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Like runner-up Avis, Hertz is a household name but that doesn't mean travelers can expect the same consumer protections overseas that they've grown accustomed to here. Take collision damage waivers -- in the U.S., you can decline the optional insurance and not worry about it. But in Amsterdam, France, Italy and elsewhere, it can be una storia differente.
Here are a few of the more recent complaints:
Mike of Belgrade, MT (06/18/08)
No problem. The fuel thing is not true. Hertz charges fairly.
If you take the fuel option in advance, you pay .25 cents less than pump price. The only time you would get charged $6.99 per gallon is if they had to fill it for you. You could always fill it yourself and avoid all fuel charges.
What's all the fuss about? Just stop and put gas in.
Alexander of Newton MA (06/15/08)
I have reserved a car from Hertz through AAA for my travel in France. Pick-up in Bordeaux Airport at April 28th, 2008 and return in Reims at Blvd Joffre location on May 7th, 2008. The clerk at Bordeaux Airport was mostly busy with offering more expensive cars to customers ahead of me and then tried the same tactics on me ignoring his primary duties. He tried to promote a new more expensive vehicle to me saying that it is a brand new and runs on diesel so it would be very economical.
At the end he simply forgot to mention that the car I have reserved also runs on diesel. As a result at a gas station I filled it up with regular gasoline. Fortunately nothing really bad happened to the car as its tank was still half full when I filled it with regular. I did not drive too far before I noticed strange sounds and fumes from exhaust. When I called Hertz service department the person on the phone told me there is nothing he could do at the moment. It happened to be Thursday May 1st, a national holiday, all shops were closed till Monday. Hertz does not have any local mechanics in Albi where I stayed so the vehicle would have be towed to Toulouse (about 50 miles) and I have to come to Toulouse to pick it up not earlier than Monday and on my own because as I was told it is my fault.
I do not see why Hertz employees ignorance to perform his duties providing full information about the car is my fault in the first place and now this terrible service would threaten to ruin four days of my vacation. Thanks only to great local people, the hotel host who helped me with French translation, a tow truck driver, and a local mechanic, who fixed the car on his holiday, in a couple of hours.
The mechanic charged me 126 euros, 60 of which went for the new fuel. Hertz charged me 135 euros for the less than five miles towing and doing nothing else. I have written to Hertz with this explanation and that I have reserved this car from Hertz and expected good services based on their reputation. I consider this as framing and requested full reimbursement for the Hertz extra charges (of 135 euros) and mechanic service (of 126 euros). All I have received from Hertz is a letter insisting that it is all my fault and not their attitude... practically confirming that it is their policy not to help people but trick them into some trouble. Can I dispute these charges with my credit card? Please advice.
Daniel of Irvine CA (06/09/08)
Our company has a nationwide contract with Hertz Equipment Rental for both the rental fees and the delivery/pick-up fees associated with the rentals. Time and time again I received invoices for equipment rentals with fees well in excess of our negotiated, contracted rates. The most common is for excessive fees charged on the delivery/pick-up of the equipment. It never ceases to amaze me that a nationwide company like Hertz can repeatedly fail to invoice a contracted customer correctly.
This leads me to believe one of two things. One, is that Hertz is so completely poorly organized that they cannot invoice their customers correctly - but due to the size and volume of business they do I find this difficult to believe. The alternative explanation is that they are aware of the lack of accuracy in their invoicing process in hopes that their beloved customers will not recognize the error and approve and pay them the inflated rates.
The economic impact resulting from Hertz's is quite obvious. Their customer are losing money paying inflated rates and money is lost by continuously having to audit their invoices and make numerous phone calls to have the invoices corrected before being processed and paid.
Mer of Lafayette LA (05/18/08)
Had to rent a car to drive 3 states. My grandmother of 100 yrs. old had a heart attack. Ha to run home to take of her. She is fine now. Rented a car in Tuccaslosa, ALA. The guy there was oh so nice. If I would have been in the area he would have picked me up. But we were 70 miles away, so I told him I would be there by 10 a.m. Drove to Lafayette airport to return the car and needless to say they are too small to pick up or drop off. This place has 30 cars and they are too small. So according to the TV ad they do not pick up or drop off. False advertisment. Very disappointed!
Jane of Hobbs NM (05/06/08)
I rented our rental car like I always do (usually with Enterprise)on-line. When we arrived at Dallas/Love Field airport we took the shuttle to the Hertz rental area - the person at the counter looked up my name, typed what she had to into the computer and printed out something for me to sign - only saying about 2 words to me (never smiling). I signed the form and left the office - my husband (who always drives) was standing just outside the door watching our bags - no-one else was there but us.
We found the car and loaded up, but when we got to the gate and man there said that Paul's name had to be on the agreement - which made sense to me because he was driving (the person inside never said anything to me - like is your husband driving - we went back to the office and both signed another form (she did not give me another receipt totalling the cost) only the one I originally had which had the total cost at $65.73 that would be charged to my credit card and she never said anything to me about there being an additional charge - granted I would definitely understand the additional charge but she never said 2 words to me or to Paul -
I called Hertz when we got home and made a comment about this incident - the girl who I was speaking to - to put it bluntly - was just not interested at all in my complaint. To end this - you need to train your employees better - they need to smile! and to talk to YOUR customers and make them feel like they care! (Like you show on your TV commercials) The world is a hard place to be right now - with all the negative feelings and unhappy people! Make a bigger effort to have YOUR employees be happy no matter what! To help your customers - we are the ones keeping you in business - tell them that and that there job depends on them being happy!
Jay of Albertson NY (04/16/08)
Our Hertz rental car broke down due to a malfunction - on a highway outside of Rome, Italy on the third day of our four day contract. Their representitives were not fluent in English when we called in our emergency. We are Senior citizens and one is disabled and that was explained to them during the original phone call.WE had the representative repeat the address location that we were in as well as all the contract numbers - so there was no excuse for them not to come. They promised to rescue us in thirty minutes and after two hours it was clear that they weren't coming. Some bystanders pushed our broken down rental car to the side of the road and after the two hours had elapsed other Italians make a call for us and spoke Italian to the Hertz people. Finally after a total of three hours the pick up truck came. We were told that they would supply a replacement car so that we could continue our travels. No alternate car was delivered and we were left stranded on the road at 8 PM. The driver suggested that we take a taxi to our hotel in Rome and that Hertz would pay us back. The next morning we went directly to the Hertz booth at the Termini station to get our taxi refund and also close our contract and adjust our bill. The representative was horrible and nasty and didn't want to be involved as we didn't rent the car from that location. We had informed the airport location that we were returning the car to Termini and it was noted on our contract. We also spoke to some assistant manager representative at the airport location and he agreed that we should not be charged for the rental due to our trauma but he didn't have any authority. We later learned that he put in a false report that stated that he informed us that we were not intitled to any price adjustment. In addition to be in possible danger during our breakdown - we were also upset at not having a resolution while we were still in Italy. We had additional expenses as we didn't have full use of the rental car. Back in the USA we put in complaint to Hertz. The representative was at first not helpful and didn't think that we deserved any consideration or reduction of our bill or return of the taxi fare. All that she offered us was a coupon $100 for a future Hertz rental. After we put in a stop payment order to our credit card company she finally reduced the final amount. However, she did not make this a pleasant experience - which added insult to our injury. All of this was documented by the tow truck company and we did not contribute to the breakdown in any way. Hertz is a large enough company and they should not encourage their representives to be petty.
Angela of Laurel MD (03/20/08)
A Hertz employee by the name of Nick was extremely rude to me when I asked for his assistance. I had a question to ask this gentleman and requested that he approach me because I was traveling alone with a small child, 4 bags of luggage and plus a stroller. This individual informed me that he would not assist me because he believed the way that I waved for him to approach me was how you summoned a dog! To make a long story short, I got his immediate supervisor name Bob Shelby and the general manager name John Cherry and tried to complain. They will not return any phone calls. The issue was never address. I would not recommend this company to anyone!
Johannes of Lethbridge OTHER (03/16/08)
My local travel agency AAA contacted Hertz on Schiphol Airport. We were told that a vehicle with hand controls would be available. After a week we were informed that they do not have a vehicle with hand controls available for a short term (we needed one for two weeks).
Now we will have to use taxis if we want to go to any of the tourist attractions.
John of Bremerton WA (03/05/08)
The check-in process at Hertz Dothan is verbal with a clerk generating a computer form detailing the rental agreement. Although being told that LDW, LIS, PAI,and PEI coverages were not desired, the form said LDW at $20.99 per day was accepted. The form was thrust in front of the customer with two areas for initials and signature highlighted. The customer was tired after the long day of flying and initialed and signed the form without noting the error in the form regarding LDW acceptance. The vehicle was returned to Hertz Dothan outside their normal business hours and a detailed receipt was not readily available. When brought to the attention of the Hertz Dothan manager the response was you signed the form. This episode makes me wonder how many other people have been duped by this rental agency.
After discussion with the national Hertz Customer Service it was determined that the LDW was overcharged by $4.00 per day for the 2 day rental. A refund for the $8.00 was issued.
Holly of Hampton CT (03/03/08)
My beloved cat suffered open, oozing sores and extreme hair loss after I applied Hertz flea drops purchased from Walmart.
Distress, worry, and regret. The hair does not seem to be growing back. And I have a vet bill for $115. Meleleuca medicine applied at home helped to heal the sores and cost $20.
Edward of Mt. Prospect IL (02/13/08)
We had rented a car from Hertz at Tampa airport to return to Orlando -- were advised to return to Orlando Airport. Had previously rented weekly from Hertz for several years as business customer -- boy are things different for average consumer. Returned car to general car rental return at Orlando International Airport, because we could not find the off site Hertz return. We placed several calls to Hertz national office and Hertz Orlando office, and left several urgent messages asking for directions. Nearly missed our flight. Hertz has never returned the calls asking for direction, nor have they returned the MANY messages left. We spoke to Michael at Hertz orlando office, who assured us he would notify us if they could not check the car in, finally, as we were going through airport security on January 29. As of February 6, I started getting calls saying the car had not been returned, and tried to call the Orlando Hertz office to check on the status. On several occassions, the CSR hung up on me, often without even speaking (just picked up the phone and slammed it down). They refused to give me the contract information, or even check into the car. Georgy simply said we don't deal with attitude and hung up before I could explain the situation. Michael recommended we report the car stolen but refused to give me the license number, phone number for Orland Police, or the contract information. On several calls, the Orlando office did not answer, and I was re-rerouted to Emergency Roadside Assistance. They took the information each time, and said they would follow up, but only one woman actually called back to say the car had in fact been collected on January 29 as requested. However, until February 12, I continued to receive several automated calls a day, and Hertz only today (Feb 13) checked in the car that was returned on January 29.
Susan of Portola CA (02/06/08)
On July 10, 2007 my credit card was charged $809.62 for a rental car that originated in Reno Nevada and traveled to Susanville California. I contacted Hertz by phone on 12/27/2007 and was told that all billing issues are handled by emailing Hertz which I did on 12/28/2007 and again on 01/23/2008. I requested a copy of the rental agreement (specifically to see the signature of the party that rented the car) along with the driver's license number used when renting this car. To date I have never received a reply to my emails. I have never rented a car from Hertz and have never even been to Susanville.
I was erroneously charged $809.62 for a service I did not receive at a time when our finances were not exactly fluid.
Bruce of Ridgecrest CA (01/18/08)
I rented car in Palmdale, CA at 10:42am and they charged my card $100.00 . I returned the car at 3:10pm and was told that there would be no charge to my card. It is now Friday evening and the charges are still pending on my card, money I can't use for the pending release by Hertz . My card says that they have had no contact from Hertz.
Now here I sit waiting for it to clear so I can pay back my date the money that I was going to pay for dinner and a fun evening, my first date in years and Hertz ruined it.
Scott of Las Vegas NV (12/11/07)
I noticed in my Hertz #1 Reward account that they did not have the proper level of service. I am supposed to be Presidents Circle and have a card from Hertz to prove it. I called to inform them that it was wrong on the website and they told me that the Reward Card expiration date meant nothing and that as of Dec 31 my status would be reviewed. They stated I had only rented 12 times this year. I told them that is because I rent monthly, and so I had rented all year round and at sometimes had as many as 3 cars in different areas all rented by me. They told me there is nothing they could do, and I had to call the Gold Desk. I asked to speak with a supervisor, and they told me the same thing. I asked them if they could have the Gold Desk call me, and they stated no, I had to call myself.
I have not been getting the appropriate upgrades for a full year and being overcharged for services.
Dee of Syracuse NY (07/10/07)
After an amazing Spring Break with my family it was time to return to NY. My Sister and I took the 1 1/2 hr drive to the airport, stood in line for an hr. Finally my turn to the counter. I approached the counter gave the rep my conf # and the CSR stated that they needed to do a credit check if I was using my bank debit card.
Of course I was declined due to bad choice in the past.It literally took the CSR about 1 MINUTE to tell me I was declined, how embarrassing. I was extremly upset. All the time spent driving to the airport waiting in line and return back to my parents with out a rental car. All that could of been avoided if Hertz web site would offer the option to check your credit status before you confirmed the reservation. I called Hertz and complain but with no compassion or a simple I'm Sorry. There was nothing they could do.
A credit check when you use a bank card the funds are there.The rental companies started to except Debit card to make renting a car easier. Imagine how many thousand of travelers trips interrupted by this.
Suzan of Orlando FL (06/25/07)
I left my car at a dealership to be repaired after a car accident, upon arriving at Hertz, I was told they had no subcompact cars which is the size covered by my car insurance. I was being coerced into up grading when I told them my policy states that if Hertz does not have the subcompact then Hertz must give me a free upgrade, the salesman and manager stated they had never heard of this and could not help me. I called my insurance adjuster and she called Xan the Hertz manager and he told her I was complaining about their cars! The simple minded manager did not realize I was on the other line and the adjuster was relaying verbatium everything he was saying. Finally he said to both the adjuster and me he would get me into a car for the insurance's allowed amount. Behold, he found a car that fit the criteria that had been sitting in front on his lot the entire time. The car was filthy but after about three hours I left with a rental car and did not have to pay out if pocket!! When I travel I would not use Hertz if it were free and the only other time I used them the exact same con was tried.
Doug of Cortland NY (06/14/07)
My wife and I rented a car from hertz orlando on 5/20/07 this car was previously paid for thru liberty travel when I booked our honeymoon. We returned the car on 5/24/07 between 3 and 4 pm. and retuned home to Syracuse NY the same day, Both of us returning to work my job takes me out of town, When returning from work on 6/8/07 I checked my bank account online, It had been charged $481.04 by hertz this put my bank account into default because of this charge that should have not come out. After researching I discovered that Hertxz had charged my account for 6 extra days that we did not have the car. Numerous faxes withcopies of our return home tickets and boarding passes along with copies of my bank statement have been sent. My work check is direct deposited and was completely non-existent on Fri 6/08/07 because of insufficient funds fees my bank had charged me becuse of hertz's mistake.
Jeanne of Grantham NH (05/14/07)
I rented a car for a week through Hertz online for a trip to Ireland. I prepaid for the rental in the amount of $99.15 for the weekly rental. Upon arrival at Shannon Airport on 4/15, I was told that I would not be allowed to rent the car unless I paid for the optional insurance totaling 164 Euros, over twice the weekly rental rate. Tired and with two children in tow, I reluctantly agreed to pay for the insurance because I had no other option. Upon return from my trip, I contacted Hertz and informed them of the situation. They said the insurance was optional and I did not have to purchase it but refused to refund the money paid claiming I had accepted the insurance. This is not an isolated incident as my aunt and uncle had the same experience on 4/16 when they rented a car from Hertz at the Shannon Airport. This is an unfair and unscrupulous business practice to extort monies from unsuspecting tourists. Additionally, Hertz charged me in USD at a premium. As a courtesy, Hertz gave me a $100 voucher and refunded the conversion premium. In the circumstances, their response was unsatisfactory and other travelers should either be aware of this practice or Hertz should be forced to stop the practice.
I incurred an additional cost of $222 for the unwanted optional insurance. Hertz gave me a $100 voucher as an accomodation which I find unacceptable in the circumstances.
Kathy of New York NY (03/14/07)
My Rental Experience with Hertz of Los Cabos, Mexico:
For a pre-paid one month economy car rental for $632.03, on January 16th Hertz rented me a 2007 Blue Chevrolet , Lic#5981AVB in good condition at the Los Cabos airport. I declined to purchase insurance. Late on the night of January 20th, during a rainstorm, a tire blew out on the vehicle; so, after exchanging the tire with the spare the following morning, on January 21st, I returned the vehicle to the agency at their suggestion and wrote a full report. The agency assured me there would be no problem of any charges.
Upon returning to the airport three weeks later, the manager, Eleazar, informed me that Hertz was demanding payment of $60.00US for damage to the tire. Anxiously on my way to a plane, I agreed to the charges, more for the sake of expediency rather than out of any sense of obligation. Subsequently, my credit card was charged $499.48 for that problem. Ive been assured by Traci of Hertz Customer Relations in Oklahoma City that that is fully in keeping with standard practices of the car rental industry in most countries.
$500.00 seems a wildly unreasonable amount to pay for such a small item. Its difficult to imagine how Hertz arrived at that sum. It might have been reasonable if all four tires had been damaged. I understand that tires are more expensive in Mexico than in the States, but surely they are not the price of a round trip ticket.
Has anyone else had this sort of experience with this company? Are these prices in line with Hertz policies? I guess I was supposed to feel so relieved and grateful that the company had reversed $2,681.24 in fraudulent charges, i wasn't supposed to notice the $500.00 they were charging me for a tire.
Pamela of Lexington KY (03/14/07)
I rented a car for two days on 2/24/07 in Lexington, KY and was supposed to be billed $56.26. I was billed $175.78 on my MasterCard bank card on 3/1/07. I spoke with the Manager. He said they had mistakenly charged me for fuel, even though I had filled the tank up before I returned the car. He also said this had happened before. He assured me he would send the information to the main office in Oklahoma City to credit $119.52 to my account. I spoke with him on 3/6/07 and 3/8/07 as the credit was still not on my checking account. He kept assuring me it would show up any day. I kept trying to call the toll free billing inquiry number but it was always busy. In the meantime, the charge overdrew my checking account and my bank deducted $9.00 from my checking account to transfer money from my savings account to cover the overdraft. As of today, 3/14/07, my checking account has still not been credited by Hertz. I called the billing inquiry number and after being on hold for 12 minutes, I finally got a representative. She told me that she did not have any record of any requests from the Manager about crediting my account. She said she would credit my account $128.52 for the $119.52 overcharge and the $9.00 bank charge, and it should show up on my bank account in 3 - 5 days.
My bank account was overdrawn and I was charged $9.00 by my bank. This also deprived me of $119.52 when I have bills to pay.
Ryan of Fort Washington MD (02/28/07)
Rented a car from the miami airport location on dec.28,2006 and within 24hrs the car got towed for an unknown reason. Hertz charged my card $4046.94 but in the meantime i spoke to an employee by the name of Anna and she said i was going to be receiving a credit of $3032.00 and now i can't get any follow up answers to whats going on.
H of Portland ME (12/20/06)
I rented a car after my car was involved in an accident. Right off the bat I had numerous problems with them charging my wife's credit card that was to be kept on file. After these problems I asked that, that card be removed and was told that it was completely take off file. As far as the payment, my insurance company was to cover the rental for the first 30 days and my auto body shop the remaining 6 days. Upon return of the rental I called and let the company know that I was on my way and that I was just picking up some gas. I was told by Brent, the manager to not worry about the gas and to bring back the vehicle and he would cover it a $2 a gallon. I arrived, and dropped off the rental, Brent let me know that I was all set. The next day while trying to use my credit card I was denied. I found out that Hertz made unauthorized charges on my credit card after it was made very clear that the card had been take off file because they made an unauthorized charge on accident early on. When I called I got rude, and unhelpful treatment from the local Hertz office. After numerous phone calls Brent let me know that my insurance doesn't cover the taxes for the rental. This was not true because I contacted both Geico and my auto body shop and they said that EVERYTHING is covered (minus gas) during the time of the rental. The auto body shop felt bad and sent over a check to Hertz to cover the tax charge of $160 that was supposed to be covered. Brent told us it would take a couple of days for the money to be refunded. After waiting a week with no refund I called the main office in Oklahoma and they let me know that they haven't received any of the $1700 from Geico or my auto body shop. Still today, I have yet to receive my refund.
They were paid (now double paid), and I want my money back.
If a rental agent offers extras, make sure to get it in writing. I shold have known better, but now I'm stuck with a $102 gas charge.
Shai of Seattle WA (12/05/06)
August 31st, 2006 I rented a car from Hertz. We returned it on Sept 4, 2006, we believe with no damage. The woman from Hertz went out to check the car - came back with mileage and gas levels and we paid and left. I declined the damage insurance etc. A month later. Oct 9, 2006, I recieved a call from PerCo (Shelley) saying that there was damage to the vehicle. Door dings in the fuel cover door. She also said that it looked like I used my visa to pay for the rental and that they usually cover this and I should submit the claim to them. They also informed me initially that I only had 45 days from the date of the incident to resolve and pay the claim. I complained and they moved it to 45 days from notice via phone - not in writing.
I received pictures of the damage at to me it looks as though someone tried to pry open the gas cover. The cover did not look damaged and it looked like more than a door ding.
I have tried to report this to the BBB and suddenly the move it to another BBB and then I contacted the new location and they have no record of it. It seems lost.
I cannot help but feel like this is such a huge scam. The credit card company didn't seem to care much and sent me the paperwork to cover this, but we all pay for it in the end.
The car drop off area at the Kalispell airport has no security and someone could have easily come up after we checked in and tried to pry the cover open. How can I be responsible for this?
The damage estimate for the fuel door was over $600. Plus with fees and loss of use, it come to $1,014.75.
Katie of Irvine CA (11/29/06)
I rented an 06 Chevy Malibu on 9-2-06 from Hertz' Vancouver airport location and returned the vehicle to the same location on 9-4-06. When I got the rental from the branch, it was 12:30am and the branch was nearly closing. The clerk quickly went over the rental agreement with me and showed me the prior damages on the vehicle on a piece of sheet. She then simply told me to self-inspect the car and inform her of any other damages not shown on her diagram. Common business practice is for the clerk to walk the customer around the car to make sure of the prior damages match those indicated in their records. However, this Hertz clerk only showed them to me on the diagram, negligently skipping the physical walk-around process. As told, I went ahead and inspected the rental myself. Indeed, I found an additional damaged area around the trunk and went inside to tell the clerk. Without further verification, she immediately circled the area according to my description, and wished me a pleasant trip with the rental. I declined the rental damage waiver. During my possession of the rental, I traveled strictly within the Vancouver city boundary and of total of only 72 miles. I did not hear or see any suspicious sound or damage. When I returned the vehicle on the 3rd day, the inspector found a minor chip (about 1/2 of an inch) on the windshield and Hertz thereafter has billed me $310.62 for the chip. I disputed the damage at the Vancouver airport location. I argued that due to the inprofessionalism and rushing of the clerk when I took out the rental, I was misguided and misinformed as a consumer. I received no helpful assistance from Hertz as to where to look for the damages and therefore, failed to thoroughly inspect the vehicle for any minor detailed damage. What's more, the lax treatment of the Hertz clerk that night toward vehicle damages leads me to believe it could very well be that the windshield chip was already there prior to my taking the vehicle off the lot, only that it was missed by both Hertz and myself.
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