Car Rental Miles
 

With all the changes coming in car rental partners and frequent flyer programs it seems it's really going to make times real tough for those of us who rent cards for just a day. The idea of earning 1 or 2 miles for each dollar I spend at car rentals comes as a shock. Anyone got some advice on who to rent from in the future if I don't like the Hertz or Avis miles per dollar deals?

Try renting from Alamo, and sign up for the Quicksilver program. Alamo quality is hit or miss though. For example, you get in-airport access in Nashville which is quite good. Bad off-airport service in Tampa. But at least you do still get 500 miles for each rental, whether for a day or more.

I have heard a rumor that hopefully in the near future we will see bonus miles based on the number of days that you keep the car and it's also very likely that some car companies will continue to offer the current flat mileage bonus for rentals.

Heed the warning of jhightower about Alamo's hit or miss service. My experience has been more "miss" than hit. After about 5 bad experiences in a row, it's going to take a super mileage incentive to get me to go back to them.

I've been happy with most aspects of Alamo - cars, service, etc. The Quicksilver kiosks really do get you out in 30 seconds. They do seem to have less frequent shuttle service than other firms in most places. I've gotten used to seeing 3 or 4 Hertz, Avis, etc., busses go by before Alamo shows up, though it doesn't happen every time.

Does anyone have any experience with Thrifty? The bonus deal they have with American is great, but I wonder about the quality of their service.

Does anyone else have a problem with Car rental agencies not credit our FF programs? I always make sure that my FF number is entered when I rent a car, and even show them my FF card when I am at the rental counter, but I would estimate that more than half of my car rentrals are not credited to my FF accounts. I can understand an occassional mix up, but when it is over 50% of the time, to me, that negligence are the someones part. I think that FF mileage buyers, such as car rental agencies and hotels, should have to give double the FF miles if they fail to credit our accounts causing us to have to send a letter in order to get the proper credit.

This happens to me often with car rental companies and hotels. I make it a point to present my airline FF card, sometimes the miles are not posted. Sometimes the hotel points are not posted correctly (especially with Hilton). And if there is a bonus promotion chances are high that they will give the regular miles but not the bonus.

Justin, I like your idea of double miles if the miles are not posted properly (like some stores give you the item free if they overcharge you for it). This would add a lot of miles in my accounts.