ChurningMan

I have a fear of car rental companies due to the fact that I've seen and heard horror stories about damage that the staff said was new damage caused by the driver, resulting in hundreds if not thousands of dollars and headaches.

I personally had this happen to me once, ironically, with Enterprise. For some reason the rear bumper pannel was I guess millimeters off from alignment (literally millimeters, I have no idea how anyone could have spotted it and the claimed that I returned it with a 'Hanging' bumper. THANKFULLY, on a whim, I got the insurance, which I typically never get. Even tho I had zero liability, I still engaged in a shouting match with the guy for accusing me of such a idiotic issue. [MODERATED]

I recently booked a rental car in Italy via EZ Rent A Car, who turned out to be just a third party, because when I show up, I was directed to SicilyCar. I even paid for car insurance through EZ, but Sicily required their OWN $900 deductible deposit. I felt REALLY uneasy about this. Thankfully, after 4 countries and a dozen cities, I returned the car unscathed. There were however plenty of damage already noted on the damage waiver form. I was nervous however, when the rep walked around the car with a flashlight inspecting everything. Thankfully nothing turned up.

Anyways, I guess long question short, does anyone have advice on whether to go with the big names vs smaller budget guys in terms of customer service or ease of return? When I traveled for work, I rented with Avis, I dont think they ever checked a thing other than mileage and gas.

Thanks

TravelLawyer

I rent through Avis or Hertz through work, and they also check. It seems like if you return at night, they ALWAYS use a flashlight, so it's not just the local mom/pop places. I recently returned a car at Avis in the evening, they pulled out the flashlight, and noticed one of the panels being misaligned. I didn't get into accidents, so that must have been pre-existing but no one noticed when I rented the car in the daylight - seems like only having a flashlight would have made this issue apparent. So basically, with my experience, it doesn't seem like it matters where you rent from. That said, I just feel better renting from a big rental company like Avis, Hertz, Dollar/Thrifty, Budget, etc. just because I want someone to be held liable if the car has any maintenance or defect issues.

ChurningMan

Oh thanks, ok. I remember one time I went to pick up a rental car from some small shop and this lady came out fuming, absolutely fuming. After eavesdropping for a few seconds, I realize, they were trying to pin some damage on her and she wasn't having any of it. I guess, ur right tho based on ur experience and that of my own with Enterprise. Thanks AtomicLush.

guv1976

Do you hold a credit card that offers either primary or secondary rental-car loss/damage coverage?

More generally, these days it's a good idea to take a video of any rental car on pick up, and again on return. In addition, make sure that any damage you see on pick up is noted on your contract. (And check the fuel level too.)

These days, you can have just as much trouble with a "name" car-rental company, as with a small, no-name company. Many "name" company locations are actually franchises owned by small businesses -- some of which are honorable, some of which are not.

ChurningMan

thanks. I do, but I was thinking of using my Alaska air card which I just opened, to eat into the Min Spend. They have partner car rentals that give me 50 miles a day, but i noticed there's no car rental coverage. So now I'm kind of trying to figure out the best strategy.

I noticed that Alaska Air's promo code actually was about $5 more expensive daily rate than not using a promo code on Dollar. How weird is that?