topic Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please! in Community Chat

Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Sue98 — Wed, 05 Aug 2015 23:14:41 GMT

Wow! What a hassle it seems to be to rent a car. I live in a very rural area with only a couple of options. Hertz was offering me the best deal, but I will have to drive about 50 miles to pick of the rental.

I called CS last night, and I was quoted a rate for the days we need to rent a car. Of course, I wasn't able to speak to anyone in this country, and I had a very difficult time understanding the CS rep. She assured me if I gave her my name the price she quoted me would be in the system. I repeated the quote amount a few times, and I also repeated the confirmation number.

Well, because I know how things work sometimes, I decided to check online to make sure the rate she quoted me was in there system. I entered my confirmation number, but all I got was a notice telling me my reservations was "pending". I called CS again and was quoted a rate that was $300 more than the rate I was quoted last night! UGH!

I explained that the CS last night assured me my rate was secured and would not change, but they told me there is nothing they can do. Also, I found out they will be doing a credit report on me, as the only major credit card I have is also a debit card. Again....UGH! I have excellent credit, but I don't want my score going down.

This is turning into a terrible hassle! Can anyone give me some helpful suggestions? How can I get that original quote? Thanks!

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

StylishLady — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 00:11:13 GMT

For some reason you need a credit card (not debit) to rent a car. If you have that you can use sites like Travelocity to find car types and prices.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Snowpuppy — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 00:28:55 GMT

I used to rent regularly from Enterprise but not as much lately.

If Hertz is your only or closest location, call the location directly where you'll be picking up the vehicle. Establish yourself as a customer & talk to someone locally. Avoid the 800# run around. Some Hertz locations used to be at car dealerships, etc.

If your only card is a debit card, trust me, they will work with you no matter what they say. Bring proof of insurance, too. I rented from Enterprise 2 weeks ago and this was the first time I was asked for it. Years ago I rented from Hertz with only a debit card. No one ever pulled my credit tho they said they would. Caution, things may have changed.

Be prepared for a BIG hold on your debit card until you return the vehicle. I rented with a cc 2 weeks ago and they put a $750 hold on my cc. This was a cc, not debit. I will clarify, I did rent a full size SUV.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Venezia — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 00:32:59 GMT

Rental car companies will require a credit card as a guarantee for any damage (or if you don't return the car when agreed). A debit card wouldn't be of any use because you may not have much money in your account.

I've rented cars many times. I agree with the advice of checking rates on sites like Expedia, Orbitz, etc. but also, if you belong to any warehouse club, check their rates.

When you are finally at the rental desk, don't let them bludgeon you into taking more insurance than you need (which will almost always double or more the total price). Check your own insurance plan first. Most cover you for whatever car you're driving. And some credit cards, like Discover, provide free damage liability waiver, if you use that card.

If they try to persuade you to "upgrade", don't do it. Often it's because they no longer have the class of car you contracted to rent. (It's always first come, first served.) If that's the case, they are obligated to upgrade you at no cost to you. Period.

Lastly and most important, do not sign anything until you double-check the total rate you are being charged on the day! There have been several times (including my last one at Dulles Airport) where the rate on the rental contract was considerably higher than what I had in my confirmed contract. (Always take a copy of that with you to the rental kiosk.) When I queried it, I got a lot of "don't know, but this is the rate". I said "I don't think so!" and insisted they revise the paperwork before I would sign. This was with Budget Rental and it took over an hour and three staff members before I got them to fix it. I will never rent from Budget again.

You need to check, double-check and triple-check everything. And don't let them bulldoze you into paying for anything more than you agreed to.

Rentals are often necessary, but "buyer beware".

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

sunshine45 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 00:54:07 GMT

another note......if you have AAA or an AARP card you can get discounts at various car rental companies.

also check out retailmenot.com for lots of hertz coupon codes.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Lucky Charm — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 01:17:15 GMT

I thought that was the numbe one reason to have to have a credit card, to be able to rent a car.

I just rented a car from Enterprise on Monday on the internet, I think I went to through Expedia. Locked in a low rate and when I called the Enterprise office they already had all my info. Smooth transaction.

I almost always choose Enterprise as the guy who started it served on the USS Enterprise (go BIG E!--although she's retired now) as did our son.

They offer pick-up service so you don't have to inconvenience some one else to give you a ride and would've given me a ride to where ever if I needed when I was done my traveling.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

JeanLouiseFinch — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 01:24:21 GMT

If you're a Costco Member, you can get discounts on rental cars. It's on the Costco website with click through links to the rental companies - a few to pick from.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Lucibee — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 10:28:10 GMT

Good information here. Thanks!

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

ID2 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 10:37:06 GMT

We learned a long time ago that when they connect you to another country to talk to a service rep just kindly ask to talk to someone in the US. They are very nice about it and will immediately connect you! This is with any company you have to deal with.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

gmkb — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 10:40:19 GMT

We frequently rent a car and I usually use Hotwire.com. You can prepay and I find that I get a good rate thru them. It is all handled online.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Venezia — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 14:54:55 GMT

@gmkb wrote:
We frequently rent a car and I usually use Hotwire.com. You can prepay and I find that I get a good rate thru them. It is all handled online.

I've prepaid before and still had the rental company try to charge me more or insist I pay for an upgrade because they didn't have anything available in the class of car I paid for. (That happened to me three years ago at Phoenix Airport.)

They will do whatever they can to generate more money from the customer, if the customer lets them.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Laura14 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 15:00:43 GMT

I use Hertz all the time and always book online at their website. I normally use my AAA discount or as someone suggested they are usually running coupon codes all over the place. I have never had a problem with the rate being changed on me at the counter. I know if you are under 25, it can be a real pain because of insurance issues but I'm not sure that hassle exists anymore.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

LTT1 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 15:15:40 GMT

@Sue98 Not sure why you would be worried about a "hit" on your credit score? The rental company seems to be using standard operating procedure for you.

you always have the option to put a "non-authorized" charge in dispute with your cc company. They have never ruled against me the entire two times I have ever had to use this. The cc company has offered great advice when I have called them not knowing what to do about a charge. Once it was concerning a medical bill; I do not remember what is was about the second time. I also had to mention "charge-back" (call it by this name -- it strikes fear in their hearts apparently.) because after 11/2 years we still did not have our DDs wedding pictures! An FYI

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

conlt — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 15:21:40 GMT

I rented a car recently without problem, I rented it through AAA.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Tinkrbl44 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 15:38:32 GMT

@Sue98 wrote:
Wow! What a hassle it seems to be to rent a car. I live in a very rural area with only a couple of options. Hertz was offering me the best deal, but I will have to drive about 50 miles to pick of the rental.

I called CS last night, and I was quoted a rate for the days we need to rent a car. Of course, I wasn't able to speak to anyone in this country, and I had a very difficult time understanding the CS rep. She assured me if I gave her my name the price she quoted me would be in the system. I repeated the quote amount a few times, and I also repeated the confirmation number.

Well, because I know how things work sometimes, I decided to check online to make sure the rate she quoted me was in there system. I entered my confirmation number, but all I got was a notice telling me my reservations was "pending". I called CS again and was quoted a rate that was $300 more than the rate I was quoted last night! UGH!

I explained that the CS last night assured me my rate was secured and would not change, but they told me there is nothing they can do. Also, I found out they will be doing a credit report on me, as the only major credit card I have is also a debit card. Again....UGH! I have excellent credit, but I don't want my score going down.

This is turning into a terrible hassle! Can anyone give me some helpful suggestions? How can I get that original quote? Thanks!

If you have excellent credit, you should have at least ONE credit card, even if you rarely use it.

The reason for the "soft" credit report is because you could rent a car with a debit card linked to a checking account with, say, $2000 in it, and then rent the car, deduct the $2000 and not return the car .......... so they check for fraud and "bad" transactions ..... it's not unreasonable.

My opinion .... get a credit card!

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

lulu2 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 16:30:00 GMT

I'm surprised to read HERTZ offered the best rates. I've found them to be on the higher end when it comes to rates.

Also, I'm surprised to read you were able to rent a car without a credit card.

There are tons of discounts you can research on the internet. You can have 5 people request the exact same car within an hour of each other, and get 5 different rates.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Lilysmom — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 20:45:53 GMT

If this is your first car rental be sure to do a walk around with the agency rep and note any scratches or dents or damage of any kind before you leave the lot. They have a standard form to note type of damage. Some rental agencies have been known to try to charge renters for damage already on the car they rent.

Costco does get the best rates I have seen. There is a code for regular members and one for executive members. Good luck! LM

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

lulu2 — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 21:48:15 GMT

@Lilysmom wrote:
If this is your first car rental be sure to do a walk around with the agency rep and note any scratches or dents or damage of any kind before you leave the lot. They have a standard form to note type of damage. Some rental agencies have been known to try to charge renters for damage already on the car they rent.

Costco does get the best rates I have seen. There is a code for regular members and one for executive members. Good luck! LM

Hi Lilysmom, while this sounds like a great idea, no rep has ever gone to the car with us. (and we rent a lot of cars) At airports they usually have 1 or 2 agents behind the counter. It's either, here are the keys, or go out to the island and choose a car.

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Lilysmom — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 09:20:38 GMT

@lulu2 wrote:
@Lilysmom wrote:
If this is your first car rental be sure to do a walk around with the agency rep and note any scratches or dents or damage of any kind before you leave the lot. They have a standard form to note type of damage. Some rental agencies have been known to try to charge renters for damage already on the car they rent.
L
Costco does get the best rates I have seen. There is a code for regular members and one for executive members. Good luck! LM
Hi Lilysmom, while this sounds like a great idea, no rep has ever gone to the car with us. (and we rent a lot of cars) At airports they usually have 1 or 2 agents behind the counter. It's either, here are the keys, or go out to the island and choose a car.

@lulu2, if that is the case, you should survey the car yourself. If you see any significant damage, you can go back and report it. When we rent, there is usually a kiosk in the parking lot. Perhaps the rental agencies are better about it now. There was a time when people were consistently being harassed about damage to vehicles not caused by them. I always have a good look. LM

Re: Help....renting a car for the first time and need advice, please!

Jayjay — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 15:13:19 GMT

I've rented cars several times and usually have no problems. When I'd make my plane reservations, I always made a rental car reservation as well on line through whatever car rental agency had the best rate. The good thing about renting a car months ahead of time (when possible) is that you are not locked into that rate. I've seen car rentals go down in price as my vacation neared and I've always been able to cancel the first one and get a car at a lower rate even days before I left. ALWAYS print out your reservation and yes, don't let them talk you into insurance or extra insurance or any upgrades.

Also, always return the rental car with a full gas tank. If you bring it back and they refill it, it will cost much more.