Budget Car Rental Reviews

I rented a car for a weekend in Miami. The car was inspected for damage at pickup. No damage was identified. We were not involved in any accidents or collisions at any time during this rental period. The car was returned on 1/21/19 to a Budget employee who checked the car in and inspected it. The car was not damaged per visual inspection, nor were we informed of any damage by the rep.

My family of 8 planned a trip to Piney Creek North Carolina and I called the 1800 number to rent a car and I was very specific about the type of car we needed (4X4 and full 3 rows). When I showed up at the Homestead, FL location all they had was a 2 wheel drive Yukon XL. They told us to go somewhere else to change it but there is no guarantees and they didn’t even bother to call and make sure they had a vehicle. Never using this company again! Then I called the 1800 customer service number and spoke with Dana and she tried calling the Miami airport location but they were busy and couldn’t pick up so she pretty much told me to call myself. I had to cancel my road trip because they didn’t have the car.

On December 27, 2018 my friend and I rented a car at the Budget Car Rental near the LAX airport without a reservation. We were renting it for less than 24 hours; just to drive up to San Luis Obispo and return the car there where we would meet a friend. As we were working with the employee at the counter, she advised us that the car would cost us approximately $200.00. That price seemed VERY HIGH for just one day! The employee suggested we get the coverage that would allow us to turn the car in without a full tank of gas. When she told us the total cost of $324.02, we were both extremely shocked! When we asked her why she was charging such an exorbitant amount, she said "because it's a holiday and this is the holiday pricing".

I came in to get my Budget Rental Car at the LA California Airport location. Attending the Grammy Awards Show 2/10/2019. I was getting a full size car thru my Costco rental agent. The pre-arranged cost for the entire package was $212.91 total which included insurance for 2 drivers. The agent at Budget talked me into was suppose to be a $30 upgrade to a Jaguar for my 5 day rental. I said ok because the upgrade cost was nominal.

Can I give those scammers five stars but with a huge negative sign? That is what they deserve. I am not where is the attorney general from these people. Employees are scammers and liars. I returned my car with a full tank yet they charge me 80 bucks for gas. The lady said you all set and never mentioned anything about fuel. Please do yourself a favor and avoid them at all cost. If you ever need to speak to the branch good luck as someone in Mexico will answer and tell you keep trying.

Very poor condescending customer service at Charlesglen Toyota branch, NW Calgary. Manager/guy in charge acted irritated when I asked about the insurance. He was the only person there and I was the only customer so no excuse that he was busy. Treat customers respectfully, goes a long way.

Longest line at the airport in Phoenix AZ I have ever seen. You’d think we were waiting for a Beyoncé concert. It was 1 1/2 hours wait... How is this a thing? STOP just reserving the cheapest deal (speaking to self) and do the sane thing.

Updated on 03/11/2019: Reserved a car through Budget a month in advance. Got a call the day before rental to confirm we still wanted the car. Got to vacation destination and we were told there were NO cars available. They told us some should be coming in. After waiting an hour, no cars came. We were then told there were no cars available in the area at all. Not a good way to start my vacation. I was beyond upset. Girls behind the counter were rude and using vulgar language. I am was able to secure a car through Enterprise which I was compensated for the difference.

I started using Budget around 2003, and they were once my go-to rental company. They have steadily declined, since around 2010, to the point where my past rental experience was so bad I will never use them again. I had reserved a car months in advance for a recent trip, and I arrived at the counter around 2:15 for my 2:00 reservation. I was picking up from the “fast” break “key pick up line”, and the line was extremely long, and there were dozens of people standing around on the other side of the booth. I talked to some people in front of me and found out that people were waiting hours for their cars. It was pretty clear they had over-reserved because what they were doing was washing cars as they came in and then delivering the keys to the waiting masses.

I love Budget Rent-A-Car. They are my favorite Rent-A-Car company. Perfect prices, good customer service and my favorite part is that not only do they have good cars, but the cars aren't the base trim. They are always top of the line or near top of the line trims. I have no complaints, maybe just a minor nit-pick and that is they should try to get more cars with sunroofs. Only like the more expensive cars (Volvo XC90, GMC Yukon XL, etc) have sunroofs. But that doesn't matter, I rented 13 cars from them last year (2018) and now in 2019 I'm already by the 3rd one. I love Budget! I hope they never change.

This company is the worst. I was charged forty dollars for returning the car two days later. They said charge for returning. This charge plus the two days. I did not see that charge stressed by any place where I accepted. The truth are some advantage and without any shame. Customer service is the worst. I don’t recommend this company.

I can't speak for all Budgets, but if my experience is any indication (I rented from Budget in Overland Park, KS/Kansas City metro area) and after seeing another few reviews for the same location and being slapped with a bill several weeks after renting, I've come to the conclusion that Budget in Overland Park has a fraud scheme going on. Based on what happened to me, it goes like this: They want you to buy their additional insurance, just like every other rental company pushes. If your own insurance covers rentals and you decline, they'll make you go wayyy out of your way to prove that you are insured, and we're talking calling up your insurance company on the phone in their presence to prove it. (This is what they did to me after seeing my insurance card.) I’ve rented from 6-7 rental car companies and not a single one has ever made me do this.

Having traveled on a long international flight to visit relatives in Ottawa, we arrived to collect a vehicle that we had pre-booked and paid for. We had selected a standard size SUV. When we arrived we were subjected to persistent up-selling in an attempt to get us to upgrade for $20 per day to have a vehicle with snow tyres. We rejected this and also the additional insurance to cover a $500 deductible. Once we were given the keys to the vehicle we loaded up and went on our way. We didn’t notice any damage to the vehicle nor where we invited to inspect the vehicle. Indeed we were made to sign a contract which claimed the vehicle had no damage BEFORE we were shown where the vehicle was parked.

I prepaid my rental car as it was supposed to be economical. When I returned the car I had actually overpaid by 24 dollars. NON REFUNDABLE! I complained and got nothing but "It's just the way it is" response. Essentially, never prepay. You may get burned. I know it wasn't a lot of money, but it's the principle. Don't prepay!!!

My truck broke down, so I reserved a car for 6 days as the dealer said they wouldn’t be able to get it in for 4 days. Well the dealer got my truck fixed the next day, so I returned the car. They charged me for all 6 days saying it was non refundable. I called BS and called them to demand my money back for the days I didn’t use the car. Customer service said “it’s in the fine print that you didn’t read”. I told them I’m calling my credit card company to dispute the charges. Customer service said “if you do that you will be put on a list and never be able to rent from Budget again”. Haha. You can’t make this crap up. I’m going to call my cc company in the am to see what I can do. Business model of “screw your customer in whatever way possible” I guess. I just want to pay for the day I used the car.

I rent a car from Budget car rental for my daughter and when she picked it up the tire was low but they didn’t seem to care. She travels 6 hours and on interstate in Fort Worth Texas the tire blew out from inside tire wall. Stranded with two children and she is pregnant for hours. She waits for roadside assistance and they change the tire. She returned it and they refused to reimburse and on top of that they said she owed 211$ for tire. Unbelievable!!! She had insurance with her insurance company but they are giving a runaround and took money out of her bank account without notifying her. Never use this company!!!

Do not, I repeat do not use Budget Car Rental. For two days now they have been charging my card in excess of $200. When I spoke to the supervisor this morning I did not receive adequate information regarding why they were charging me. They reversed the charges yesterday, but placed another charge for the same amount today. Today I was told they had to send information to my bank to have it removed. I just got off the phone with my bank who then removed the charges without a fax that they were supposedly sent by Budget today. Terrible experience with this company. Will not ever rent from them again. Please do not rent from them as the right hand doesn't seem to know What the left hand is doing.

I rent from Budget about every two weeks or so for work - mostly in Phoenix. This past week I had to go to the counter because there was a mix up with my Fastbreak number. While there, I witnessed, a very rude and arrogant customer complaining about the prices. He proceeded to talk down to the rep as if the rep created the price list. He either wanted something free/price reduction and thought being loud would work - or - he is just a disrespectful person that needs to learn some manners.

At rental desk (Orlando, FL airport) I declined the insurance coverage and was berated by the clerk over and over again. I almost asked for another person but since I had waited over an hour to get a car, I didn’t do so. Upon returning the car I went to the appropriate place and was told to continue driving past it and take a left. This led me and many others to other areas in the garage, getting lost and finally finding someone by luck close to the rental desk in the garage with my car illegally parked at the time. It almost cost me missing my flight and as well others who got lost in the garage and then took inappropriate exits. I will never use Budget again.

From the beginning of this rental it went wrong. Booked a car and said we were doing a road trip in the US for 10 days and was given a car that had tires with tread that was down below the replacement markings and beaten up. The sales staff kept trying to sell an upgrade. The insurances were greater than the car rental. Returned the car with half the full it was given to us at. Was charged the refueling of a whole tank at $9.89 USD per gallon. Total overprice and exploitation. $140 USD to fill a Kia Soul.

I reserved a car online and pre-paid for the rental. Went to pick up the car in Phoenix and they don't have it. We were continuously offered a "free" upgrade for which I didn't want as they were all too small. Finally tired of waiting we took the "free" upgrade so we could get on our way. Returned the car without any issue. Noticed a week later that I had been charged again for the rental and when I called Budget they stated that the initial fee was the estimated cost and that it would be credited back within 7-10 days. After nearly a month I called them again and was told that these were all additional fees that I agreed to, including one for my "free" upgrade and $130 insurance charge for which I know I declined. Budget is unwilling to adjust the billing and in my opinion they are a complete joke. Be warned and don't rent from these guys. This many negative reviews doesn't happen by accident, they're terrible.

Our rental car had a large pre-existing blister on the tire that wasn't visible when we left at night. We dealt w/ Budget for days trying to resolve this, and they ended up towing a car to us instead of just driving out a new tire. Not only were we billed for the tow that we didn't request, but we were billed fees and for the faulty tire itself. It was simply asinine. They were robotic, impersonal, and simply would not accept responsibility for the faulty vehicle they sent out to begin with. The single thing I best remember from my family's trip, unfortunately, was dealing with these idiots. We are disputing the charges with the CC company, filing a complaint with the BBB, and will never use them again. I also will avoid them with all future business travel. BUYER BEWARE!

I flew into Lima and had planned to drive from Lima to Paracas. I went onto Kayak.com to book my rental and received my Kayak.com booking confirmation for a Budget rental car. My flight was delayed 2 hours and subsequently my reservation was canceled and Budget gave up my car rental to someone else. In that exact moment, I navigated to the Budget.com website and saw availability and booked a NEW reservation. YES... I am able to book a new reservation. Yet, no cars are available. How and why do you give the ability to book new reservations when you do NOT have any cars available? I asked the customer service rep why the corporate online website shows availability and also why it gives me the ability to reserve ANOTHER car, when apparently there are no cars available? He said, "the website is wrong." I was stranded at the airport. Budget is the WORST.

I rented a car in Bergamo-Milan Orio airport the 19th of January for 1 day. The price was very competitive. When I went to get the car in the office they ask me to sign some document where there was highlighted the problems the car already have. They gave me the keys and they told me to check if the car was ok. I had to check it by myself. I drived the car to arrive home and I park it in my garage locked. When I went back to the airport to give the car back, I went with 1 person of the staff to check the car and he immediately spotted that the keyhole was been forced, but I didn't notice anything as I open the car with the remote. I told him that it couldn't be happen to me as I kept the car locked in a private garage and I've been answered: 'this was what you say.' So, as I didn't have any insurance they got 220 euros from my card for the damage+fees because my credit card is not Italian. I'm sure that keyhole was already broken.

I'll never rent from Budget again. I booked a 5 day rental for a small Sedan for an estimated $200. When I arrived at the counter to pick up the car, I was told they didn't have the type I had reserved but would upgrade me to a Jeep and waive the additional fee. The agent never went over any itemized costs, just had me sign on the credit card terminal. I was given some paperwork folded up in an envelope, which I now realize I should have gone over right then.

Charged over 360 dollars for a car for 2 days. They told me full coverage insurance would only cost $30, but charged me over $120. Ridiculous small fees thrown in. Go with the other companies. These guys are a joke.

I rented out a car from Budget Wichita and I turned in 30 minutes late and was charged a whole additional day for it and on the top of it they contacted me after I left the car saying that there is a small crack on the windshield which I am not aware of. Pathetic service and the employees are very rude. Would never rent from them again.

This is shocking, I received a mail today with a claim number stating I had to pay 3600$, for some damage which I never did, the budget office at Overland Park where I rented out the car from state that a patch on the bumper had been repainted. ARE YOU SERIOUS? I HAVE INSURANCE, WHY WOULD I REPAINT THE BUMPER? COMMON SENSE. I often rent the same model car Ford Mustang from the same location (119th Budget OP, KANSAS, 66210), the guy at the office says he found a small repainted bubble on the bumper? Seriously? How do you expect me to check the car on a cloudy day impeccably?

Brazenly overcharged! Triple check your bill and NEVER rent long term from this shop. Price quoted by a very friendly agent turned something very different. Based on the 1st page of rental agreement that I signed in June - monthly rate was $750. How exactly did this amount grew into the following charges on my AmEx Credit Card: July 8th - $1713.93 + a separate charge of $65? August 6th $1713.93. August 25th - $1713.93. Last charge August 25th was adjusted by $444.07 now is $1269.86 for the last 16 days of rental!!! I contacted management asking Budget Car & Truck Rental Administration to investigate the issue of overcharging and issue a credit/refund to me as well as an itemized paperwork explaining the charges. NOTHING. I had to apply to BBB of NH to help to resolve this mess.

Be AWARE of this. I would give them 0 stars but that is not an option so 1 star. I reserved a car 4 months before I had to use it to make sure I have a car and 2 months before the due date I see a decent price decrease online on the Budget website. Called customer service to get a price adjustment and the guys seems really nice and agrees to adjust my price. He even states I will get a refund within 7 days... All great so far until I read their email. It said the new price " I owe them $20 for the car". So I call them again thinking it has to be a mistake.

I'm a displaced victim of the CA Camp Fire where my car was destroyed. After waiting over 3wks for a rental to become available I was forced to drive w/ my special needs child and his service dog, in a friend's car (also totaled), almost 100 miles to get the ONLY car available. Unable to travel at more than 40 mph due to the condition of the car I was driving I knew I would arrive approx 5mins after closing. When I called the office to explain the issue I was meet with open hostility who reminded of the business hours and informed me that the computers automatically shut down at 5pm. There was nothing she counseling do for me!

I've been using Budget for last 3 years. Took around 10 rental cars across different cities in USA. Only positive experience. Cars are always new and clean. Fastbreak is very convenient feature. The only negative experience is when I left my headphones in a car and wasn't able to get them back through lost & found.

Reserved and pre-paid for a full size vehicle, and upon pick up was informed that I needed a credit card to rent the vehicle, that my debit card would not suffice. Having no option I downgraded to a small vehicle just to be able to drive home as no one else was available on such short notice. To my surprise, Budget will not refund the difference even though it was three times as much. On top of that I was two hours late turning the car in, and they charged me a whole additional day. No attempt to make things right at all, just all about taking your money.

If I could give this company negative stars, I would. Unacceptable, fraudulent business practices. I rented a car in Nov 2018 from the airport in Knoxville TN for a 2 day span, to be dropped at the airport in Memphis. I agreed to a charge of $190 and thought no more of it. I have always rented from Enterprise through Costco but they had no one way rentals when I needed one.

Rented a car from Budget in Las Vegas Nevada. When we came to pick up our reservation, the rep told us that they did not have any cars and told us come back later. When we returned they gave us Kia Soul. While driving from Las Vegas to Kanab (a 3 hour drive on a highway) the gas tank was empty - as if this was not an economy car. The next morning we were unable to start the car - even after trying to give it a boost. We called Budget and waited all day in the middle of nowhere with minus 25 degrees outside.

Very unsatisfactory service experience at Budget rental airport location today. I did online transaction to reserve vehicle today, everything went through ok online as I received a reservation # to pick the vehicle up. After arriving to the airport to pick the vehicle up, the Budget directed me down to the Avis counter where she informed me that they keep the keys??? But ok. The rep at the Avis counter informed me that she need to see my driver's license and credit card. I handed her both only to be told that they do accept Visa debit. I informed her that the money had already been devoted to my account. She just informed me that she was sorry about that and I would have to call main office to get a refund or be transferred to different location to pick up the vehicle.

I said the price was too expensive and asked if they have any discount or promotions going on and the guy name "Quang" just hanged up on me without saying a word. Terrible customer service and attitude.

Arrived to find 6 employees at stations behind the counter and not a single one took a customer. Two were laughing together. After 7 minutes one helped the person in front of me. After 5 more minutes I asked one woman if she could help me and she very curtly informed me she would let me know when she was ready for me. Finally a man took me. It was awful service. I'll never rent from Budget again.

My original reservation was for El Paso, Texas. The day of the reservation I had to change to Albuquerque location. The dates of the reservation did not change however I was charged double because they said the locations differ. I have called but your customer service several times and unfortunately their customer service department is outsourced and no one listens or cares about my charges. All they say is there’s nothing they can do. I think it’s asinine that I was charged double the price because of a pick up location change. Despite my several calls and complaints nothing has been done and for this reason I will never rent from Budget again.

I had a pleasant experience with Budget in LA. I had reserved a mid size vehicle for travel while in NOLA but when I got to my car it was a Toyota Corolla, way too small for my 6'6" 300+ pound fiance. So I went back and the clerk named Jerrel was very kind and accommodating and fixed me right up with a standard SUV which was much more accommodating. Also, my phone died while travelling and she got a charger and let me charge my phone so I could have some service til I got to my room. I didn't expect that type of help! I will definitely go back!

Picked up car at DTW (Detroit Metro Airport) Sunday 23 December 2018. Drive about 20 miles, stop to buy some things and noticed that the front tires were bald and a large bubble near the rim on front left tire. Call customer service, they say has to be returned to DTW for exchange and they will issue a voucher for a free car the next time I rent. Dangerous situation but got the car back. Talked to a rep and she says, "Stand over there and we will get to you." Nothing after 15 mins, stand back in line behind 20 others. About an hour later finally get another car. Returned car on Dec 27 full of gas. Got home and noticed another charge for $70. Called customer service again, the charge was for gas. Now I have to send them the gas receipt. Got a voucher for $30 off my next rental. No way never again will I deal with Budget.

I rented a car from the Logan International Airport on 12/24/2018 at 5:30 pm and returned it on 12/26/2018 just around 6:30 pm. I called them up to inform them that due to several accidents on the way from New Jersey I will be little late (although I started much earlier but I got delayed). Normally other car rentals let go of little delay but they charged me 122$ for the delay and they wouldn't let go of it. This racist ** guy at the front desk won't even talk to me. Just printed me out an itemized receipt. The customer care was of no help either. Absolutely worst experience. I will never rent a car from them ever.

I reserved a car in Asheville, North Carolina. I had called them the day prior to my arrival to confirm that the SUV that I rented had 4WD. They assured me that it did. When I arrived, I was told that they did not have a 4WD SUV in the “class” of vehicle that I rented, and tried to charge me some exorbitant rate. I stuck to my guns and the gave me an “upgraded” vehicle for the same price. The challenging part of this came when I returned the vehicle. The day I was due to return the vehicle, we had a severe winter storm. All the flights leaving Asheville had been cancelled. When I called, the day before, I was told that the rental car agency never closed and that I needed to return the vehicle that day or I would be charged an additional $330.00. I reserved a second vehicle from them through Hotwire, a 4WD Yukon, for $160.00, the night before, for a one way trip to Tampa, just in case we were snowed in the next day.

Worst experience of our entire life for rental car. This car company deserves negative stars. Miami cruise port shuttle never came, was in line at cruise port for 1.5 hrs. See pictures below with > 100 people waiting for shuttle. We called customer service 2x and was given a phone # for local office to ask ETA for shuttle. We called local office x3 and they never answered. After 2 hours of waiting for shuttle, we decided to Uber to the local office. After arriving with Uber to local office, we had to wait in line for 4 hrs to get a car. They had 2 office staff only, that at times were yelling at customers in Spanish. Called customer service an additional 3x while in line, I was told to go to another downtown location, which if we choose to do so, will be in our own cost for transportation to get there and there is no guarantee the new location will have a car for us.

My rental car with Budget had a bad battery from the factory. In fact, it died TWICE while renting the car for 5 days for a total of 2 hours lost. Not only did they NOT offer to compensate me for my time, but they actually charged me $60 to have their roadside assistance come out and help. When I explained to the technician that came out to help me, he told me it's a known scam they run in order to get as much out of people as possible. They offer their own roadside insurance, but if you decline it then you get stuck paying. But what they DON'T tell you, is that you're covered FOR FREE through the car's manufacturer warranty.

Absolutely do not rent with Budget. I rented a car for a 3-day weekend in Vermont, after prepaying online more than a month in advance. Upon returning the car (a bit before my "due" time), I handed the keys and paperwork to the employee at the Budget desk in the airport (instead of just dropping the items off in an unlocked box, as I had seen other customers returning their respective items). I asked him if I needed to do anything else and he said "no."

I received a confirmation for a rental but when I went to pick up the car (at 11:30 pm) the representative told me the email confirmation was a mistake and the said, "If you want the car, it is now four times as much." I ended up going to a competitor and paying full price. Budget thinks they can throw out bogus quotes and you will get stuck. Sorry never again Budget. Consumers beware.

I had a last minute trip come up during the holidays. I usually use Enterprise, who I've never had an issue with, but I decided to try Budget and save a few dollars (big mistake). My trip ended up being canceled the same HOUR I made and prepaid for the rental from Budget. I did not need to prepay. I only did it to save time at the counter. So I was not getting a better rate for the prepay. Due to Budget's prepayment policy they charged me a $50 cancellation fee even though the reservation was just made and the reservation was not for another 3 days.

On a recent trip to Chicago in early November, I had prepaid a minivan to transport disabled relatives of mine. The initial counter interaction after arriving at the brand new car rental structure was great. Had my reservation in hand, said the vehicle requested was on floor-row-space. I signed away and left. Found 1 blemish larger than 50c piece, notated at gate and left.

I got to the destination country and Budget rental company didn't have the car I reserved. I would not recommend this company to anyone. I was stranded on a country without car. It took me less than 10 minute to call someone else for a car which I spent more money. Stay away from Budget and look for a different rental company.

I was in Dallas Airport at Budget Rent-A-Car desk. The clerk tried to cheat me in several situations. I had a long trip of 20+ hours from China, and I said I just wanted an economy car for 5 days. He continuously provided me luxury SUV car, with all the fancy (and very expensive) not useful optional. When discovered that he gave me a fraud, I came back to him asking for, again, an economy car like Nissan Versa or similar. He cheated again, at the end he gave me a SUV car or similar with very high price. I just gave back my car the day after, then rent another car with a more honest behavior. Unfortunately, the Budget rental car charged me euro 455 on my credit card just only for 1-day rental. This is a fraud. I’ve been travelling around the world for business purposes for 5 years, and this is the worst situation happened to me in renting a car. A brand like “Budget” should be reliable and help the customer instead of exploit and cheat him.

Rented a vehicle from Budget in Birmingham Alabama, December 2018. Booked my reservation through Costco Travel which offered me a second driver for free. Budget Rent-A-Car refused to give the extra free driver, even though the reservation clearly stated it. Overall unacceptable experience. When I contacted Budget Customer Service, they could not help me because the Budget Rent-A-Car in Alabama is privately owned. Avoid Budget!!!

We rented a car in September and was asked if we wished to pay for the tolls upfront, we said no we would pay at the booth. On returning home we received an additional charge for Toll booths. I phone from UK and they said that they could see what had happened but I would have to contact head office for the refund. They gave me a phone number that you could not use from the UK. I then emailed, but no response, I emailed again and finally got a response saying I would need to take it up with the toll booth company - how does that work? Budget made the mistake and left the toll system on and tell me I have to claim the money back from the Toll company. I emailed back again and pointed this all out to them.

First time using Budget, as the pickup location was close to my hotel while in Dallas. I prepaid for the rental so that I wouldn't have to worry about it when picking up the car... or so you would have thought. When I arrived to pick up the car, I was told that I needed the last 4 digits of the credit card I used to make the reservation (which was never mentioned previously). I didn't have the card on me and they would not rent me the car. I called customer service and they refused to provide me the card info, and would not cancel my reservation without basically paying the full cost of the rental.

Absolutely terrible and corrupt business practices. I went to pick up the car and the older lady kept telling me my card was declined even though I had already pre-paid and they had my card on file, she insisted I keep putting it in the chip reader. Turns out she actually doesn't know how to use the machine and kept ripping my card out too early. Then she tells me they require you get gas within 3 miles of the airport- THERE ARE NO GAS STATIONS WITHIN 3 MILES OF THE AIRPORT. I reached out to customer service and they told me that the 3 mile rule was not true. What kind of scam are they running?

I booked a car from Dublin Airport from Budget. They charged me with $5700 as "HOLD" and said they would release when I return the car in its original shape. After my trip, I returned the car. And I was told that the car looks fine but hold will be released in a few business days and not right away. It was not released for a few weeks so I called Budget from my home country (USA). The representative said that she needed my bank's fax number to send a release form. I called my bank who that it was odd. So I called Budget again while my bank was waiting on another line. This time Budget tells me that that office of Budget is "privately" owned so they cannot help me and I will have to just wait or call them myself. Stay away from Budget and be safe!

Budget Rent-A-Car at the Orlando airport overcharged my credit card because they added insurance after I told them I did not need it because we had full coverage. They also did not have record where I said I wanted the insurance. I will be disputing with my bank but when I called the rep to tell them it was a mistake he responded by saying, "Nothing can be done once it’s charged." I had to pay 275.00 for a 4 day rental due to the fact they added the insurance and charged 5.00 for gas after we returned the car with a full tank. They try to overcharge because you are at a popular site like Orlando. Stay away from Budget and tell your friends to do the same. Go to Enterprise - much better customer service and they do not cheat you out of your money. Be aware if you go to Budget.

ON Aug 17, 2018 rented a Skoda Octavia from Riga LATVIJA airport, Budget Rent a Car location until Sept 3, 2018. I travel extensively around the world and rent cars biweekly. Dropped off car before they opened on Sept 3, documents and keys in dropbox like usual. 3 weeks later noticed a $934 charge on my credit card in addition to the $757. We agreed for the rental. Upon contacting them they claim there were no documents and chipped windshield. Since I placed keys and documents in same envelope, I knew it was a lie and I regularly take photos of cars before I drop them off just for this instance. I provided them with photos of the car with perfectly fine windshield and received no response. I lost $934 and all confidence in Budget Rent a Car. Avoid this location and Budget Rent a Car at all costs.

Please use Enterprise or someone else. If you ever have an issue with Budget they will not respond, they will never put you in touch with a manager, they will not explain your bill. They will just raid your bank account. So I had a car towed (my fault) meter expired and I immediately called them, no help, run around and the tow company would not release the car to me because it was a rental so a $160 tow bill turned into a $1,700 rip off and Budget was part of that. That took the money and have not given me a receipt. I've called numerous times, tried to reach management and have had no luck, they put you in elevator music and in circles you go many, many times.

Rented a car FROM BUDGET for 2 weeks - noticed there was a flashing light on dash. The rep. had no idea what it was. Took the car home (6 miles) and looked the warning up - had something to do with tires. Called Budget to return car but they were closed. Took car back the next morning for them to fix warning but they didn't. Returned defective car - BUT BUDGET STILL CHARGED ME FOR THE 2 WEEK RENTAL (OVER $350.00). Stay away from crooks like this!!

Today's date, Nov. 20th, 2018, and on Oct. 21th, 2018 I booked a 15-passenger van, which was scheduled for pick up on Nov. 21st, 2018. So being my normal self, I called this location to ensure everything was good to go for a morning pickup or an early pick up. However, to my surprise the first response I get from the location is, "we are sold out!" I informed them I had booked this rental one month in advance to avoid this specific scenario. It's unbelievable they didn't even try to call me or let me know. I still don't understand how a company can do this to a customer. Of course, their only response was to call customer service. ARE YOU KIDDING ME... I have 14-people at my house waiting for our trip upstate in less than 24-hours... I knew I shouldn't have tried this One-Star location!!! Avoid if you can.

I rented the car through Hotwire for one day @ $49. When I returned it, I was late for about an hour and a half. The rep. went outside to check the car in. She came back and immediately processed everything and printed the receipt without saying a single word to me. I looked at the bill to find out that I was charged about $110 which is more than double the original price! I asked her why?! She referred me to another rep. which she deducted about $17 for whatever she said about the mileages being under 70 miles. Then, I asked why the ~$93?! She said because I was late.

On April 6, 2018 we rented a car from Budget at Will Rogers World Airport. That night there was a hard freeze in Oklahoma and the windshield was covered with a thick layer of ice when we awoke. We defrosted the windshield and drove approximately 20 miles to Norman where our son was living. We parked the car and went inside to visit. After several hours, we went back outside to go to lunch, and noticed a large thin crack in the windshield had appeared while we were visiting with our son. We called Budget and reported the crack. They assured us there would be no charge as the crack was weather related.

Rented a car for 4 days prior to arriving in Savannah at the airport. Approximately 119 x1 week plus taxes etc total 172. Upon arriving at the desk I said to the agent I wanted to keep it likely for the weekly rate which she proceeded to charge me for... Except she did not change the number of days which was from the 29th thru the 2nd. She told me if I was going to keep it for the full week just call that Friday. Meantime the credit card I gave her was breached and my bank closed the card for reasons just stated. Oddly enough the only place the card was used was for the car rental. My husband and I tried all weekend to reach the Budget at Savannah even calling customer service main number who gave us a back number to call and never being able to reach Budget!!! No answer the entire time we tried.

I booked a car by Budget 3 weeks ago, it was my first time booking. I paid 102 for two days, and I checked the same date and the same car in other car rental companies and I found much cheaper for 77.55$. I asked for a refund and they refused as the prepaid reservation you have to pay 50$ cancellation fee. Make sure not book by Budget as there are much cheaper companies to book from.

I rented a car for one month (which was my second month), but after about two weeks I bought a car and wanted to turn the rented car back. The person in the office said she cannot do anything because the booking was online, and gave the number of the customer service, the customer service person said this is the company policy not to do any refund for the online booking, and he cannot do anything to help?! And the reason for that, some people will use the one month discount then turn the car back. I told him clearly, it is ok not to refund the full amount and remove the discount was applied (still can have more than 150 $, as there are almost 2 weeks left), as I don’t need the car anymore and any refund would be good for me! But still not doing any help.

We booked with this company 1 month ago. We had to wait 1h before receiving our car. We get an economic despite we booked and paid a compact. We had to try 2 cars before being able to put our bags in it. They said we had to accept the economic or the booking would be cancelled. We left the car back 2 weeks later. It was clean and the agent told us everything was alright...but we just received a letter saying the car was full of sand and we owe $150. They made a mistake in the return date so it might even be another car of another booker.

My girlfriend hit some luggage on the freeway that ended up belonging to a renter from Budget. It took them over two weeks to even get them to do anything, and the person who represents Budget was so rude and condescending. In the end, Budget is refusing to take responsibility for the damages, so now we have to take them to court to get the damages repaired. I hope someone from Budget reads this and corrects Michelle's attitude. I have never been talked to so rudely by a so called professional, and my overall take away from having to deal with this company is that I will NEVER be a customer of theirs. I couldn't even get anyone on the phone to handle this and it took them two weeks to even respond to a voicemail, just to tell me to kick rocks.

I rented a vehicle from a Budget in Houston, Texas for a work meeting that I had to attend three hours away. I had rented before from the location twice and had one negative experience prior- but decided to give them another chance, as we all have “bad days” and they were the most affordable. When I picked up the car, it was not cleaned- appeared to have just come from a road trip and had a bad smell. I notified the rep and he advised that he would make a note so that I wouldn’t be charged for any smell damages to the car as he had noticed them too. I wasn’t exactly pleased but I had the car for one day so wasn’t trying to be very picky. I immediately drove the car home and parked it.

THEY SHOULD HAVE A ZERO STAR OPTION. I AM SURE I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO AGREES. I went to Fresno to rent a car to SFO in June. They gave me a Mitsubishi Lancer. I was on my way to SFO when the tire blew out on the 120 in Manteca. I called roadside assistance. They told me it would take them 1 hour to get someone to swap out the tires then I'd have to drive back to Modesto to get a different car. So I told them I can swap out the tire myself then go to Modesto Budget. I got to Modesto Budget. They inspected the car, gas, and everything. They cleared me, had me write an incident report, and gave me a Kia Soul. The rest of the trip went smoothly to SFO.

I have rented a car from Albany NY to JFK Airport and was not told that they will be charging me "one way fee" of $200.00. Rent agreement was for $140, but when I dropped off the vehicle they charged me extra $200 for dropping off. I called customer service and they basically told me that I have signed the agreement and that next time I should read before I sign. Thanks for much Budget. I will never rent a car from you!

This morning I reserved the rental from Budget Rent-A-Car for this weekend and within 30 min I have to cancel my reservation because of the sudden change in my travel plans. I did not modify the reservation because my new dates are unknown, and I know I won’t know my new dates before this weekend (when I am supposed to get my rental).

Worst car rental company EVER. Somehow their incompetent attendant who checked me in at the Phoenix airport failed to mark the car as returned, and I was told by their "customer service" that it showed that the car was returned two days later on October 12th. This is impossible as I was on the 6 AM flight out of PHX that day.

I will never rent a car from Budget again, They did not honor my reservation. I recently travel to Quito, Ecuador and I made a reservation with Budget. I included a Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI), and at the counter in Quito, that insurance appeared as medical insurance (which I asked to be removed). Although I present my reservation. The employee denied that I had included an SLI and tried to sell me one. I thought "I" made a mistake and accepted to buy it. I mentioned him "few times" that I needed only the third party protection (liability o SLI) because my American Express covers the rental car in case of a collision (LDW).

My sisters and I decided to rent a van we could all ride together to surprise our sister for her birthday. I have never rented a car before so all new to me. I picked van did my walk around like the guys told me to. Left in rain and picked my sisters and nieces up got on the road has we had 11/12 hours to drive. We want to have a day just spend with her. we drove in rain and fog. About 4:30 in morning I hit three raccoons instead of going in ditch. Keep in mind we are 700 from home. We stop to eat them check the damage which we then find the three tires are bald and the driver's back tire had wire showing 90% around the outside. We realize we were lucky we didn’t blow any tires.

Budget charged my credit card for a parking ticket associated with the rental car I had even though I have never been in the state. All attempts to get the charge reversed have failed. It is impossible to contact anyone with any authority. This company is an expert at giving the runaround. I provided copies of credit card statements and toll charges with the vehicle's license plates demonstrating that I was in California on the date of the ticket, but they still charged my credit card. I called and emailed about 10 different departments and was given different information each time. Even though supervisors indicated they would research and call me back, no return phone calls were ever received. DON'T RENT FROM Budget unless you enjoy frustration and poor customer service.

No one told me to call the local number.

I rented a car at Pensacola Florida airport 9/30/18 and had prepaid the full amount. When I picked up the I was told there would be an additional $100.00 hold which would be refunded/released when I return the car on 10/6/18. I looked at my account on 9/30/18 and they had indeed debited my account $100.00. Today is 10/12/18 and I still don't have my $100.00 back. I called two days ago and they said they would expedite the payment. I called again today and they said they never "took" $100.0 that they just put a hold. He offered to start an investigation but I have to give my bank statement to prove they actually took the $100.00. DON'T EVER RENT FROM THIS COMPANY. THEY WILL RIP YOU OFF!!!

If I can rate this location 0 then I would. Mez was nice but wasn't able to help. Told us to call their national line where they can easily make changes but we were sent back and forth by them. The girl that helped us doesn't seem to know anything. Made us pay for the winter tires which was an all season tires with a M+S symbol. Go to other rental places they might be more pricey but worth all the trouble that I have experienced. We had a much better experience with Avis across the street, only tried them cause it was cheaper but not worth it AT ALL. Will not come back especially not this location.

I rented a car in Las Vegas for 2 days, I paid daily insurance. The battery broke down on the second day. After 5 times car stopped on the road, I called company and asked to replace it. They did. When I gave new car back I went out with a check for $ 147, the same price as at the beginning, at home I found out that $ 543 was removed from my credit card. After 3 weeks of calls and emails with the “Budget” company, they told me that the money was withdrawn for a tow truck, as they did not find a breakdown. How can I prove now that the car was broken? Crappy company - what else to say. Make sure you do not use their service.

I was completely robbed by these crooks. Picked up a car at Orlando Intl. but had to wait in line for over an hour to reach the counter. These guys were the only ones with a line a mile long. Upon looking at the charges it amounted to almost $200 to rent a car to drive to Tampa. I am underage and was expecting the $30 surcharge and also prepaid for gas. However, quoting me forty dollars when booking then asking for two hundred dollars is ridiculous. Not to mention the associate I had to deal with was completely oblivious to how unhappy and fed up I and every single person on line was. I would have rather dealt with a computer. I am never using Budget ever again.

There should be a "0 star" category. This company charged an additional $30 after the total car rental payment had been submitted. In addition, they placed a $100 charge as a hold for incidentals!! We are senior citizens and were treated as second class citizens by the customer service lady at the Fort Lauderdale airport.

I've used several rental car companies may times before, so I am aware of the "extras" that can quickly add up. However, our experience with Budget Rent-A-Car at the Dublin Ireland Airport was "exceptional." I reserved a car using Budget online and received a quote of 292.85 euro. When we arrived at the counter we were presented with a contract that totaled 715.60 euro. Shocked at our new price, we asked the gentleman, James, behind the counter why our quote was so much less. He said he wasn't quite sure, but that if we wanted our car we would have to pay the 715 euro. He circled a few 800 numbers on the contract and suggested we call them for more information. We were told we could dispute the charges later if we wanted, but that the price was the price. As our entire trip relied on this car, we reluctantly paid the 715 euro.

I was told by customer service when placing a reservation that it was easier to pre-pay. I did and my money was taken immediately only to be told at the rental location that I was unable to get the vehicle because I didn't pass a credit check. A credit check was never mentioned previously. My money was only partially refunded and I have been told that it will take an additional 5-7 business days although it has already been a week. Customer service is incompetent and rude. It also took forever to speak to someone and nothing was resolved. Do not do business with them! I will NEVER refer anyone to them or speak positively about this company.

I have worked very hard to eliminate all debt and thus obtaining a zero credit score. When I was over $200K in consumer debt, I could rent from them. Now, they won't allow it. They took the money online just fine to reserve the vehicle, but then they do a credit check when you get there. A CREDIT CHECK AFTER YOU PAID FOR THE ENTIRE RENTAL! Of course I am not "credit worthy" because I am not trying to borrow money. I paid for it in full ahead of time. That was the whole point. Their competition has logical hoops (prove of employment and residency). I'm fine with that, but a credit check when I'm not using a credit device? Asinine!

Budget never filed my insurance claim and charged me almost $700 for a windshield. They didn’t not reverse the charges and told me it takes 3-5 days to receive a itemized receipt to submit to my insurance company. This should have been done on their behalf, all insurance information was given on the day of return. They did not contact me regarding making a withdrawal and took my personal money. Customer service is incompetent and rude. It also took forever to speak to someone and nothing was resolved. Do not do business with them!

My experience was horrible. My sister, her bestfriend and I booked a car online because their website specifically stated they accepted DEBIT cards AND credit cards. I needed a car due to my sister graduating in Florida Sept 22 2018. We get there, she takes my debit card & then says she can't use it because it's obviously not a cc so at that moment I was CONFUSED! I told her your website says u take debit & credit cards and she just looked at me then said, "yeah, if you can pass the credit check." So I was relieved and kindly gave her my ID & debit card again. I watched her SCAN MY DEBIT CARD, NOT MY ID, DIDN'T GIVE HER THE LAST 4 OF MY SOCIAL OR ANY INFORMATION, (ALSO SHE DIDN'T automatically pull it from anywhere because I didn't have to supply my social for booking the car) so she scan my debit card and handed it right back to me saying I didn't pass the credit check.

I rented a car in St. Petersburg FL the afternoon of August 30, 2018. I returned the car to the Clearwater International Airport at 6 am September 1, 2018. I looked at my bank account on September 25th only to find they took out $250! I called the St. Pete office where I rented it and the man said he couldn’t even find me in his system! I called back and spoke with someone else a few minutes later that found my name/confirmation number and he said they charged me for “dirt”. When I dropped it off at Clearwater nobody was working so the men in charge of all rentals told me to park the car and drop off the keys. I did. I received NO call or nothing in writing explaining why they were taking the money from me. The customer service manager is looking into it and needs proof from them to why they took out my money. I’m sure they have rented that car a few times since I dropped it off Sept 1st. I have filed fraud charges on that company. Renters beware!

I made an online reservation for a week rental two weeks before p/u. Then I got a confirmation # the day before reminding me that my car was reserved for me the next day. When I arrived they told me they didn't have any cars. What a big waste of time they are...

I rented a car Sept 10th. Returned it sept 15th. They were suppose to refund my deposit of $100.00. It's been 15 days and 3 case number, 5 phone calls and still don't have my money. This company is a thief. People never rent from them. I will be posting and calling Better Business Bureau. I will not stop contacting everyone to make complaints until I get my money. Mad customer.

Horrible customer service, I was on the phone today trying to resolve an issue, and from 2 pm to 5 pm, I was disconnected 5 times in the first hour, then from 3 to 5 pm, every single customer service rep I had was rushed, talking too fast to understand, either disconnected me or transferred me to another department or back to the original department that had transferred me to them, and in between, I was disconnected another 3 times.

I was supposed to pick up a rental car on 9/22/18 at 3pm from San Luis Obispo Regional Airport. The personnel at the counter assigned me a car Nissan Versa and charged me $55.27 for 1 day rental and $200 holding amount to my Visa credit card. Then, she asked me to sign a Rental Agreement which I did. Instead of someone taking me to the car, she just gave me the keys to the car and asked me to go on my own to an unsecured parking lot (opened, no fence) with no attendant. Usually, I understand there would be someone checking the car with me for any dents or damages prior to driving off the car. In this case, no one was accompanying me.

I rented a car in April and months later in August a $250 charge popped up on my credit card. When I called Budget to see what the charge was for they said it was a cleaning charge but couldn't give me any other information. The man on the phone was very rude and not helpful at all. I asked for pictures and explanation on what I did in 2 days that required so much cleaning that costed $250. I wanted proof and they couldn't give me any other explanation except for that I signed the contract and told me that I should have vacuumed and cleaned the car before returning it! So, make sure you get your rental detailed before returning it to them. I will NEVER do business with or refer Budget to anyone ever!

I rented a Tahoe in Bellevue Wa drove the vehicle to Phoenix Az. Vacuumed the vehicle out and removed trash etc... Before returning vehicle to Budget. August 5, 2018. Then September 19, 2018 (50 days later) I happened to notice a credit card charge for $75 from Budget Rental Car. When I called to find out what the charge was for I was told mud on the floor. I am the type of person who believes in leaving things better than I get them and take pride in being clean. I usually do business with Enterprise car rental. But this time I was enticed by a rate that was slightly less than Enterprise. I will never do business with Budget again. 1) $75 cleaning fee unjustified. 2) Charge to credit card with no notice. 3) Customer service was horrible at pickup and drop off.

So I booked my car through the website airportrentals.com. For some reason this website does not include the age fees into the price they give you, so my total at booking was $255 for 4 days. When I came for a pick up my total was $366 which is a $100 dollar difference, and I asked why and the lady at the counter told me because of the BOND. I told her I called your company a few days ago and asked about it, she told me there is no bond for a credit card. And then she realised that was an age fee. I was shocked, because I had $345 on my credit, and I couldn’t take the car. I was not prepared for that, and the website gave me the wrong total. I was in the middle of nowhere without an opportunity to rent a car.

Do not rent from this company. The website rates go up as soon as you confirm the reservation. Then when you show up the rates go up again 2 1/2 times the ORIGINAL rate for deposit purposes. Then you may not get the car you reserved like we did. We booked it 2 months in advance and still did not get what we reserved. How much more notice do they need?

Beware!! If dropping off your car in Chicago on the weekend they close their inner city drop offs at noon (no one mentioned this when we picked the car up). Your choice is to bring it back Monday morning and pay over $200 extra. When we called to find an alternate drop off they twice sent us to a non existent location. Worst car rental experience ever! Guess that’s why they’re call Budget???

Worst car rental experience EVER at this particular Budget office. Back to Enterprise we go. The car I was renting came in at 11:50am and the office closed at 12 noon. The Budget/Avis employees at this location were extremely lazy and did not clean the car AT ALL because they wanted to go home for the day. The car smells horribly, and the smell transfers to our clothing every time we use the car. The smell is either cow or horse poop. Not kidding here. We are guessing it was used on or near a farm? We called to secure a replacement vehicle, the 800 number is not helpful, nor are the lazy employees at Budget in Englewood.

I had to rent a car last minute at LAX. I was in a hurry, as I had to get to a meeting two hours away. The desk employee at the front told me the price I would be paying. Keep in mind this is on a Sunday and it's after Labor Day weekend. I also heard others complaining of the same thing. Well, I asked the employee what price I would be paying and he said $567. I checked my bank account this morning and they removed $631. I know it doesn't sound like a large difference, but it's more than what I was quoted. Now, when I return the vehicle I have to take this up with someone and I don't really have the time. Not only does Budget take advantage of you when it's last minute, but then they add on additional expenses without your consent. PLEASE, rent from another car rental company! There are a several out there that will take better care of their customers.

They lost cars in a flood apparently and they tried to downgrade us without telling us - and without taking money off. We specifically paid more money for a larger vehicle WEEKS in advance. We would have been totally understanding if they had called to explain ahead of time that they had problems with vehicles due to the recent floods. Nobody ever called or explained anything and just expected us to downgrade for the same price. We complained and got what we paid for/reserved but we had to wait an hour for them to find the vehicle. The employee literally wandered around the parking lot mindlessly for an hour.

The lady at the desk that work for Budget at 6721 E independence she is rude to customers and she is not to be trusted. When we rented a car last Saturday she was very rude to us and unprofessional. She was pushing us around like we work for her. She is not to trusted. I told her after she gave us the car that she did not check how much gas in the car. I told her it only had 3/8 in the tank so she said bring the car to her from the parking because she did not want to walk. After that she got in the car she recorded the fuel but she refused to tell me how much she recorded. I kept asking her to show me. I felt that she was very unprofessional. Please see that lady to be replaced by a better person. And on the day of the return she is closed and the website said it’s open. She did not leave any info on where to drop the car prior to our arrival.

When picking up the car at the Fort Lauderdale airport, the agent asked if wanted the insurance, we declined. It wasn't until we found the receipt days later that we realized the insurance they charged us incorrectly almost tripled the cost of the vehicle (from $138 to $373)!!! When I called customer support to report the problem and ask for a refund, they said there is nothing they can do because we signed the contract. Seriously? As if anyone actually READS the contract!?! I trusted that what we told her was what was being charged. Won't make that mistake again. And won't be renting from Budget again...

I rented and returned a vehicle to the Helena MT location of Budget. Realized when I got home that I had left my camera flash in console or on seat of the vehicle while removing all my luggage to leave. I called the office immediately and spoke to the desk attendant I checked in with (they have no lot attendant). He said he would go look for the flash and call me right back. I waited a day and then called back several more times over the next two days and spoke to two other agents who asked for all the same info about the rental etc. I finally called and connected to the original desk attendant who said he looked in the vehicle and did not see the item. He did not say when he looked. It was definitely left in there because I pulled it out of the vehicle console when gathering my bags to leave and would have put it in my carry on because of the battery.

My drop-off was today for 2pm in Raleigh by Triangle Town Center Mall. There is a hurricane coming but not wanting to get charged for not fulfilling my obligation in my paperwork, I drove 45 mins from Henderson with the dad following me in the pouring rain and wind to drop it off. It was open online and some places are still open today so I went. There is no drop off box. I run in the rain to the doors because all the lights are on. The doors are locked. I leave the car (as it states in my paperwork, with a full tank) and the keys tucked away inside (as some locations allow you to do so and I know that because I drive their rentals very frequently and have been loyal to this company).

Waited 2.5 hours for a car in Boston on August 11, which had only a quarter tank despite the rental agreement stating it was full. Tires were bald and driver's seat was not adjustable so the driver had to recline to drive. Traded the car in Portland, Maine, on August 18 and was stopped by a policeman in New Hampshire who said the car's registration had been suspended because of an unpaid toll in Maine (which happened before we rented it) and it was not legal to drive.

I rented a car in Fort Myers Florida which was prepaid for at $277.83 on August 5, 2018 to be returned on August 11, 2018. The salesman at the counter offered me an upgrade. I asked, "How much?" He said $35.00. I said, "A day?" "Yep," he said. He even wrote down on a little piece of paper the number $35.00. Being late at night and tired from flying I signed the papers and little do I know I initialed $35.00 per day upgrade which now brought my car cost to $525.16. It was like buying a house with all the papers to sign so I stopped reading them, dumb on my part but I trusted him. What a mistake.

I was charged for gas for the car that I rented even though the car was returned with a full tank! The charge that they had on my credit card was for more than the rental itself. I didn't even get an email that I requested upon the return of the car for the final cost instead I seen the outrageous charge on my credit card. In order to get the charge taken off I had to send them a receipt of the gas that was put in just minutes before the return of the car. Is this how they screw people these days?!? If I hadn't checked my credit card charges which I am sure most people don't they would have made a killing off of my car rental.

For the second summer in a row I rented a car at Budget's Hanover MA store for my 6 week summer stay in Massachusetts and for the second time I was very impressed by the level of customer service I received from Joseph **, Agency Operator. This little store is extremely busy but managed to deal with me and the other customers with efficiency and respect. They gave me an upgrade at no extra cost and when I decided to stay an additional week, Joseph extended my rental at a very competitive price. The staff at this location made me feel they appreciated my business and Budget offered me excellent value.

Despite taking care when I booked the confirmation had the wrong collection time on it. I e-mailed and got no reply. The call took over half an hour for a 20 second conversation telling me it was my problem. They seemed to get perverse pleasure by fobbing me off telling me to call a European office who just bounced me back. They kept the deposit for weeks too.

Highway Robbery at O'Hare - Reserved a car using American Airline Miles for a nine day visit. Got there at 1 a.m. after 1 seven hour storm delay in Atlanta. 40 people in line and one guy working. (I had been up for 25 hours at this point, coming from Europe.) Couldn't make my voucher work, promised it would be fixed by time I returned and put his phone number on the contract. Of course it wasn't fixed when I returned, manager took contract from me, did some stuff on a computer. And said it was fixed. Gave me a barely readable receipt. I had to catch my flight. Read paper when I got home, she changed NOTHING.

Car seats were dirty and stained. No other car in its class available. An upgrade vehicle smelled like smoke, combined with the deodorizer placed in it. A premium was not clean either. Rude manager!!!

Waited 45 minutes to get a car at Budget in Jacksonville. Took car out of garage and noticed that the gas gauge was 3/4 full. Took picture of odometer and gas gauge at the time I noticed the problem. Returned car and had to wait 15 minutes to check the car in. Figured for the hour I wasted I would submit a claim for the gas disparity. Budget saw no reason to reimburse me for the gas as their records indicated it was full. I was really going to go through all this trouble to get $14? Never experienced anything like this before; complete indifference about the inordinate wait and fuel issue. There are many other rent-a-car counters at JAX. Pick one, anyone; you'll be much better off.

Rented a car in West Yellowstone and asked if I could return it to Bozeman and would there be a charge. I was told there be no charge by three different agents only to have my card charged for $275 one way rental. Called customer service and it was a valid charge - of course it was. Should have read the reviews first - walk before you rent from these people.

August 1, 2018 picked up car at the rental desk at Frankfurt International Airport. They did not have the C class Mercedes I had booked, only an E Class - of course for more money. I agreed because the trip was with my 14 year old nephew (a car fanatic) and wanted something safe on the Autobahn. The process of standing in line took 45 minutes. To get the car itself took close to another 30 minutes. The car was located in the Budget/Avis area among many other black cars in the dark garage. It was packed in with other vehicles where you could only open the driver door, and was pulled in right up against the wall. It is not possible to walk around the car (or any of the cars for that matter) to check for damages. It was difficult to back the car out of the space due to the overcrowded pick up area - less than 20 feet between rows of sedans - and required two people to move the car out of the space.

I reserved a Crew Cab XLT Ford or similar pick-up truck. I arrived at Beaverton Oregon, location 10385 SW Canyon Rd, and saw a Ford XLT Crew Cab 4x4 on the lot. I was 4th in line, and the couple in front of me had the choice between a Chevy double cab pick-up, or the Ford F-150 XLT Crew Cab. The male employee gave the couple a choice between the two, and they chose the Ford F-150. I assumed they had another crew cab onsite, but wrong. First mistake I made was ordering online with Budget, You just don’t know what you’re going to get.

The CSR at the 800 number DO NOT know what they are doing. On two separate occasions I called and my mother called to verify no credit check was needed with a debit card as long as proof of flight was shown. BOTH reps advised NO CREDIT CHECK IS DONE! After a hectic flight with a sick 9 year old, a shuttle ride to the rental at Fort Lauderdale airport which is crazy, and a 30 minute wait in line for the car we were told... "I'M SORRY YOU DIDN'T PASS THE CREDIT CHECK," AFTER I ALREADY PAID! When the manager came over to address the situation he said the CSR inform people of the wrong information all the time but there was nothing he could do.

I reserved a car through my American Airlines credit card because it looked like a good deal. I arrived at the rental area on August 18 after a three hour flight and was told that since I was 9 minutes early I would have to pay a different rate (higher by about $100). I disagreed with that so the representative told me I would have to go to a different booth to talk to the supervisor on duty. So I went there and stood in line for about an hour. The supervisor told me that it was changed back to the original rate and gave me a car to drive. We returned the car to the airport with a full tank of gas and flew back home. I was looking at my credit card statement and saw that Budget was charging me an extra $50 than the amount I thought I was going to be charged.

We rented 2 cars from Istanbul Airport (IST) in the 3rd week of August. We picked up 2 SUVs and one of them was a Peugeot 3008. We had just started our for about 80 kms and the car started giving us signals of overheating. We were stuck in the middle of the highway near Bursa for about 4 hours. The reason - Budget team did not service the car properly and did not fill in "Ad-Blue". The team did not even care to inform us that we need to fill this - although I am sure this should be part of their car service before it has been given to a customer.

Budget came through with a credit of $44.90 after I wrote to their customer care. Budget made good on this transaction, but I shouldn't have had to go through this many channels to correct a simple mistake I made. Their telephone service staff needs more latitude in dealing with customers.

We rented a car in Ft Lauderdale Florida from Budget after comparative shopping. One of us is an attorney and the other a college professor so we pay attention to what we are told and read the contract. When our credit card bill came we discovered hidden fees that increased our bill by 30%!! NOT the bargain they publish. Go elsewhere. To Budget- buyers want to know what they are getting. Fool us once and never see us again. Be transparent with us and we'll come back as loyal customers.

I prepaid for a car online with my Visa check card and it went through fine. When I went to pick up the car, they said that they had to put a $100 hold on my card, but could not take the card that I used for the reservation because it was a check card. Since I had no other card, I asked for a refund, but they withheld a $150 fee. I paid $150 for literally nothing! I never received a car. How is that anything else or other than theft?

I booked a rental car online for JFK pickup with Budget and I was charged the whole amount on my debit card. On reaching JFK after traveling whole night, I was shocked to see about 100 people in line at their office. There was a also a notice about using debit card - they needed proof of return journey. When my turn came the rep told me about, checking my credit history - since I didn’t own a credit card. I was not told this when I reserved the car. After standing for 2 hrs I was refused a car. There were many others who were refused because of the same reason. I just went next door and rented a car from National - it took me 10 Minutes to rent the car - the rate was high because I didn’t have advance reservation. But their customer service was excellent - they also gave me an upgrade to an SUV at no extra cost. Budget has lost a client for life. National/Alamo has gained one.

BUDGET (Fraud) CAR RENTAL: OMG what can I say. This is really annoying and horrible rental car services. Their customer representative are rude and don't have manner to speak with their customers. They don't have a proper internal communication for proper management and services to their customers. They charged me twice without my concern and they literally stole my money. While calling them stupid customer rep hanging on my face. Moreover, I am budget fast-break customers so they have my credit cards details and they literally charged me for not renting a vehicle. They are acting like a thief and that is not cool as a customer with my money. I think I should pull out my card information from stupid and fraud Budget Rent-A-Car.

They have competitive pricing, and the process is simple and clear to reserve online. I kept getting an error that my reservation was not processed and that my credit card number was invalid. Double checked my bank and there were no holds. Attempted 4 times to reserve and received the same error. Ended up speaking with a representative online who was able to process the reservation for my with the online price, but 'pay at counter'. I received confirmation, but noticed I had a second confirmation for one of my attempts online.

I did a prepaid in Budget's website mind you I’ve been renting from these guys forever. First time I did the whole prepaid thing. Got them to get the car. The RUDE budget rep advise me it was going to be 100 additional to what I paid. I asked when did this start. She advised me smartly for as long as she has been working there. Never paid an additional deposit because I always pay at the counter. Called to get an explanation. Everybody rude. All my thousands of dollars I’ve given Budget I WILL NEVER AGAIN!!!! Lost a wonderful customer today.

This is the worst rental car place at this airport. I rented from 7/10/2018 through 8/24/2018. To check out my vehicle that I had reservation for it took 45 minutes. The people at the counter are so unorganized, I am a Fastbreak customer, it was not available either time I went to this location. I returned the car and was not able to get my receipt at that time, I was promised an email receipt. Here it is 5 days later, 2 calls to their customer service, I still do not have my receipt to close my account. The customer service are of no assistance, no one can make any decisions or take any action, and these are supervisors. This is the worst customer service I have experienced from any company. I would not recommend Budget to anyone, and I had used them many times before.

Horrible customer service. I reserved a Jeep 5 weeks in advance at ORF international. On the reservation it said 2 door or 4 door. I needed the 4 door, so a couple business days after booking online I called the direct number to the counter to request the 4 door. But it transferred me to the Budget national phone line. I went ahead and made my request and they sent me an email to note my request. While I was on the phone with customer service she suggested I call the pickup counter directly to confirm they got my request. So I had her confirm the phone number. Gave them a couple more business days and tried again. And got transferred again. I go through all the bs again to make my request for the 4 door Jeep. Then he tells me he can see where I made the request before but would do it again. Had no answer about why you can't get through to the counter.

We prepaid for our vehicle and despite that, a car in the class we requested was not available. I had to suggest that the guy call around to find the car in our class because instead he wanted to give us something MUCH larger (we paid for an SUV and he wanted to give us a Ford F150 truck or a small car). We were traveling with luggage and a child in a booster seat so neither were appropriate. We eventually got an SUV brought from another location but it delayed us considerably. When we returned the vehicle, it cost us much less than the prepaid amount but they don't return that to you which I think is horrible. It's made all the worse knowing I prepaid to save the hassle. We were travelling from Seattle, WA to San Francisco, CA.

We rented a car in Klamath Falls Oregon and it had scratches on it. The girl would not come out and document it. She refused then 2 months after we get a bill for over $300.00 for damages. This is terrible when the agency refuses to document that we did not make these scratches. They were on the car before we got it.

Dear Avis-Budget car rental, you are negligent and abuse of your powers. You are charging me for damages I was not responsible for on your car. You sent me a moot document with no proof of what I am being charged for. When I contacted you to let you know no damages whatsoever occurred during my rental period, indicating that I am filing a complaint at the Better Business Bureau and specifically put in writing that I do not authorize you to charge my card, you went ahead and did just that in less than 24 hours. Who gives you the right to do that? This is abuse, I didn't damage your car. I want my $200 back because I never caused any damage.

They may cheat you with car rental rewards. Please be sure to add the reservation in your account (Fastbreak) before returning the vehicle otherwise the rewards for your reservation will not be added. I was told that points can be added after reservation is over by one of the rental location associates but when I tried to do the same I was not able to. Customer support said this was my mistake and she didn't help me in adding those rewards for that one week of reservation. I am not sure what Budget is gaining from not adding these points later? I would request budget to add points for the expensive reservation I had with them and also make it possible to add rewards for past rental for other customers.

Dear Budget Rent a Car, Please allow me to share my experience with Budget's LAX location regarding my rental from August 09-12, confirmation number for a full size car. I booked this reservation through Costco, where I generally choose Enterprise because of their excellent customer service, but decided to try Budget Rent a Car. I flew in from Sarasota, FL for my mother’s funeral in Riverside, CA, set for Saturday. I had been working a full shift all the way up to leaving that Thursday morning at 3 am to fly to Los Angeles. The flight was very smooth and on time. I had set my reservation for 10 am just in case I was running late from the airport. The drive of the Budget shuttle was outstanding in her customer service skills and helpfulness. That part of the experience was outstanding.

Last May I went to Italy. I was heading South from Rome, so I rented a car from Avis-Budget at Fiumicino, here in the US, and prepaid the rental, noting a time I thought was close to the time I could be at the rental car desk in the airport. Well, my flight, on United Airlines, was late arriving in Rome, and then our luggage was delayed in arriving. By the time I made it through customs and to the Avis-Budget rental office at Fiumicino, I was 1 hour and 15 minutes later than I had noted on my original reservation. Because I was late, my prepaid reservation was canceled, and Avis-Budget had taken my money, and I had nothing to show for it.

The Columbus airport operation seemed in disarray when I tried to pick up my rental from the Fast Break counter. The agent was running around trying to find cars for the 10 or so people in line at this supposed premier customer service desk where my car pick-up experience was to be quick and convenient. After about 30 minutes in line, I finally got to the window of the booth and was told that the category of vehicle I had reserved was unavailable and I would have to instead drive a gas-sucking V8 Nissan Titan pickup. Not a great experience at all, Budget!

At the counter, a girl ask me if I mind taking a Jeep instead of intermediate 2/4 door car that I had original booked because no vehicle is available. So I ask her if there's a upgrade charge and she actually respond "NO". But in the contract she type in the extra charge for $75 which I didn't see and I signed it. But what is worst is that they now charging me additional $241.00 for a chip on the windshield which it wasn't there when I return. Even the lady who checked the vehicle in say everything was good. This is the first time I rent from Budget and will be the last.

I made a reservation for a rental car. When I got to the counter, they told me they had no vehicles for me except a specialty vehicle which was a $30/day upgrade. Be careful, they do not stand behind their reservations and they do not try to accommodate you in the scenario I was in. The employee at the counter told me that if I didn't want to pay for the upgrade, I would need to go to a different rental car company. I was at an airport, so there were a bunch together. I went to Hertz and they also did not have a full size rental car, but gave me a free upgrade to a small SUV. Regardless, since Budget put in a bad spot and I was at the counter, of course I got the highest rate which was $50 higher than the cost for my reservation that I had with Budget. I called Budget customer service and they had no solution to help me. Very, very unprofessional way to conduct business.

If you ever want to rent a car, stay away from Budget. I made a reservation with the Budget Car Rental office in Ocala Florida 1 WEEK ago, I went to pick up car today as reserved. The agent informed me that there were NO CARS available. This is a car rental business and they have no cars for people who reserved one? The agent told me he was expecting returns some time today and he would call me, SOME TIME TODAY, (10 hours later and still no call)... forget about being on a schedule. I made my reservation on Expedia and the agent said he couldn't call me because Expedia deletes phone numbers. I tried calling them a couple days before reservation date to confirm, but got a recording that "All agents busy helping other customers" and was put on hold for 30 minutes before I hung up.

Ok we were lied to. He said to, "Get gas from us," and we believed him. On top of the prepaid we were charged 193 so the basic car was 450 for 4 days. The prepaid is bull. They say it's coverage. Never again. Budget/Avis is terrible crooks.

I rented a car from Budget Rent-A-Car on Poydras in New Orleans Louisiana taking a trip to Columbus Ohio. They knew I had a 14hr drive. I was going home for good news and bad news. Nonetheless I'm on my way. I'm driving. I get to Mississippi. I hear a noise that sounds like a seat belt noise but I have my seat belt on so I noticed that a few lights was on when I looked at the dashboard. So I'm still driving though I call my dad. I tell him its lights on the dashboard keep flashing and something is making a seat belt noise. He say pull over. Read him what the dashboard say. I read it and took pictures as well. The lights was PSI driver's side. Read a number and so did the passenger side. So my dad said I need air so I went got air nearest place. Next the light comes on saying change oil soon.

Customer service agent said to get one in case of someone running a shopping cart and causing a dent. He said: "Be very very careful." No one inspected the car with us upon leaving their parking lot, no papers signed, no walk around the vehicle to identify any dents and believe me there were many. We are extremely disappointed. So much for renting a luxury vehicle. Shame!!!

I got charged some made up 21.5% "Sales Tax" in Arkansas where the real tax is actually 10 or 11%. The pre-booked car wasn't ready and got charged a hidden $16 fee when handing the car back because they didn't ask to see my fuel receipt despite returning it full. What looked like a $60 car hire became $110 including their made up taxes. Other, better car hire companies are available.

I rented two vehicles from Budget for an extended family trip in Colorado. I wish I hadn't. First, the lines at Budget's Denver airport offices were long -- I waited 1.5 hours in line before getting my cars. Then, when I finally got to the Budget employee, it became clear that my initial reservation with Budget bore little resemblance to the deal I would be given. Budget rented me different cars from those I reserved and charged me a higher base rent for one of the cars. They also charged me a 30% higher "concession" fee than Budget had promised when I made my reservation on-line. Budget promised me two child safety seats in one of the cars but there were no seats provided. Budget charged me a $34.99/day "loss damage waiver" which I did not approve, and finally there is Budget's special fuel deal.

Communicating with Budget Car Rental was a nightmare. From the time we began our rental at the airport in St. Louis on June 12, 2018 and were confused by the instruction to take the gray car when it was actually a black one and left our two suitcases in the parking lot, our ability to communicate with Avis by phone or internet were impossible. We arrived at our destination in Nauvoo, ILL, 3 hours away and discovered we had left our luggage in the parking lot in St. Louis. I attempted every form of communication to confirm that our luggage was accounted for and failed. I found no means to talk to anyone. I did file a report to inform Budget of the loss. The next morning, I left Nauvoo at 6:00 a.m. and drove to the airport in St. Louis. The people at the front desk were busy, but another employee was willing to help, found my luggage in the back room, handed it over to me and I returned to Nauvoo by noon.

Reserved an small economic care (4 door Ford Focus or similar), driving to Wisconsin, wanted great gas economy, but when I went to pick up the vehicle I was giving a Nissan Titan V8 which more than tripled my gas expenses. The person working the rental at the Mississippi location in Aurora CO was not friendly or helpful. When I asked where the car was he just pointed to the door and said maybe 100 yards that way. Didn't even tell me what color the truck was. Upon returning the truck to Milwaukee, after hours, I was charged $1235. I called and Budget stated that Milwaukee had not yet checked in the rental. I dropped the rental off on 8/4/2018 and Milwaukee didn't not check the rental in until 8/12/2018. Also on 8/12/2018 I was finally reimbursed the $1235 that I was unethically charged. Will never recommend this company to a single person not even my worst nightmare.

Rented a car from Budget, Denver Int. Airport and the vehicle had 4 horrible tires. 2 so bad that the threads were coming through. Turned the vehicle in and complained and was told by their employee that she had been hearing this complaint for days from other renters!! We drove 450 miles with 4 bad tires on mountain roads with no guard rails and we could have been killed!! Called Budget and was told no manager was available but they would call me back in 48 hours. CRICKETS. No callback. I am pursuing this further as I don't want to see anyone get injured from these unsafe rental vehicles.

I was charged over $60 from the original base rate of $175.20. As a courtesy, I called to modify the pickup and return times to by a couple hours each to be precisely the time instead of the standard 12 pm. After not being able to adjust times on the Budget website, I called and spoke with a Budget representative who gladly changed the times but never mentioned it would change the base rate. Furthermore, there was never any notice of a rate change whatsoever during my failed attempts to adjust the pickup/return times on their website. Lastly, to add insult to injury, the up-charged car I received looked like a wreck literally. It had a very sizeable dent in the passenger door and had severe hail damage over the entire car. Also, the inside of the windshield was so dirty that it was hard to see out of when the sun was low on the horizon.

Picked up a car, gave me a Ford Ecosport. It had a need service, need oil, light on worse part then sunroof is bad. Does not close right so air and noise all day. We took it right back in. They said, "Oh that means we just serviced light will go away." We also complain it is very small inside, seat belts too short and my 6 foot nephew can't fit in it. I'm 5'5" and touch to roof. They said, "Come back tomorrow. We will change it. Call direct number provided."

I made a car rental reservation with Budget Car Rental at the Omaha NE airport, listing that my flight arrived at 11:45 pm. The counter, offsite location and kiosk all close by 9 pm. No answer at the customer service number. My family and I found ourselves stranded at midnight in a car rental parking lot in the middle of a trip. Why do they take reservations they have no intention of fulfilling? I had to use another car rental agency, pay more, but at least they fulfilled the service of providing a rental car. The agency I switched to said they get complaints and business from disgruntled Budget customers regularly about this issue. If this is how they treat customers, Budget won’t be in business much longer.

I rented a car through Costco that went to Budget for 8 days at LAX in May 2018. When I got to the airport to pick up the car, I was asked about extras, specifically towing, Insurance and liability. With each question I verbally said no and the representative then said to initial on the signature pad which I did. I assume that what I was signing was correlation to my verbal no. However, to my surprise when I received my bill when I returned the car, there was an extra $353.45 in charges for these unwanted extras.