We used three rental cars during our last trip. The good news is that the upsell pressure seemed to have stopped and no one hassled me about their insurance waivers. I wouldn't call it a pleasant experience but it's better than it's been for a long time.
The bad news is that we probably got nailed by the repair scam.
Our last flight left in the early morning so we needed to return Thrifty's car before they opened, or else drop it off the night before. They offered what seemed like a good deal: leave it in the airport's long-term parking lot for them to pick up later that morning.
The next morning I got a call that the windshield was damaged and $75 would be added to my bill. I hadn't seen any damage when we picked the car up and I hadn't had any problems while we were using it, but I wouldn't notice a windshield chip unless it was within my field of view. The 20-something rental agent went into great detail about the crack and its location. When I pointed out that I hadn't seen anything they quickly said that it had probably happened in the long-term parking lot. But when I asked for a copy of the repair documentation ("For my insurance company") he suddenly had no idea how to do that. I asked if they could send me the before & after photos but they were highly offended that I expected them to bear that evidentiary burden.
Their familiarity with windshields cracking in long-term parking, the implication that it happened a lot, and the sudden change in attitude, made me a little suspicious that they'd done a lot of these phone calls to their out-of-town customers. When I asked them to meet with my claims adjustor to inspect the damage repair, suddenly no one could tell me when the car would be available ("Uh, we have to rent it out as soon as it's fixed") or how they could do that. I was even told that the repair was hardly noticeable and might be difficult to find.
When I asked for the total credit-card charges the manager got on the phone to tell me that, wonder of wonders, the repair service had only charged them $40 for what was customarily a $75 fix. She promised to mail me their paperwork "for my claim", which amounted to a generic invoice and a cover letter. Funny thing-- according to the invoice copy they sent, the repair company didn't charge the car company any tax or break out the charges. Just a scribbled "windshield repair" line and a $40 total. Meanwhile my Thrifty bill had three separate entries for all the taxes I'd be paying.
Was the windshield ever chipped? Was I scammed? I have no freakin' idea. $40 isn't a big enough number to get into a colossal pissing contest with Thrifty and USAA, although $75 might have crossed my entertainment threshold. (Funny how I pushed back and that charge dropped so quickly.) However the whole crappy quality of the phone call and the weaselly behavior of the people I spoke with, let alone their documentation, means that I'll never rent from Thrifty again-- especially their Albany airport franchise on Albany Shaker Road in Latham NY. I'd also be a little skeptical of using AutoMotion Restoration Service in Averill Park.
Next time I'll stick with USAA's discounted rental companies-- currently Avis, Budget, or Hertz. I'll also join their frequent-renter programs (no matter how infrequently I use them) so that they treat me as a valued customer instead of a quick hit & run.
And when the employee does the before-rental damage inspection, I'm making sure that he sees me recording digital images for my own records. It only takes an extra minute and it'll be a deterrent to any temptations...
The bad news is that we probably got nailed by the repair scam.
Our last flight left in the early morning so we needed to return Thrifty's car before they opened, or else drop it off the night before. They offered what seemed like a good deal: leave it in the airport's long-term parking lot for them to pick up later that morning.
The next morning I got a call that the windshield was damaged and $75 would be added to my bill. I hadn't seen any damage when we picked the car up and I hadn't had any problems while we were using it, but I wouldn't notice a windshield chip unless it was within my field of view. The 20-something rental agent went into great detail about the crack and its location. When I pointed out that I hadn't seen anything they quickly said that it had probably happened in the long-term parking lot. But when I asked for a copy of the repair documentation ("For my insurance company") he suddenly had no idea how to do that. I asked if they could send me the before & after photos but they were highly offended that I expected them to bear that evidentiary burden.
Their familiarity with windshields cracking in long-term parking, the implication that it happened a lot, and the sudden change in attitude, made me a little suspicious that they'd done a lot of these phone calls to their out-of-town customers. When I asked them to meet with my claims adjustor to inspect the damage repair, suddenly no one could tell me when the car would be available ("Uh, we have to rent it out as soon as it's fixed") or how they could do that. I was even told that the repair was hardly noticeable and might be difficult to find.
When I asked for the total credit-card charges the manager got on the phone to tell me that, wonder of wonders, the repair service had only charged them $40 for what was customarily a $75 fix. She promised to mail me their paperwork "for my claim", which amounted to a generic invoice and a cover letter. Funny thing-- according to the invoice copy they sent, the repair company didn't charge the car company any tax or break out the charges. Just a scribbled "windshield repair" line and a $40 total. Meanwhile my Thrifty bill had three separate entries for all the taxes I'd be paying.
Was the windshield ever chipped? Was I scammed? I have no freakin' idea. $40 isn't a big enough number to get into a colossal pissing contest with Thrifty and USAA, although $75 might have crossed my entertainment threshold. (Funny how I pushed back and that charge dropped so quickly.) However the whole crappy quality of the phone call and the weaselly behavior of the people I spoke with, let alone their documentation, means that I'll never rent from Thrifty again-- especially their Albany airport franchise on Albany Shaker Road in Latham NY. I'd also be a little skeptical of using AutoMotion Restoration Service in Averill Park.
Next time I'll stick with USAA's discounted rental companies-- currently Avis, Budget, or Hertz. I'll also join their frequent-renter programs (no matter how infrequently I use them) so that they treat me as a valued customer instead of a quick hit & run.
And when the employee does the before-rental damage inspection, I'm making sure that he sees me recording digital images for my own records. It only takes an extra minute and it'll be a deterrent to any temptations...