Christina went to return her Uhaul rental, but when she arrived at her scheduled time, she found the lot was already closed. Customer service told her to return the truck to the nearest nearby Uhaul place, a chore in and of itself. Then she got charged for returning it to the “wrong” location, and all-told her $19.99 rental has blossomed into $220 that navigating the twists and turns and delays of customer service hasn’t gotten her refunded. Here’s the letter she wrote to Joe, the CEO of Uhaul.

Christina writes:

I sent this to Joe the CEO who famously revealed his cell phone number on TV (which redirects you in his voicemail to his email). I found that number in your archives (thanks consumerist)

Good day Joe,

Thank you for leaving your email on your phone number. I’ve run into a sticky situation with your U-Haul’s of Brooklyn NY. I think you would be interested to know that there are some poor practices going on in that area.

I scheduled myself to pick up a truck at the [redacted] location at 10am. I’m not complaining about the service at this location, although I should. I counted 25 people in line on a Sunday morning at 10am and we were all there for an hour or more in line. It just didn’t move. I did get my truck, having arrived early, received it at 10:30am (my pickup time was 10). No biggie, right? OK. My scheduled drop off time was 10pm, same location (Contract number [redacted]). When I arrived at 10pm the location was closed with a big fence locked around the place. There was no drop box for keys, as my contract indicated there would be. Perplexed, I called U-Haul Customer Service (1-800-GO-U-Haul) and spoke with two fine ladies, [redacted] and [redacted], who both told me to take it to the nearest location with a drop box. I didn’t like this solution, but I had no other option, I live in the city without a car and its a decent sized headache to get to these U-Haul locations.

So off I go to the closest U-Haul with a drop box, [redacted]. This location is so awful it should be immediately stripped of any right to the name of U-Haul. There is a chained dog which greets the visitors with vicious barking. There is a non-English speaking employee handling the dropoffs.

He made me move the van 3 times before I gave up and handed him the keys. He refused the keys so I put them in the dropbox myself, and left. I walked under a dark bridge to the nearest subway station in Brooklyn, at night thanks to the unclear policies of the [redacted] U-Haul. But wait, there’s more.

The next day I have my $80 mandatory pre-payment from U-Haul on my card PLUS a $143.78 charge for dropping off the U-Haul truck at the wrong location. The location which U-Haul told me to drop it off at. And that’s nothing to mention the gas I used and the miles I used (which I will have to get reimbursed for) to get to the new location. So now you see my $19.99 truck has cost $220. Not good.

The worst part was being shuffled around general customer service, the regional district, the [redacted] store, and the non english speaking [redacted] address. I would particularly like to point out that [redacted] at [redacted] who is a reservation manager kept me on hold for no less than an hour and a half and a couple of times pretended she hadn’t already spoke with me, and rudely told me repeatedly that it was my fault, despite listening to my explanations.

My request is this: A full refund for the $80.00, plus any additional mileage or gasoline fees [redacted] U-Haul might add on, plus a refund for the $143.78. I’ve had an awful experience and I would appreciate your support at this time. I have used U-Haul before and had a very positive experience, I hope we can resolve this matter in a manner that benefits both of us. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely yours,

Christina

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.