Are contract code (CDP) rates guaranteed ?
 

I made a reservation on the Hertz website using a well known CDP which I am eligible for on Jan 20th for Miami Airport pickup/dropoff at a rate of $41.00 per day.

Today I log into my account to just change my credit card and before I touch my reservation the rate I saw has changed to $83.00 per day.

I call Hertz and was told first my rate was not keyed in at the time the reservation took place online and I will have to pay the higher rate. Then I escalated the complaint and was told the rates are not guaranteed. Then another escalation and was told the rates are not guaranteed and your code is blacked out for this period. I vigorously argue that Hertz has not notified me of the new rate change and I would be at the counter paying double the price without notification.

After a few minutes the rep returns and says " your reservation in fact was keyed in and I should just take my e-mail receipt to the Gold counter"
I ask her to note my account - she says I cannot touch your account.

Do I trust that I will get my original rate ? Sure wouldn't like to start my trip paying double the price for a rental car.

Any ideas what to do ?

Refer to the email that was sent when you made the booking! That is the price and it is GUARANTEED!

I have found lately (over the past few months) that existing bookings show different prices depending on the offers/pricing going at the time

I have had a few reservations recently change by $60 for a 2 day booking when I went to log-in to check dates booked etc..

Was booked for $170, now $110 as there is a cheaper rate running for the weekend.

Never experienced a rate change before on existing bookings until now. My guess is another system glitch that just shows the CURRENT pricing on EXISTING bookings.

The final response Hertz gave you is the best advice.

Take the printout to the counter/check your contract before you leave the lot and get them to fix the price there.

They can easily add a credit/change the price at the counter. Over the phone it seems impossible like you have said.

Your right !! The new price showing online is the current price with the cdp used. Must be a glitch.

I'll keep the e-mail close in hand.

Thanks for re-assuring and responding.

Bumping this rather than starting my own thread on it because I am seeing the exact same thing happen to me on a one way rental in Germany I have next month. My total on my confirmation email is 270 Euros but when I check in on it now it is showing up as almost double that. I called Hertz and after a few transfers the rep basically told me "bring a printout of your confirmation email and be insistent"

Anybody else run into this? Or can the OP give an update on how it turned out for them?

I suspect this is a website glitch. Bring your email if you are concerned, but this is not a problem that is being reported regularly. I don't expect you will have a problem.

Do watch for extra charges added on during/after your rental. That is a problem, commonly with fuel charges, GPS charges when being "given" an upgrade, and occasionally unauthorized insurance charges.

But rates are almost always exactly as quoted, or even a little less, because the website usually over-estimates taxes.

Whether the rate is guaranteed, depends on the sort of rate applicable for the CDP! As far as I am aware, there are two general types:

1. CDP's that give a % discount off the standard public rate, such as those associated with airline FF programs, or credit cards. Reservations for these state that rate (i.e. base rate) is guaranteed, but the taxes and charges are not, so the total can change. In my experience, I have always been able to hold them to the total.

2. CDP's that give a negotiated rate that does not change for the period of the contract (usually a year), i.e. a fixed base rate no matter what the public rate is/does. Reservations for these clearly state the rate is not guaranteed, as when the contract is renegotiated, the rate can change. Hertz will not disclose the end date and will let you book the rate past this date, hence the rate not being guaranteed. Avis do it differently - reservations past the end of the contract period default to a high rate.

Yes, I've definitely experienced rates that are NOT GUARANTEED, and it does explicitly say so in the email confirmation (which I didn't notice until after the rate had changed when I was viewing the reservation). But if the email says the rate is guaranteed, you should be fine, unless of course they try to accuse you of forging/modifying the confirmation somehow...

FWIW, I had this happen at a hotel once when on a corporate rate. The rez was booked around the end of the year for a February stay, and the negotiated rates for the new year were higher, and I didn't find out until check-in.