jmastron

Yes, I agree with you 100% and was echoing your point (in an earlier post) that it was probably the refuel question that was entered wrong. And yes, unless I'm on a limited mileage rate and close to that limit, I don't compute how many miles I actually drove, nor try to figure out the MPG and gallons while sitting at the station. I might notice if I drove 500 miles and it only took 2 gallons, or drove 30 miles and it took 10 gallons, but not 2.5 vs 3.2 or whatever. If I put gas to the first click and the needle goes to "full", barring a known malfunctioning fuel gauge, it's full by any reasonable definition, including most likely the rental company at checkout (or should I be demanding that they take me over to their pump and prove, by showing gas spilling out, that it is topped off to the brim?)

To the OP, I would write stating that you filled up, and have a credit card statement showing such, have a checkin form showing F, and that you assume a mistake was made; please correct and remove the charge.

cordelli

You don't need to calculate miles per gallon.

You need to know that if you drove 100 miles and put in under two gallons in a Sentra, you probably made a mistake.

At no point has the OP said the guage said it was full. They said they stopped when it clicked. If they did drive 95 miles and put in under two gallons, there's no way the tank was full when it clicked off. If they drove 45 miles and started with a full tank then it was probably full. Until they tell us how many miles they drove, it's just guesswork.

There's not enough information from the OP for anybody to know exactly what happened. There's currently just as much of a chance the OP did not fill the tank and it clicked off early and their 1.whatever gallons of gas was not enough to cover the 95 miles they drove as their is that they brought it back full, Hertz marked the return form that it was full, and then charged them anyways and tripled the amount of miles they drove.

It's totally not absurd to have some sense of how far you drove and how many gallons of gas it would take to fill up.

JohnnyGlobal

It's really quite simple. If you return your car to Hertz and the check-in agent validates it as 'FULL' -- and you keep your receipt showing that -- then you have everything that you need to successfully fight the charge with your credit card company. Let's stop all of this silly debating about how many times the gas pump needs to 'click' before you've met your moral and legal obligation to re-fuel the vehicle. In every car I've ever rented, the vehicle shows as 'FULL' when the pump clicks off for the first time (assuming I drive only a short distance to the Hertz facility). Bur regardless, if the agent is satisfied that you've returned the vehicle 'Full' and documented such, then you are in the clear. Case closed.

Dave Noble

It isn't "case closed" ; when printing receipt the ones I receive refer to "subject to final audit" - that a needle appears to be on/near full line doesn't mean it is full

If the OP didn't drive more than about 50 miles then this could be a mistake, but if having driven 95 miles then 2 gallons would not meet the refilling requirements and is a mistake on the OP's part

Trying to scam a chargeback where the charge is actually correct ( which it could well be ) is not something that seems remotely ethical to me anyway

If the mileage is about right, then this is an instance where I see a mistake by renter and not some conspiracy by Hertz to screw the customer over

chemist661

On quite a few cars (Chevy Impala in particular), the fuel gauge can show full and it may be short 2 gallons or more. At the exit booth at large airports, they ask me about the fuel level. I mention that I will top off the tank at a nearby gas station and if it is more than a gallon, I will "note" it for the return person. Sometimes, they will mark 7/8 on the paper and if I can go a long ways (I rent often enough to know when a car has a full tank--especially the Impala) on the full tank, I will return it full and not say anything. If it goes off F right away, I fill up to a little under full (7/8) and have them process me at return. (7/8 beginning, 7/8 return).

Otherwise, I will top off the tank very soon after I get the car and keep the receipt for fuel credit at return. I used to do that alot when I would rent at my local airport (LGB) before they added the $10 contract fee to all car rentals . If over a gallon, I would ask for fuel credit for the cost topping off the tank.

Bottom line: I like to top off the tank for the next renter with the following exceptions:

1. the above situation (7/8 tank example).
2. HLE's where I return the car at the same fuel level when I checked out the car.

Note: #1 is quite inconvenient especially for the person that rents for business as it takes some extra time.

spades097

Yes it is. Adding that "subject to final audit" thing is cute and something new so maybe they are trying to find a new way to protect themselves but a final receipt was always case closed when I was there. There was absolutely nothing we could do. It didn't matter if there was a giant crack on the windshield.

dayone

"Subject to final audit" has been around for a while.

cordelli

Where did the OP mention that they had a receipt saying the car was full?

Oh that's right, they didn't.

The OP needs to answer the following

• How many miles they drove
• How many miles their receipt says, if they have one
• If their receipt indicates the fuel level

It's just plain and silly for people to keep speculating on what did or did not happen based on facts they are just making up

zceuxbhjutf

LOL. For the <0.01% of cars where this might matter, I have this silly notion that millions of business travelers should ignore the crazy steps "required" to mitigate.

dayone

+1. And I have, do and will.

Dave Noble

Well, it may have been at the location you worked at when you were there, but that is definitely not the case now

docbert

And yet, that's the indication they use to determine if the car is full when you're driving it out of the lot. Sounds like a double-standard to me...

spades097

Whatever. Believe what you want to believe. If you want to pay Hertz for damages that they want to claim you did two weeks after the rental then go right ahead. If you want to pay Hertz fuel & service because the needle isn't what should be used to judge the level of fuel then go right ahead.

I was a location manager but obviously you know much more about this than me.

rob0225

DTW used to apply a automatic fuel surcharge (they may still, not sure) if you drive under 100 miles unless you catch it. I guess they do it assuming you didn't move the fuel gauge so didn't top it off.

sosafan

It seems to me that various speculations about facts that are left out of the stories by OPs are a major strength of flyertalk.