ChatGPT), National consistently comes up as the strongest option for customer service. I’ll be giving them a try in 2026.
Avis grace period is 29 minutes. Same for Budget, Enterprise, National, and Alamo. So if you rent for 24 hours and 29 minutes, you'll only be charged for 24.0 hours. Rent for 24:30 and you'll be hit for 25 hours plus an extra day of the "per day" airport fees which will be far more than an hour of rental rate.
I did not think they started the charge time until you checked out at the exit gate if you use their app. Did something change here? The last time I used their app and selected on lot was in the spring and I am confident it did not start to charge me until I checked out at the exit gate. Are you sure they really started the charge time before that point? I've had waits in line of upwards of 30 minutes at Avis exit gates, so I'd be really irritated if they started charging before I was out of the gate.
At other locations where you don't get to select your own vehicle and you need to see an agent for keys, often times, the contract I receive has been pre-printed and has a start time an hour or so AFTER my reservation time. I've had rentals where I arrive early and have the car an hour or two before the start time on the contract.
The Avis 1-800 number cannot do anything to open rental contacts (nor can Enterprise/National/Alamo 1-800 numbers). Open rental contracts can only be modified by the location that issued the contract. After a contract is closed, the Avis 1-800 number can do things with contracts like issue refunds, etc. on the spot. With Enterprise/National/Alamo any issue regarding a refund even after the contract closes has been handled by the individual location in the event of an overcharge needing a refund. Basically when there is a problem, the location where you rented the car out is who you need to deal with (I use the phrase deal with... on purpose). These places never answer their phone. So you basically have two shots to get things right: when you drop the car off, or when you pick up the car, when you are there in person with the employees. It doesn't matter if you're dealing with Avis or National. It is the same. However I have found National to be far better staffed and make far fewer "mistakes" than Avis.