Cashless payment systems like E-ZPass have helped make highway driving a less irksome experience by speeding up lines. Rental car companies even offer this option so you don’t have to worry about an embarrassing last-minute scrounge for change at the tollbooth, but rental car customers are now realizing that this convenience can come at a huge price. [More]
rental cars
Watch Out For These 3 Upselling Tactics When Renting A Car
By 3.13.17
When you’re traveling and can’t rely on public transportation, renting a car is a convenient option. However, it can also come with a higher-than-advertised price tag when you add in the fees and optional services you might not actually need. [More]
New York AG: Zipcar Charged Damage Fees Without Giving Drivers A Chance To Dispute
By 7.28.16
With Zipcar, members can rent a car for a few hours without having to stand in line, fill out paperwork, or wait for the car to be brought around. Problem is, when a Zipcar gets damaged, it can difficult to say who’s to blame. Nevertheless, the New York Attorney General’s office says Zipcar was routinely charging drivers for damage fees that violated state law. [More]
Hertz Partnering Up With Uber, Lyft To Supply Drivers With Rental Cars
By 6.30.16
Don’t have a car, but want to work for Lyft or Uber as a driver? Hertz is hoping it can squeeze some extra miles out of its older cars with new deals it’s just announced to supply rentals to the ride-hailing companies. [More]
Business Travelers Would Rather Take An Uber Than Rent A Car
By 1.21.16
Uber has been gaining in popularity in the corporate travel realm for a few months now, but according to one analysis, it’s now the No. 1 option for business travelers, overtaking taxis and topping rental cars. [More]
Pay Tolls Directly When Renting A Car, Or Face Modest Yet Annoying Fees
By 1.6.16
Last year, I rented a car while mine was off having damage fixed. The danger in renting a car and then going about your normal routine is that you may forget that the rental car doesn’t have a toll transponder, and breeze through the EZPass lane as you normally would. I knew what was coming: a $25 bill for my 60¢ toll. Reader Allen didn’t know, and had to pay $35 for a $1 toll. Let these experiences serve as cautionary tales. [More]
Hertz Now Requiring Rental Customers To Provide Refueling Receipt For Trips Under 75 Miles, Or Pay $14
By 7.14.15
In yet another example of why it pays off to make sure you fully understand a company’s terms of service, and pay attention when those policies change, Hertz rental customers should be aware of a new refueling requirement when driving a vehicle less than 75 miles. [More]
Man Burned While Trying To Rid Rental Car Of Bed Bugs
By 4.15.15
The list of things we didn’t think needed to be explicitly stated has just grown, after a man trying to kill bedbugs with alcohol in his rental car ended up burning himself instead of delousing the vehicle. [More]
Forgot Where You Crashed Your Rental Lamborghini? Police In Texas Would Like A Word
By 3.9.15
Ever have that nagging feeling like you left something somewhere, but you can’t remember what it is or where you last saw it? Someone apparently suffering a memory glitch has abandoned a rented Lamborghini after crashing it in Texas. [More]
Tourists Rent Car, Get Free Snake In The Trunk
By 9.29.14
“Free ball python with every car rental” might appeal to some customers as a promotion, but it would be an expensive one, and most people probably wouldn’t be interested. Two tourists found a free surprise python in the trunk of the car they had rented at Logan airport in Boston and drove to their motel in Maine. The good news? The snake was alive and unharmed, and its owner has already been found. [More]
Rental Car Companies Asked GM To Look Into Ignition-Related Crashes Years Before Recall
By 7.31.14
It’s becoming harder and harder for GM execs to claim that the company was largely unaware of the problems with the Chevy Cobalt and other vehicles with an ignition problem that has resulted in at least 13 deaths, dozens of accidents and the long-delayed recall of millions of cars. A new report shows that car rental companies have been telling GM to look into the issue since at least 2005. [More]
Hertz Tells Me It Has No Idea How To Read A Fuel Gauge
By 5.13.13
Anyone who has returned a rental car with less fuel than agreed to knows full well that rental company employees understand how to read a fuel gauge, because there is money to be made if you’re coming back light on gas. But one Consumerist reader says it’s a different story when you prepay for fuel and you’re the one looking to be reimbursed. [More]
Lawsuit Claims Dollar Rent A Car Charged Customers For Options They Specifically Declined
By 9.18.12
A doctor from Florida claims that Dollar Rent A Car charged him more than $250 for options he had explicitly told the company he did not want — and he believes he’s not the only one who has been hit with these unasked-for charges. [More]
New Law Would Forbid Rental Car Companies From Renting Recalled Cars
By 8.2.12 — Updated: 9.8.16
For years, consumer advocates have been calling for legislation that would make it illegal for rental car companies to rent out or sell vehicles that are currently under a safety recall. That notion is inching closer to becoming a reality with the introduction of the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act. [More]
Avis Customers Sue Over E-Z Pass "Convenience" Fee
By 5.11.12 — Updated: 9.8.16
Have you noticed that anytime a company charges something labeled a “convenience fee,” it only angers customers more? For example, a recently filed class-action claim alleges that car rental biggie Avis didn’t fully disclose the details of the convenience fee it charges customers who rent vehicles equipped with E-Z Pass devices. [More]
Should Rental Car Companies Be Allowed To Rent Out Recalled Vehicles?
By 2.21.12 — Updated: 9.8.16
Every year, several million cars are recalled for repairs that cover everything from the most minor safety concerns to potential death traps. But some rental companies continue to hire out vehicles that haven’t been repaired, even months or years after the recall announcement. [More]
Alamo Sends Me To Collections Over Damages I Had Nothing To Do With
By 11.11.11
Just about everyone knows that you have to give your rental car a thorough inspection — and point out even the smallest dings and scratches — before pulling off the lot. But sometimes, even though you’ve done your due diligence and the car is given a clean bill of health upon its return, you can still end up being sent to collections. [More]
Columnist: Hertz Charged More To Refill Gas Tank Than To Rent Car For 2 Days
By 5.24.11
News that car rental companies are charging more than $9 per gallon for failure to fill up the gas tank upon return caught a Sports Illustrated columnist by surprise. [More]
