bchandler02

If National pulls this crap with me it's going to get ugly fast. Until they can prove that they issued a vehicle with a certain amount of fuel, they're not going to be able to hold me accountable to returning with that amount, beyond what the gas gauge shows.

As mentioned above, what is their measuring device and is it certified? A quick complaint to the state agency that measures gas pumps would be in order, as well as a credit card dispute with a picture of the gauge.

We'll see how my rental next week goes, first one in a while.

fjord

Gas gauges need to become digital and report to the cluster what they see. (value is already reported but the number is needed, not some needle)

I once rented a car from YYZ and the needle was just under the full mark. I got really suspicious and drove right to the gas station, 10 min after pickup, the car took 10.5L. Drove it for 100km and returned without refilling.

If you are suspicious in the future drive right to a gas station and top off with a receipt that shows the time.

Ilove2fly

good idea. Picked up a car last week. The tank was 3/4 full. Asked the agent to document it. He said it was too much trouble for him. Told me to take a pic and return the car at the same fullness. If they are too lazy to fill up a car with obviously deficient fuel, they certainly aren’t going to top off a gallon.

btonkid12345

Complete agree. Until they can show me a seal from a local or state regulatory agency, certifying their measuring device as accurate (like gas pumps are done, or scales at the grocery store at the register when they weigh your produce) - the fuel gauge is the only relevant factor at return. Period.

Depending on the station - prepare yourself for the worst as far as vehicle selection and upgrade charges go. Even as EE, the stingy stations (aka SAN, PIT, SEA, LGA, etc) have become stingier. Upgrade costs that used to be for luxury vehicles, they want for a 4Runner. Laughable.

The more generous stations still seem to be somewhat generous (BOS, LAX, DEN, ATL, etc).

Why would you pay to fill it up? I’ve never had National consider reimbursing me for fuel after I have left.

If it isn’t full - have them mark that. If the needle is anywhere below the F line, clearly it’s not full and always ask them to mark it G6 or G7 - or to fill it up for you.

You paying to fill it up after you leave, despite them marking it full, is a total personal loss on that fuel cost!


Too much trouble for him? Time to ask for a manager. That is literally what he is getting PAID to do.

I’ve had some employees say this and I ask them to print the contract and write in the new fuel amount on it and initial it and leave their employee number.

Others will correct it in the system (this is the ideal way) and it literally is 2 keystrokes. Sad that someone has so little care for their job that they refuse to do it - and that person works at National, even sadder (I would have guessed Avis).

m907

I mentioned this in another thread - I was running late to the airport a few weeks ago and was probably a little over 3/4 full. I returned it and the attendant didn't even check the gas or mileage. He just printed the receipt and the refueling charge was on there.

m907

I'm curious why you think PIT is stingy. I've always known them to be one of the better locations in terms of putting good cars out on the aisle.

btonkid12345

In my past experiences - whether on leisure trips, or having a client there for 2 years - they were always stingy. Just low trim, average or below cars on the aisle.

As we both know, though - always YMMV. When do you generally pickup there? You seem to have some of the best luck! 😊

m907

Interesting. I usually pick up late at night, so I will acknowledge that when I've been there in the middle of the day, the selection is weaker. The staff is very good and usually willing to give you something better if you're executive or elite.

glostix

Hmm very interesting. If this has been "around for 4-5 years" I've certainly never ran into this before, Enterprise, GM, Ford, what have you. Are we thinking it's just for GM cars through Enterprise? Does Avis really do this for their whole fleet--I can't imagine that.

*Please nobody get the idea to pour your water bottle (or other roadtrip ahem--"waste" bottles) into the gas tank to boost the tank reading before returning. Please I hope nobody does this

btonkid12345

Weird that you’ve never run into it before if you have used Avis. They have been doing it for years. Their entire fleet is now connected and it is one of the major accomplishments of the outgoing CEO and even listed in their annual report. I don’t know why you are in disbelief over this.

It had come to National now too, but only for GM cars so far.

The second part of your post is not funny at all, but a terrible thing to even joke about.

ChurnieEls

Honestly if the $/gal is within ~$1 of prices in the locality then I'm all for this. I'd prefer to just drive it and leave it if I was going to get that 1/4 tank charged at ~$3/gal or whatever rather than have the hassle of factoring in the time to find and refuel the vehicle within striking distance of the airport. Definitely a better deal than the all or nothing full tank refueling .... they offer(d).

btonkid12345

Do you realize that you can always return the call not full and pay their much higher per gallon rate, than the entire tank offer?

Not buying the tank at inception of rental at least doubles the fuel price upon return. So a half tank at return is equivalent in price to an empty one, if you had requested it initially.

Both are actually terrible deals because they add on ~25% in %-based fees and taxes. These appear at the bottom of any rental agreement and are assessed on all charges on your RA, including fuel charges. This is what makes it a terrible deal and most people don’t account for. And the agency is keeping a majority of these fees - usually via a “concession recovery fee” 🤦‍♂️

wm47

FWIW, renting mostly at neighborhood/small airport locations from Avis I've never seen this practice in actual use personally. Seems like a bad idea overall, but especailly for National -- arguing with/annoying your repeat business customers over a couple of gallons of gas is pretty much the opposite of what I would expect as a National customer.

javabytes

My experience with Avis is that they digitally report gas on a 1/8th tank basis. Even when I am choosing cars from the app at the time of pickup, the fuel amount is shown in-app and as long as I bring it back with at least that much I have not been charged (except for their $14.99 automatic refueling charge for rentals under 75 miles, which can only be removed by producing a receipt). I always screenshot it if less than 8/8.

This fraction-of-a-gallon thing is downright petty, particularly when there is no way for the customer to document the starting fuel level.

Presumably if they are starting to report on fuel like this, we may start to see more automation such as remote unlock/remote start from the app in future releases. I assume it also means they will have better ways to monitor speed, hard acceleration/braking, etc. so perhaps something to be mindful of if you are hard on rentals.

Edit: I just checked my receipt for a rental (GMC) that I returned today, it lists the Fuel Out and Fuel In down to a tenth of a gallon. I noticed the attendant didn’t get in the car to check the gas when I returned it, so it must be the vehicle’s onboard telematics reporting in.

garykung

I can sense a class action is coming...