Budget Car Rental Reviews

I had a guest staying at my house and she had a rental car from Budget with full insurance coverage. She accidentally ran into my yard and caused $1300 damage. It has been 2 months and Budget has done nothing to address the claim. They are trying to get out of it. I may end up having to pay the damages as a result, even though I didn't cause the damage. This company is unethical and I don't recommend renting from them, or bothering to pay for insurance, because they don't pay claims anyways.

We rented a car in Tampa, FL. At the time of signing the contract they never made mention of eTolls or the additional fees we would incur. Apparently there are some highways where eTolls are the only payment method (snap a picture and bill the license plate owner). This is fine, but for about $3 in tolls, Budget whacked us with $15 in "service fees". Ridiculous if you ask me, totally taking advantage of a system that forces you to pay via eTolls. Not to mention this charge just appears on your credit card without your knowing, and makes you call and spend like 20 minutes on the line to figure out just what the charge is. This should have been disclosed at the service desk at the time of pickup. Never renting from Budget again.

On the 25th of November 2014 I hired a car from Budget rent a car at Brisbane domestic Airport. I then drove to the Sunshine Coast where the car was primarily parked in underground, secure parking for four days. I returned to Brisbane on November 30 and returned the car to the Airport drop off location. The car was signed in by a Budget staff member, there was no damage and I was given a receipt for the total hiring charges of $240. On the 11th of December I noticed a pending charge of $2890 on my credit card from Budget rent a car.

Provided my driver's license when I rented a car at Midway Chic. They made an error entering my address. I was given a $100 red light violation and $100 late fee. We did not receive the notification from the city of Chicago due to wrong address. We are eager to pay the violation but not the late fee. We are advise by the city to have budget contact them with the right information to waive the penalty. Been in touch with budget since mid November, they are rude, unhelpful and won't take responsibility of their mistake esp. Ms. ** (won't give her full name) who is the supervisor. She even blame me of not paying it on time since I knew about the ticket. The instruction we received from budget was to wait for the city of Chicago to send us the notification/ticket for us to pay. We have not received it due to budget's error in forwarding the city of our address. I was told bluntly by Ms. ** that they can't do nothing about it and they can't help me despite the fact that the error was made by budget!!!

I rented a vehicle online... called to verify, checked and double checked... and when I got there to pick it up, the credit card (visa debit) was not good enough. They wanted a "real Visa," but they had already debited the funds from my account using the visa debit card. Needless to say they got my money tied up and I have no vehicle. This could have been covered during booking. I do NOT recommend you use this corporate giant. Then she asked for my social security #. I have since found that they ran a background check without my permission.

The agent asked me if I wanted any extra coverage on my vehicle. I told him no. He confirmed this verbally back to me, and then typed "accepted" on the extra coverage. I didn't see it until I returned home from my trip. They, of course, refused to refund me because I signed the contract. No disciplinary action was taken toward the employee. Probably because he is doing exactly what the company wants him to do!

On 27 November 2014, I rented a car from Budget Rent-A-Car at Dubai airport. I was told that there would be airport parking charge of AED 45. The amount was stamped on the contact as well and I was asked to sign it. When I returned the car on 29th Nov at the same airport, I was told that I would be charged AED 50 for the parking. I asked the desk staff that what is the AED 45 charge for. He said it's different and I will be charged 50 + 45. This is unfair, as they are charging double of what is written in the contract. Secondly, the office does not reply to the email to explain the breakdown on the AED 125 charged on my card. I would not trust Budget Rent-A-car again!!!

Wow, the audacity to charge me $265.91 for bringing a vehicle early. Yes, you heard right $265.91 for bringing it early; not late...early. And to make matters worse, they hung up on you when you try to explain the madness. Do yourself a huge favor and never look this way for a rental car, and to call them the worst would be a compliment.

I rented a car for Thanksgiving holiday online. I fly to O'Hare Airport and take a shuttle to pick up the car. The guy at the counter (some old guy with missing teeth) started his spiel, "do you want this added; would you like this included" blah blah. I said no to the extras because everything I needed was already paid for online. I signed my name to an electronic pad (no paper contract given). I grabbed my things and left. A week goes by and I realize I haven't received my deposit back, so I call Budget and lo-and-behold, the crook at the counter charged me for everything I said NO to! They charged me over $600 for a one week rental!!!! I don't know if they work for commission but that is so wrong!!! And the only thing Budget does to rectify the problem, offers me $50! I've been a loyal customer of Budget's for 20 years, but after this mistreatment, I will never ever use Budget again!!!

I rented a economy car from Orlando airport for one day. At the time of returning the car, no one was present to check the car. There was a board at the car return location which says "If no one is present, leave the keys in the car and note down the mileage reading". So, I left the keys in the car and walked away. Few days later when I check my credit card statement, I do see that they have charged me extra $40. So, when I called them to find out why they charged me extra, the customer representative said that the tank was not full and that is the reason why they charged me extra. He asked for a fuel receipt so that he could refund the money back. I said that I could provide my credit card statement but he was not willing to accept that.

I rented a Jeep Grand Cherokee at the San Francisco airport. I prepaid online at a very cheap rate. (I requested a Ford Escape, but they were out of that model in San Fran). I declined the loss damage waiver because it is covered by my auto insurance. They added the loss/damage coverage it at the counter without mentioning it to me (and I foolishly signed without reading all the fine print). On checkout, they added $120 to my credit card. I called customer service and complained that this practice is deliberately deceptive. They declined my request for a refund.

Been waiting an hour to get a car because Texas can’t find the one we returned. So Florida won’t rent to us. We have the return receipt. We have a return confirmation number. Yet here I am sitting with no car (this is the third time this has happened) because my company has a contract with budget and we have to use them. If you can help it AVOID BUDGET at any cost!!!

Worst vehicle rental experience of my life. Each year my husband and I take a 4-5 day vacation to Miami. It is usually the weekend prior to Columbus Day. We celebrate my Birthday during that time even though my Birthday is actually October 15th. In the past we had always booked our vacation package through Expedia Travel Services which included airfare, hotel and rental car. We have always used Alamo Rent A Car in the past. This year I wanted to use my American Airline Credit Card so I booked the package through American Airline over the phone and they advised me that Budget was the least expensive with the package deal so I agreed. Shula's Hotel & Golf Club in Miami Lakes, FL is a great place to stay.

In September my wife and I took a trip to Costa Rica. We rented a car with Budget. On our last day a truck driving on the wrong side of the road slammed into our rental vehicle. Our car spun around twice and we then hit two other vehicles. My wife and I were taken by ambulance to two different hospitals. Needless to say there was no car to return to Budget as it was no longer driveable. Budget charged my credit card $5600 for the car. VISA paid it. But then Budget charged my credit card a fee of $57.50 for a fuel surcharge. According to the rental agreement a fee will be assessed if the car is not returned completely full of fuel. But there was no car to put fuel in so how can Budget charge me a fee when there is no car. I contacted Budget to find out who was responsible for my medical bills here in the U.S.? I inquired about the fuel surcharge and medical bills but I have never heard from anyone. I will never rent another vehicle from Budget.

In Grande Prairie Alberta rented a Grand Cherokee with one low tire. Went back to the airport the following day no one there and told by their phone line they could not do anything about it. They hoped I could drive the next two days before it went completely flat. Tried three different service stations but valve stem does not accept hose. Called again this morning as tire is very low and was told to just drive it back to the airport. Told them it would ruin a $200 tire and she just said there was nothing else she could do. I have a day of work and rent left, and will be driving on rim before getting it back. What sort of service is this?

On November 25, 2014, I Rented car from Budget Rental in Oklahoma City Airport, OK. The car was a piece of crap. The plug adapters to charge phone and GPS were not working. On top of that to my surprise in the evening the back lights of the vehicle were not working causing me and my children to drive around town with the emergency lights in hopes i didn't get hit from the backside by an eighteen wheeler. Did they give me a refund for all my stress? NO!!! Never ever will rent any vehicle nor will i recommend Budget to anyone. I am requesting a refund for putting my children in danger.

Nov 22, 2014 Palm Beach International Airport - We made reservation over the phone in advance with an outsourced agent who promised a Dodge Charger would be available and our total cost for the 9 day rental was $284.09 prepaid no additional charges everything included as well as insurance. We have full coverage on our cars and also did not agree to any insurance coverage for rental. When we arrived the agent who was quite pleasant said the Charger was not available and we should not have been promised a particular type of car over the phone. He offered a Ford Mustang same price, again no additional charge, we stress that, we repeatedly asked if there were any additional charges!!!! He said no.

I rent multiple cars weekly in various cities from various companies. This Budget location decided to charge me for a broken windshield that was already broken when we received the car. When we tried to dispute, they said that we could write a letter disputing. So we wrote our letter and then received a response letter from a credit agency demanding we pay 377.58 within 10 days or our credit would essentially take a hit. Hardly seems like a fair system. We have dealt with this in a timely manner and Budget won't even deal with us, it was immediately turned over to collections. We are being bullied into paying, because if we seek justice we risk a negative mark on our credit. Well played Budget. From someone who spends thousands of dollars a year on rental cars - let me advise you to stay away these guys.

MISTAKE made on my part because budget did not inform me of return time on car! So therefore I was charged an additional $55 which I cannot afford due to being a single mother and being on a budget! MY bill was suppose to be $86 total, had a confirmation number and everything! They were unhelpful, unavailable, non professional, and should provide customer with all the important details such as RETURN TIME!!!!!!!! I will never deal with them again!!! You got to help a girl out once in awhile jerks.

I was very pleased that we were able to rent a car that night that we needed it. So I went up to work out all the details and pay. Insurance is not required there. I didn't know this so I asked them. The rental agent told me it was required to have insurance to rent a car. When we were driving I looked at the packet and it clearly said I didn't need insurance. I found this out about 4 hours away from the place that I rented the car. They wanted me to drive ALL the way back and cancel the insurance. I wasn't going to do that for sure and apparently no other budget locations could. I wasn't going to drive out of my way to fix a problem that was all caused by them. There was VERY poor costumer service but I did like the car that they gave us.

On September 7, 2014. I rented a vehicle from Budget Car Rental located at the Ontario Airport. I was given a Chevrolet Impala but then switched out to a Black Mazda 5SPT Van. After "inspection" by a budget employee, I took the vehicle off grounds and proceeded to my destination in Las Vegas. I noticed that the tire pressure light was on. I immediately tried to contact Budget Car Rental in Ontario to notify them but no one answered the front desk phones. When I first approached the car rental, no one was there to immediately help me. Employees were in the back fooling around. As I was halfway to Las Vegas, there was a blow out in my left rear driver's side tire. I pulled over and checked my surroundings. I notified roadside assistance and explained to them my situation. They tried contacting Budget Car Rental in Ontario and had no luck either.

I rented a car on 11/7/2014 which I paid for online. On 11/10/2014 when I returned the car, I was told that my credit card needed to be run again. I advised the representative that I had already paid. His words to me was, "don't worry about it, the first charge will drop off" and I will only be charged once; This did not happen. I called customer service 11/14/2014 and was told "yes" they see the two charges and will issue a refund which will take 5 to 7 business days. The 7th business day was 11/24/2014 and I have yet to receive my money. I have talked today (11/25/2014) to 5 different people and no one can tell me what happened, only that the request will be resubmitted and it could take another 5 to 7 business days. I tried calling the corporate office and spoke to Kenneth ** who too could not tell me what happened but I would have to again wait the 5 to 7 additional business days for MY money.

A week ago, I reserved a car for a one-way transport for yesterday, November 24th. I show up and despite prepaying, no cars of the size I requested or larger were available in the entire city. I needed to move my stuff down to Georgia from Indianapolis, IN and instead, had to fly back home without my stuff because I had no way to transport my things. The only suggestions I was given verbatim: pay an additional $500 for a moving truck (Not an option for a graduate student on a budget) or don't move. Horrible service, how invalidating! I see a reservation as a contract (as I'm sure your company does if I didn't follow the rules). Yet your company backed out of the contract without accommodating my needs. My sister was supposed to drive down with me and then fly back, and because she already bought her plane ticket when I paid for the reservation, she essentially burned her money as well since she couldn't drive down with me. In the end, given a refund (yet no email confirmation of this yet) and a lot of wasted time and money.

Don't be SCAMMED by BUDGET RENTAL CAR!!! I rented a vehicle from Budget Rental Car in Ft. Myers, FL Oct. 31, 2014 - Nov. 7, 2014. I filled the vehicle FULL of gas on my return to the airport. When I turned in the vehicle, the Budget Rental Car Check-In Assistant checked my fuel gauge, saw that it was indeed full, entered that information into his hand-held device and proceeded to print out my receipt showing the FUEL READING: FULL.

If you plan to rent a car from Budget car rental agency, you should be particularly careful with the agreement with them. There is a big risk for surprising extra costs. I redeemed a car at West Palm Beach airport with the prepaid voucher of the period 2 November to 11 November, 2014. Voucher was written for Ford Escape or equivalent (Mid size SUV). I told the clerk I only want what is included on the voucher, no extras. She said OK. Then we checked together every site from that screen on desk and I pressed the "agree" button. However somewhere there happened something. Must have been a clever scam, which, unfortunately, I only noticed when returning the car. I was charged $233 for car class upgrade. And sure enough on the receipt read "standard SUV." Such a classification I had not previously heard of and worst of the clerk is in no way specifically stated that there is happening upgrading. In addition upgraded car was the Chevrolet Captiva, which price, size, equipment etc. are fully in line with Ford Escape. In other agencies they really are in same category.

I have now had Budget at two different locations in the same week -- CLT and STL -- add fuel surcharges even though I returned the rental cars with a full tank *and* showing a credit card receipt from the gas station. On my return at CTL, I was informed that "you're good" i.e. there won't any extra charges. Two days later, I noticed a charge on my credit card corresponding to the fuel surcharge. I called to complain about this and the rep reversed it, but only after an unpleasant conversation. At STL I noticed the charge immediately after I returned the car and was handed the receipt, upon which the rep stated "oh my bad, good catch." Yeah, good catch. I'm not sure if Budget financially incentivizes the reps to add surcharges, but it's quite appalling that this seems to be their default mode of operating. It's unethical, fraudulent, and a breach of contract. I would advise you to get and keep your final rental return receipts and any gas receipts for at least 2 weeks after your rental to ensure you don't get charged falsely. My guess is that if they do this to every person, they likely get away with it at least 30% of the time. Sickening.

I had a prepaid rental through Budget themselves. I arrived alone, as a female traveler at 1 am to the Miami Airport. The agent, Daniel, did not mention anything about insurance, which was I was ready to decline as I have my own and called my credit card and insurance company in advance. He never had me initial next to any charges and I signed the end of the agreement to a charge I thought was a summary of what I had paid (the amount was $2 difference than my rental so at 1 am I thought it was the same). Realized after the fact he had added loss damage waiver. I now have calls and emails into Budget to try and resolve the issue. The agent was clearly unethical and they are trying to scam people by not disclosing information and adding charges without the clients agreeing.

Rented a Ford Focus from Budget and the next day, noticed that the "touchscreen" for the radio was damaged. I called Budget (at Orange County Airport) and told them that the car was damaged and they took note of that. However, two months later, I received a bill for $3,300. The car was damaged apparently by a prior driver. My insurance company will cover the damages, but I will never rent from Budget again, ever... And I will tell my friends about this very negative experience. I am 70 years old and don't make a habit of vandalizing rental cars.

PLEASE PLEASE don't rent from this company... This is the worst experience I have ever had. I rented the car almost a month ago, and I am STILL getting charges on my credit card after the customer service promised that was the end. No one knows exactly what the charges are for, after getting told to call multiple different numbers. I am out-raged. HIDDEN FEES are everywhere. They will try to squeeze as much money out of you as they can. I would NEVER recommend renting from this company again.

I rented a car on Nov.10th from Budget one way pick up in FLL dropping off in PBI (West Palm Beach International Airport ). When dropped off a car I noticed that I left my iPhone in a car, I went right back not even 15 minutes later. I asked them about my phone which they said was never found. Of course I signed in to iCloud and it said last location was signed on was budget rental place, which I showed to their management. Nothing was done about it, because apparently nowhere in car rental place they have surveillance cameras and employees aware of it. This is not the first time something get stolen from a car and management does not do anything about. Right after this incident we spoke to airport security, but they said they do not have authority to do anything about. Thieves, thieves, nothing but thieves working there. About few months ago my credit cards, gift cards and cash money I left under my seat was stolen as well, nothing was done about it. The person who parked my car all of a sudden had family emergency and left suddenly home, not showing up for next few days. WATCH OUT!!! DO NOT RENT FROM THEM!!

I rented a truck Nov 8th. I asked "what time do I bring the car back Nov 9th?" He said 2:00. The place was closed. I left the car with keys in garage. They charges me for 2 days. They will not return my money in my account. It's not right to take my money. He said they closed at 2 pm but they were not open. Help.

We rented a 24 foot truck & an SUV to move furniture to Colorado from Florida. In loading the truck we realized that we needed a 2d truck rather than an SUV - We were charged a $10 'fine' for doing so less than 24 hours before pickup. We finished loading and the air conditioning failed as we left town. The truck stalled for no apparent reason, but started up again each time. Budget refused to give us a location where we could take it en route. They refused to allow us to speak to a supervisor. Their policy was to have you pull off the road and they would call back within 3 hours to tell you where to take the truck. That caused us to have to backtrack 25 or 50 miles with 2 trucks and lose over 3 hours to be told that the computer was shot & could not be fixed. After it stalled 5 more times, we left it 1 street away from their office. They offered to refund $100.00 for the ordeal. We spent more than that on gas chasing a non-existent repair.

I had very disappointed experience on October 24th when I returned my car. It was my birthday trip from October 20th to October 24th. We were on rush during our car pickup (our car wasn't ready) and when I was asked if we want to wait another 30 minutes so Budget will clean car for you, we said it is fine and left on October 20th. When we came back, manager at Glendale location was impolite and told us that we smoked in the car. It was no smell but he said it was cigarette ashes in the car on carpet. I told him that we picked up this car like this. He still blame us and instead good deal that we got from the beginning, we paid additional $75 penalty charge for cleaning.

I rented a car in San Jose, CR. I made the mistake of not checking the time of the pickup. The agent had written 1342. This was not true as my plane landed at 1310 and you have to clear immigration, get luggage and clear customs before you can take the 15-minute ride to the car office. The soonest I could gotten of a car is 1430. I faxed Budget my rental form from a Budget office 2 days ago. They continue to claim they never received it. They refuse to change anything. They charged me for an extra day. The customer service is terrible and gives NO service. I was quoted a price of 93.79 for 3 days. I was charged 182. Please help.

I've attempted to rent twice from this location. The first time (2013) when I arrived in the late afternoon, I was told there was a mix-up with my reservation and that my car was not available. I was offered an upgrade for which I paid. The second time (2014), recalling that last issue, I reserved online and then phoned twice (once immediately after reservation and again the day of pickup) to confirm pickup time. When I arrived, I was told that they only offer morning pickups and that my reserved car was gone. (Only morning pickups at an airport. Really?) They offered a mini van at a significantly increased cost which I declined. I will NEVER rent from Budget again. Anywhere.

WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE. THEY LIE ABOUT QUOTED RATES! Called reservations and the representative gave me a rate of $24.96 plus .79 cents per mile. Thought the rate was great and booked it (Never got an e-mail confirmation or was not able to check the reservation online with the confirmation given to me). If the rate had been higher, I would have gone somewhere else. Picked up the truck, the clerk did not go over the rates with me but I signed the paper in a rush because we had been there for over 20 minutes just to pick up the truck, it was raining and it was moving day. Dropped off the truck during closed hours. Called the next day to find out the final charge. They had charged me $29.97 per day plus .99 cents per mile. For some MAGICAL reason they couldn't find that I was quoted a lower rate. Awful service! Go to U-Haul!

I reserved a car with Budget Rent-A-Car in Albuquerque between October 12-19th. When I arrived at the reservation desk, the female employee said, "we are going to give you a peewee car - the smallest, are you sure you want this?" I responded with, "well what else do you have?" And she said, "we have a Ford Focus I can put you in". I said, "OK" not knowing that she was going to charge me ten dollars more a day. Her response was "I don't like putting women in these small cars because they would be unsafe. I don't mind putting men in these cars, well because...." and she did not finish the sentence. I thought to myself, what is the real difference here? This was such an odd sexist comment that I didn't even know where to go with this. I said nothing in response. She gave me the contract NOT explaining to me that she was charging me $10.00 more a day. So I signed.

I arrived at Budget car rental to pick up a prepaid car. The desk clerk told me that "optional" insurance was mandatory in FL and that if I wanted my car I had to accept it. I told him I had full coverage through my auto policy and additional coverage through my credit card and didn't need insurance. He insisted the only way I was getting a car was to accept insurance. Later I discovered it was all a lie. When we called Budget Customer Care we were told that I was an adult and shouldn't have signed the contract. There was nothing they would do. It was my word against their employee's and they have my signature. After numerous attempts to resolve this with Budget I've concluded that their corporate leadership is aware of and condones these scams. Profit at any cost. Stay away from Budget car rental. They are a horrible, unethical, sleazy company.

My rental car from Budget had a major transmission failure on the way back to the airport. I called Budget and the breakdown company arrived within 1 hour. What I did not realize was they had only come for their car. They left me stranded 70 miles away from the airport and told me to get a taxi!! The taxi cost me $150 and I am now trying to get this back from them. This company has no customer service and they could not come up with any solution to get me to the airport to catch my flight..other than get a taxi!! I was in a foreign country next to a major freeway (QEW). The recovery guy did give me a lift to the next small town but then I was on my own!! At no point in the many conversations that I had with budget did they try or suggest any solution to this problem. I very nearly missed my flight to London, UK.

Rented a car from Budget in Manzanillo through Expedia. Paid $164.38 to Expedia. Upon arriving at Manzanillo airport and going to Budget counter to get the paperwork processed I was told even though I have car insurance from using my credit card they don't take them and I have to purchase insurance from them or no car. So I bought the insurance. When we returned the car 1 week later and they filled in the paperwork, they, like Expedia, charged us for the car. They said we can never collect off travel companies. They then added a 10% airport fee along with a 16% fee for who knows what for, for a total of 3705 pesos or $317.49 Canadian which I just got my Visa bill for. So you add that with what I paid Expedia and the car cost 481.87C for the week. I emailed Budget which was a waste of time as they are giving me back a whopping $23.06US as they said I overpaid. I will never rent a car from Budget again. Total ripoff.

I rented a car from Budget a few weeks ago in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The charges ended up being twice the amount I expected. With taxes, I estimated around $110 for 4 days. The island has tolls and they told me to go through Auto Express and that the charges would be added to the bill. I only went through a few. What they don't tell you is that you have to pay an additional $15.00 for the convenience. If I would have known that, I could of paid for the tolls myself, if that was even an option.

After reserving a car in advance and receiving a confirmation number, the woman at Budget/Avis counter at Hilton Head SC airport informed me that "we don't have any cars but one usually comes in sometime soon". "You don't have any cars?" I asked. "That's right" she replied. I was then told to wait. While waiting I witnessed her assigning cars to other customers. When I finally did get a car (45 minute wait) and went to it, there were two other cars in the lot. Since the airport is very small and she is the only person working for them it's pretty clear that she lied. The drop off was not any better. Trying to return the car early and avoid an extra day's charges, the attendant in Caldwell NJ (Jessica) said "I have 5 people in front of me and I'll call you right back". 15 minutes later when I presented to the store it was closed. And of course she never called back. Now I am being charged for an "extra day". Never use Budget or Avis. I never will again. Had a good experience w/ Hertz and several good ones w/ Alamo.

We arrived in San Fran on 5 Oct 2014 to collect a hire car from Budget San Fran Airport. I booked a Ford Edge car. On arrival I was told that this car was not available. However, they could upgrade me to a Ford Explorer which was good although this car is too large and I would not feel comfortable driving due to the size that's why I requested the Ford Edge which I had on my previous visit to USA. I was told this vehicle was not available and I could have a similar car, a Mazda. I asked for the specs to be printed so I could compare the like for like as this car was not on the car list. The sales assistant was not helpful and said that it was not possible to get these details.

Most people do not know that when you rent a car from BUDGET they run a credit check on you when they swipe your credit card at the desk. This inquiry hits your credit report and lowers your score. DO NOT RENT FROM BUDGET. Also, their customer service representatives are rude and discourteous. All they will do is recite their policies to you. They have no desire to help anyone.

Last weekend I had my worst car rental experience ever - and it's of over 50 I had in total. It was with Budget UK at St. Pancras station. So I advise anyone to avoid this company or at least this rental location. Key problems I've encountered: It seems that I've been offered a car 1 category below what I'd booked and paid for. This was explained by an internal software issue, but I don't buy into that. The car was not inspected upon return. There was a damage claim done retrospectively, without me being present. Immediately afterwards, my credit card was charged with £300+ without any investigation being done. Customer service is bad. For 4 days I did not have any response to my e-mail. Communication by phone is as frustrating as representatives deliver contradicting information.

Budget Car Rental Springfield MO - I rented car through Priceline for trip to Branson Mo. to celebrate my mother's 90th Birthday. My Mom and Sister and I were traveling together. Our flight was a little early and I ask if it would be a problem getting the car prior to 12noon. I was advised not a problem, Bradley, rental agent, read "script" to me, I did initial. I was never advised there was a 29 minute grace period, and if we waited an additional 13 min. there would be no additional cost. My mother was in a wheelchair and at the counter with me. If I realized I would be paying $100 more, I would have certainly waited the additional 13 minutes to be within the "grace period".

At the airport I was adamant I did not want anything extra, only the rental of the car and a child car seat. Total price quoted was £349. Checked my credit card to see they took £716.84. After requesting the invoice 7 times I finally got it. There are 4 different charges on it I never authorized or accepted. There is a top of the range extra insurance charge, there is an additional driver charge (even though I traveled alone with my child), there is a City Supplement Charge, I hired the car for an additional day & they charged me £163.56 for this one day (I paid £220.70 for 14 days). They will not respond to my emails & each time I phone it usually lasts 30-40 minutes to be told I agreed to everything. I requested them to show me this agreement but they will not provide it. I traveled to UK to get treatment for my 1 year old child which has left me under huge financial strain. Not in a million years would I have agreed to anything extra other than the car & the car seat. If I did sign it then it was under false pretenses. I am hugely annoyed & have now wrote to the ombudsman for car hire. I will not let this one lie!!! AVOID AVOID AVOID!!!

Reserved and prepaid for a premium vehicle to be picked up at Budget location in Portland Oregon. Arrived half hour early, and was informed by the agent on duty that she had no vehicles at the location, but she would have one delivered from the airport location. We waited and about an hour later the agent informed us there would be no vehicles available because the airport site informed her that they would not send a premium car to the downtown location, because they are able to rent the vehicle at a higher price at the airport. Now she claimed she had remembered she did have one car available at the location, not the premium car I had reserved but at least a vehicle. We also ordered a GPS and she had one left. OK we needed to get on our way so we acquiesced took the car and headed for our destination.

I made reservations a month in advance for an economy car. I didn't need anything fancy, just a vehicle to take me from Montreal airport to my mother's house in Victoriaville and to do errands for mom during my 10 day stay. When I landed, on time, went to pick up the care right away got in line with the rest of the people and waited. It took forever, because they didn't have the cars that people had reserved. There was a guy next to me who needed a large vehicle. They were telling him that they only had economy cars. When I got to the clerk he told me that he didn't have the car I had reserved, BUT he would let me have a choice between a van and an suv for the same amount. There would be no extra charge. Of course I agreed. (Was thinking why don't they offer the guy next to me the van?)

I rented one day car from budget. I am business customer with them. I have rented with them on multiple occasions. Be very careful because they charge you later with fuel charges. I have provided them my bank receipts that I filled gas twice that day. They do not want to understand you and want you to pay money even if you are right. At the end I pay money because I have wasted more money (time) talking to them on multiple occasions. They are nice upfront but later you have to pay. Good Luck with Budget. They lost 2600 business to get 26 dollar.

I originally had a reservation at Dollar Rental Car at Indianapolis for 1:30AM Friday September 26 2014. I was traveling to my hometown 2 and hours away to finish cleaning out my mother's apartment (she passed away in August of this year). When I arrived to get the car, they were closed, even though they were supposed to be open until 2AM.

We rented a BUDGET car in Boston for five days while visiting a relative there. We prepaid the charges in order to save money. We returned the car to the designated location with a FULL tank of gasoline and left the airport that same day. I was surprise when I look at my Credit Card and noticed I was charged an additional $82.33 for GAS CHARGES and something called a CUSTOMER FACILITATION fee for an Additional $36.00(?).

I attempted to make a rental reservation online on 9/23. When I checked on the confirm button, the page just kept spinning and then timed out. I tried a second time and the same thing occurred. I never received an e-mail confirmation and my debit card wasn't affected. When I arrived in Milwaukee, I used another car rental on 9/24. On 9/25 I had two charges from Budget for the amount of 192.00. On 9/25, I contacted Budget and was told they would remove them from my card. I contacted Budget on 9/27 and was told again it would be removed. Now I am told by my bank that the charges were approved. So I paid 400 dollars and never received a vehicle.

I rented a car at the Indianapolis airport. I went over the paper contract carefully before signing, initialing to waive insurance, etc. It was the paper contract that the agent and I spent time on. Then, what I thought was the same contract, came up on the screen. The agent just said I'd need to sign it again. I verified the waivers, the cost, everything else (I thought) and signed. Turns out this contract had some other optional costs in it (rather obscure under the waivers but without the same box to accept or decline) that was never pointed out, I didn't even realize I had, didn't use, and that cost another $6.99/day (for a month!) and that they adamantly wouldn't even partially refund because they said I'd received the service. This service, their roadside assistance, was not mentioned anywhere on the original paper, the one we actually went over together. Watch out!!

I prepaid for my car rental online through Budget for $78 to rent car for less than 24 hours. During pick up, I declined GPS, declined having them fill gas afterwards and all other upgrades or additional fees. They told me to sign here on tablet to be on your way. They NEVER disclosed upgraded vehicle, new balance or that I would be charged more. Admittedly, I was in a rush since I flew in to see my grandfather after his heart surgery and did not read, nor did I see a new balance. Upon returning vehicle they were charging me another $87 or $166 total because they claim I upgraded. They never disclosed upgrade or additional price.

AVOID Budget Rent A Car and Priceline!! If there is zero star above, that's what I would have chosen instead of one star. This was the first time I used Budget but also the last time and it was still one time too much. I would tell everyone not to use this company. Reasons: Did not get the car I reserved. Talked into getting a larger car. Initially, I reserved an economy car on Aug 23, 2014 for 2 days. At their SFO airport counter, I told the staff I would need it for 4 days instead of only 2 days (before the deal was concluded and paid, NOT after!) And I wanted to make sure there would be no penalty. The staff assured me that there would not be any penalty except the additional rental for 2 more days. After I returned the car 78 hours later, my credit card was charged not just for 4 days but also a late charge of $20, a transportation fee of $20 (what is this??) and miscellaneous expenses. The final bill was more than double than what was shown on Priceline's website where I reserved my booking.

I waited 10 minutes with no one in line - understaffed. Got the car - waited 10 minutes for someone to open the gate to leave - unattended. Returned the car - no one to receive it. Walked in the paperwork and explained...someone who identified as the franchise owner overheard my problem and stood back and smiled - no assistance, nothing. Worst car rental experience I've ever had. NEVER Again. Multiple helpful alternatives there.

Boy do I wish I had done my research on car rentals prior to my trip last week. I found a great deal at Budget at the Pittsburgh, PA airport so I prepaid for a vehicle. When I picked up the car the only words the Customer No-Service Agent said to me were "You can upgrade to a small SUV for $5 per day" which I refused. No other words were uttered when he should have said, "You need to fill the car up within 5 miles of the return location in order to avoid being charged $15 for a gallon of gas." WHAT THE HECK??? I didn't look at my receipt when I returned the car but did so several days later to discover this additional charge on my credit card.

I booked a budget car from Chicago O'Hare airport for one week from 8/5/14. I booked through Rentalcars.co.uk an online booking service. I paid for a Ford Escape or similar and additional driver CDW all paid for up front. The staff at O'Hare said, "Everything is paid for, you just need to sign this tablet to confirm the contract and the additional driver has to sign it for insurance purposes."

My husband and I rented a car in August out of Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. Upon returning the car we filled up at the Shell gas station not a mile from the airport. We returned the car in the garage and the attendant said he would process it so we didn't need to go to the desk. We just received our credit card statement and Budget Rent A Car is charging us $129.00 because they said we returned it with only a half a tank of gas. After speaking with them we need to provide a receipt for fuel. Well we have the credit card receipt showing where and when but not the actual gas receipt. Thanks Budget. My husband and I are in our fifties, have rented many rental cars over the years and this is the first time we have ever encountered such a misrepresentation. We will never use Budget again. Dishonest company.

I was never notified that this car rental requires $400 deposit and good credit in order to rent with a debit card. My reservation was prepaid with AAdvantage miles and cash. They simple did not offer to assist me or give me a choice but to go to a different car rental that I was able to rent without any problem. This car rental was sold out and simply decided to give me a hard time and bad customer service.

As a frequent traveler to the US and Canada, I use to rent cars at different airports with different rental car companies. I was unlucky enough to rent a GMC Yukon XL last August in Montreal by BUDGET. I'm willing to warn customers against some snares embedded in Budget's rental contracts in Canada. First, customers are not informed from the start of what the compulsory insurances cover or not. Second, you are not informed that there will be a drop off surcharge of approx. $100 with no other reason than the following: "non pkg items" including "energy recovery fee" (I refueled the tank just prior driving to the airport) and an incredible $72 "tire mgmt fee".

When dropping off car, husband was told we dented the car which was a small scratch (which was old). We did not have time to debate the issue as our flight was leaving early which was 7-17-2014. We received a letter stating it was 588.86 which they stated was a follow up letter (we never heard from them till Sept 1st). We had no choice on paying this bill. We will never use Budget again.

Budget just lost a loyal customer today. I am a military spouse who is relocating on Government orders. I rented a vehicle from Tucson International Airport to drive down to Sierra Vista, AZ. Less than 24 hours of the vehicle in our possession the A/C completely went out in the vehicle. Since we're in Arizona with high temps and a monsoon, let's just say driving around was miserable. I called Budget Roadside/Customer Service. We were told by Budget Customer Service, to first take the 2014 Chevy Cruze to a service center for diagnostic testing. If it was more than just refilling the coolant, to call back and they would "happily" tow a new vehicle to us from Tucson and pick up the previous rental at no additional charge. After having to pay $110 out of my own pocket for a diagnostic (which thankfully I'm told I'll be reimbursed by Budget) I was told by the Chevy service center rodents had previously chewed through the censor, causing the vehicle to "think" it was -40 degrees outside, not allowing the A/C to work. The Chevy service center also said that it has been some time since this occurred based on what they could see, so since we had only had the car less than 24 hours, it more than likely happened with a previous renter or while sitting in Tucson.

Credit card was charged a 'cleaning fee' of $150 two weeks following delivery of a perfectly clean car to the rental agency at Tampa International Airport. With a little web research, there are plenty of others who have fallen prey to this obvious corporate scam. Please get the word out. Don't use BUDGET!

I was at the Tucson airport and needed a large vehicle. I went up to Budget, asked how much it was for 2 day rental - they said it be little over $300 so I said fine. The customer service rep set everything up and told me ok it’s $390 and I said what happen to little over $300. He said you are covered for everything - insurance and everything - you don't have to worry if you get in an accident so I said fine. Two days later I come back to return the vehicle and my bill was $550. I had to complain and they still charged my credit card $445. Now a month later I get a letter saying the vehicle was dirty and they will withdraw $75 from my credit card. Never again will I use Budget...

I rented a car. It was a FORD SILVER FIESTA veh. # **. I REQUESTED A NON-SMOKER CAR, I got a smoker's car. The smoke smell was soooooo strong a full bottle of air freshener did not take the smell out. And the other thing is my reservation was for 2 pm pick up, I got there 1:45 pm and had to wait until 2:30 pm before I could get a car. It would have been nice if someone could have called me to let me know that they did not have any cars until that time. They did not change my pick up time from 2 pm to 2:30 pm. THE YOUNG LADIES WAS VERY MATTER OF FACT. This is why it is better SOMETIMES to hire mature people. I HAD TO WASH MY CLOTHES AFTER I DROVE THIS CAR TO AND FROM MY DESTINATION. This was not a good experience!!!!

I pre-paid to reserve a hybrid at the San Diego airport Budget Rent-A-Car. To be certain the car would be available, I called 4 days ahead of the rental date and was assured that if I reserved a hybrid it would be held on the lot for me. Well, the end of this story is predictable - there wasn't a hybrid on the lot. Additionally, the car I ended up with had a push button ignition, which didn't work some of the time, requiring multiple attempts to start the car causing me to be late for two meetings. This was the first and last time I will use Budget-Rent-A-Car.

Upon arrival in Denver after more than 20 hours of flying, I went to the rental counter at Budget where I had reserved and prepaid £419 for a car online through Holiday Autos. The clerk went through the normal questions regarding upgrades and extra insurance, which I all verbally declined. I was presented with the contract and after so many hours of flying, admit I did not read it carefully. I had paid online in GBP and when I saw the amount on the contract I thought it was roughly the amount I had already paid converted to USD, so I signed the contract and went on my way. Several weeks later when I returned home I noticed an extra £301 on my credit card from Budget. It turns out those were all additional charges for extra insurance I had verbally turned down to the agent.

Made an online reservation for a given amount. Went to the airport knowing full good and well that they would try and up-sell me any and everything. Said no-no-no to all offers. They presented me with an amount twice what I had a reservation for. I did not sign and said “Look I do not want any upgrades or anything that is not required by law”, multiple times. I said I wanted to pay the $189.00 indicated on my reservation. The rep said ok and showed me a screen for the amount I agreed to, which I signed. I later got a bill for twice what I agreed to. The customer service agents responding to my inquiries were rude and unresponsive, ultimately moving to sarcasm and hanging up on me. Don't do business with them. UNETHICAL!

I reserved a weekly car with rate at $117 with taxes and fees. On day it was due, I called customer service to extend another day. I asked them for pricing and they said it would be $117 + $31 for the extra day, totaling roughly $150. I said fine. When I went to return the car, they charged me $180 ($130 + $30 extra day + $20 in taxes and fees). I showed them the confirmation I got for $117 showing taxes and fees and the customer service who quoted me the $30 for extra day also confirmed the $117 but they would not accept it. I was livid and will never, ever rent from them again. They do not honor their prices online and I will be contacting Costco Travel who I placed it thru. I also called Costco Travel and all they kept telling me was to talk to the guy behind the desk who is wanting me to pay $180. PISSED today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Budget Car Rental sucks quoting one price to get your reservation and charging a higher rate at time of rental when they have you trapped with no car at some airport. Avoid them like Ebola.

We rented a car from Budget in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho May 27th, 2014. We were at the office at our appointed time, but there was no one at the office. After waiting about 15 minutes, the owner drove up in a nice looking Nissan Altima. The owner drove it into his garage area and kept us waiting longer until he finally came in and rented us the car. He asked some questions, pointed out some paperwork and gave us the keys and turned his attention to the another patron.

I had set up a prepaid rental to be picked up in Seattle WA. We arrived a half hour early and went to the rental desk. They were having computer problems and it took 45 minutes to get the car. I was traveling with my 8 year old grandson who is a very good traveler. He was weary from a 3 hour flight and was on the way to see his mom. I was dealing with rude desk people and a tired boy. We needed a child seat and found out after a short time it had a problem. $18 wasted. When examining my credit card charges from the trip I noticed a $125 charge from Budget. I call them and was treated very rudely. I asked about the car seat problem and was told there was nothing they could do about it because I didn't complain that day. They had no explanation for the additional charge but said they would refund $108. I will never use Budget again.

Complete rip off. You pay the same as the other companies. Then they ask for £23 per day for the CDW or pay £850 for any damage. I said no, so they reduced it to £13 per day. THEN THEY CHARGE YOU A DAILY ROAD TAX FEE. COMPLETE CON ARTISTS, BOOK ELSEWHERE.

I rented a car from Budget at Charleston International Airport on July 28, 2014. The car was very nice and very clean. I returned the car on August 2, 2014 to Charleston International Airport with a full tank of gas. Upon entering the return lot, the Budget Rep scanned my car, but came up with a different customer's reservation. I was told to go to the desk in the airport to correct this. The rep at the desk took my rental agreement and looked up my info on the computer. He saw the problem and told me "you're all set, we just have some computer work to fix on our end." I stated my concern about being charged for someone else's rental and I was assured that everything was fine and that I would only be charged for my rental, $315.26. Off I went to catch my flight home.

In the past six weeks I have rented from Budget twice. The first rental was a dream. The employees at the office were beyond professional and went out of their way to ensure that I was happy with my decision to rent from Budget. However, when I ended up at a different local office my experience was anything but pleasant.

I booked my rental car online and got a good deal. When I got to the reservation desk, a gentleman double checked the rate, said it was still good then offered the extras to which we replied "no thanks". Then he brings up a screen that shows insurances. My husband said "no thanks" but the gentleman stated that by Florida state law, we had to have the SLI insurance. So we agreed that since we "had to" have it, fine. We signed the paperwork (dumb mistake).

August 11, 2014. Budget car rental, 333 College St. Toronto ON. Car picked up at 9:30 AM, dropped off at 5:45 PM. Purchased collision-damage-waver for approximately $25. Car was undamaged until I entered the Budget lot to return it. Then I ran into a high (10 inch) concrete curb immediately in front of the office. The curb was unmarked and impossible to see because it was hidden by another car and is the same colour as the paved lot. I was told that I should not have parked in that location. Yet another car was already parked there and there is NO SIGN to indicate no parking. Then I was told that I should have backed in. There was NO SIGN to indicate that fact.

I attempted to make inquiries about an admin fee I was charged, but Budget had no record of the charge, and could not explain why it was not in the system (my credit card was charged). The customer service representative started giving me a passive-aggressive responses and attitude to questions he clearly couldn't answer. I did not get a satisfactory answer to my problem, and it remains unresolved.

I reserved a full size in Austin and they gave me an F-150 truck which wasn't a problem. I returned the truck with a full tank, purchasing 17 gallons 3 miles from the drop off. The attendant was busy and told me to leave the keys which I did. Five days later they charged me $142 extra for 14 gallons of gas, saying that the truck was half full. The truck has a 26 gallon tank. It was full and they were too busy to check when I returned it. They say I can submit a fuel purchase receipt that I don't have because the service station was unattended and did not print a receipt. I don't know where they put the gas or who pocketed the money but these guys are crooks in my book and you should steer clear.

As we were inside the Budget office signing the paperwork and picking up the keys to our car, a traffic police was writing a ticket because it was parked illegal in the street outside (not by us). We saw it, two witnesses, and the Budget staff saw it too. They asked us to bring them the ticket and they would take care of it. Several months later the ticket of $107 was charged to my credit card. I called Budget to resolve the issue, was bounced between different persons and finally to an answering machine. I tried this twice with the same result. Then I wrote them a letter/e-mail explaining my story and received back a generic response "that I am responsible for all tickets during the rental of my car". Seems they ignored or didn't bother to read any of the details in my letter.

I recently rented a vehicle from Budget and I got so many prices for a rental car till it was pathetic. After getting car the first week, decided to renew car the second week. Went in to local place, no one knew how to put new card on file. So the people told me I was okay, just wait until closing before charging me. Started to receive calls like I was a criminal stating investigators looking for car. All that over a mistake that people from Budget made. I will never rent again from Budget. Bad business people.

We reserved a Budget rental car on for a Sunday delivery. I used Expedia to get the best rate. They only had 2 cars left, a ford fusion and a camaro. We were 3 adults with our daughter flying in later so the camaro was definitely not a choice and I had reserved a full size car. They didn't accept the Expedia price. Told us it would be 350 dollars with tax fee etc and everything it was close to $400. Then they told my husband it was Sunday and they couldn't check our insurance bringing the total up to $665 and a $1000 hold on our card, which when we returned the car it would take 2 to 3 days to release our funds. Josh was our attendant..condescending is a little lite. We have rented cars at all hours and this was the first time we've had this problem. This will be the last time we will ever use this price switching condescending company.

On May 12, 2014, my wife and I rented a rental car from Budget Rental in Norfolk, VA for a one day, one way rental to Washington, DC. I stayed the night of May 12th at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in DC in order to catch an early morning flight to Anchorage, AK. When preparing to leave the hotel the morning of May 13th, we found that one of the tire on the rental car was flat tire.

About one month after a rental, I received a letter from Budget claiming I returned a car five gallons low. Though the letter came with no enclosures or other documentation, and did not give a date, I knew immediately it was incorrect because I by habit return cars full. I complained and sent a gas receipt, which I just happened to have, to Budget, and they reimbursed the $46.50 (!) they had charged me for the falsely claimed 5 gallons. So this is not the issue.

We have had two very major issues with this company, both of which involve employees lying or being misleading with us. Our problems started when my sister called and asked if Budget charges a security deposit, whoever she spoke with blatantly lied and said no. Just to be sure she even called back and asked again and again whoever she spoke with said Budget doesn't charge a security deposit. When we arrived at the service counter and was indeed charged a deposit, we were surprised. It was my first time ever renting a car and so I was unaware that it was an industry wide practice to do so. The second problem arrived when we received our balance. First, there really should not have been much of a balance because the car was pre-booked online and that balance was paid in full. We added a driver and so I understand the additional charge for that and increased taxes for the increase.

According to the agreement I was totaled 197.06 dollars. But when I returned the car at the airport, the guy who took the car from me charged around 236 dollars. He said the tank is not full. But I explained him that when I took the car it was not full and it was 1:30 am and it was all empty and no one to assist or ask or tell about the fuel. Actually, I didn't notice that the agreement says full tank. I thought I am taking a quarter less than full so I’ll return at the same amount. So I returned it with that amount and also told this to that person who took the car. Then he said ok, I will waive it off for you. Since I am an international tourist and I have come back to my own country, I can’t go and ask that guy that why didn't he remove that fuel charge now as he told me.

Rented a car in Providence, Rhode Island and upon returning, noticed I had an extra charge on my bill. I called the location I rented from in downtown Providence RI and the owner took my call (did not identify himself as such or as any authority until a later call). His first assumption is that I did not fill the car up with gas because I did not drive it very many miles and I was being charged for not providing a receipt. I informed him I did fill it up (he did not believe me) and he never told me I needed to provide them a receipt. He then launched into a diatribe about how I had to pay them and it was all my fault and I must not have heard him because I had my kids with me (my terrible kids who make me deaf in public were actually off to the side with my wife). I have never met a ruder person in my life. He then gave me the run around and had me call the location I dropped it off at.

I recently rented a vehicle for vacation in Colorado. I rented the car from the airport rental location. I took the 12 dollar a day upgrade and was very pleased with the little chevy equinox that we rented. They held 200 for a deposit and assured me that it would be credited back when I returned the car. We had a great time... and the car performed well. Upon returning it, I stopped at a car wash and cleaned it inside and out and filled it to the top with gas. Turned it in on 7.23.14. Still no deposit return. Won't be dealing with Budget rent cars again.

When making the reservation, I very clearly stated I would be picking up the auto at 1:30 on a Thurs and return at 3:00 the following Mon. THEY priced my rental at 4 days. Yet when I returned the auto they charged me for 5 days... The taxes and fees went from $48.05 to $65.68. That is an increase of $33.63... Since I was comparison shopping, I chose Budget because the price quote was less than it was at other companies... But now I see I didn't save anything... Not happy with being overcharged!!

Las Vegas, prepaid online with no protection. Waited 1hr at location, agent directed me to press buttons on screen. We stated again we wanted no extra coverage. Returning the car, I find an extra charge over $200 for extras we did not ask for. Too bad.

I arrived a weary traveler due to a sad family loss. Feeling somewhat covered financially since I had prepaid my expenses so I did not have to deal with finances during my visit. Upon arrival at Budget Rental to pick up my prepaid economy car that was to be Hyundai Accent or equivalent I was face to face with a 2-seater Fiat. When I expressed my dismay I was told this was economy and I would have to upgrade to get a larger car at a fee. No compromise. When I got home and called I was told basically to read the fine print. Budget Car rental is now in the on budget business. In addition, prepaid fuel means you are paying for a full tank of gas regardless of the amount of gas left in the tank. So renters beware.

My daughter just drove a rental truck from PA to Largo, Florida. She paid and had no problems, so she decided to rent a car from them prepaid online. When she went to pick up car, they told her she didn't pass credit check, kicked her out of office and told her to call for refunds. This is after they trust her to drive rental Truck 16 hours????? Where's her money? What happened to customer service? She said the girl with no name was rude!!! We will never use their services again and I will check into our legal rights.

I am at the Salt Lake City Budget counter and have just been told that "they have my car but it's in the other lot. I can wait for it to be shuttled to this lot or I could have an SUV right now for only $25 more per day." I asked Bou how long the car shuttle takes and told me it could be 30-40 minutes. I asked if they always play this bait and switch with their customers and she said that she had the car, just not there. Bait and switch. Avoid Budget.

I booked a one day rental, Las Vegas location, via Expedia.com on 7/19-7/20 2014. First issue, stood in line for 1.5 hours waiting to receive my rental, 70 customers in line and 2 agents working. By the time we received our rental it was too late to take the planned drive to Hoover Dam. I was charged a $100 deposit upon pick up and another $200 when I returned the car the next morning, along with the $29.00 rental fee. Why I would be charged another 200 bucks upon return is beyond me. Budget use to be a reputable company - not anymore! If they're looking to close the doors of their business they're on the right track. Absolutely horrible customer service! Thank goodness for social media, I have forewarned all of the folks in my circle to steer clear.

Me and my fiance rented a car from the New Haven, CT location while on vacation. We decided to end our trip short and bring the car back a day early, 26 hours early to be exact, with a full tank of gas, as required by this company. They said the gauge was not touching the tip of the F and we would be charged 100 dollars. We said ok, brought the car around the corner to put 2 dollars in gas but the gas take would not take it on the count that it was full. We told them that the tank is full and would not let us put anymore money into it. They said there was an air pocket in the gas tank hence why the gauge would not touch the tip of the F. They said we might still be charged for it and there's nothing they could do, PLUS be charged for an Extra day still even when we brought it back a day early. They began to yell at us that there was nothing they could do and to take it up with customer service. SO RUDE and disgusting, I never in my life!

I rented a car from the Kent, Washington location and paid in full at time of reservation. The transaction posted to my account. After returning the car Budget charged an even larger amount to my card without my authorization. Budget is now saying that they are charging me extra ($455) because I didn't use the vehicle for the entire time. I'm a Fastbreak customer so all my rental agreement/paperwork was signed in advance. Also paid in advance. Didn't ask for anything for the unused part of my rental but also should not be charged extra.

Reserved a vehicle online for use during my vacation. On the second day of my vacation we had a flat and had to spend hours getting it repaired (company said it was my responsibility). Third day had another flat one block from where the first was repaired. We got a replacement vehicle and was proceeding with our vacation when the brake light came on in this vehicle. We therefore decided to minimize our driving for the rest of the vacation. At the end we also had a bill for the tire repair.

I rented a car from Budget for three days. I prepaid online, $93. When I went to pick the car up the person at the location said their computer system was down and she was not able to look up my reservation. When I returned the car, I took the online reservation with me but she did not take it, the computer system was still down. The car was filled with gas when it was returned.

After I had rented a compact car online and paid for it, I got to the Denver Airport Budget where I talked to Jay and he told me that a Volkswagen Beetle would be what I would get but that people going into Beaver Creek drove SUVs because an SUV was needed to get up and down the mountains. First of all, a Beetle was not listed on the website as a compact car. I had never been to Colorado but didn't think his SUV story was true. After his repeated claim for 30 minutes, my daughter and I got so disgusted that we just told him to upgrade because we wanted to get the car and go. That was my fault but it was also based on 2 lies that he knew weren't true.

Was given an outstanding price on a rental on the day I was arriving by email from Southwest Airlines that beat all other prices by many dollars. Got to airport. Was given the run around for about 15 minutes and then was told which car I would get. I told them that I had to sit in it first (I am a big person) to see if I could drive it, and they told me to take that one or pay for an upgrade to a bigger car. The woman could not have been more rude. I was humiliated and treated like an animal. I complained to the company and they sent me an email sticking up for the woman. Rent from anyone else, just do not rent from Budget....EVER.

I was badly treated by your manager at Oakland Airport when I was picking up a rental car on June 27, 2014. After standing in-line for more than one hour which I don't mind, the car I thought I was getting was not available. I was made to wait for the Chrysler 200 Sedan for extra 30 minutes or more. The service lady (Lavon) was very helpful but the manager Sue was a nightmare. She ignored me when I tried to have a conversation with her the first time. When she eventually stop to talk to me, she was very rude with I don't care attitude. I tried to talk to see why the delay and why others who came at the same time as us had all gone. She just look at us and walked away saying "you will get the car when it's ready". At the end, we end up in a dirty Impala.

I was in a hurry with my young daughter at the Seatac airport looking for a one-way rental to the Sacramento area. I explained that I wanted a rental without mileage. I am hard of hearing and did not have my glasses. The Budget agent showed me the price for the car and I agreed. When I arrived at my destination, the desk clerk said that my fees for the one-way rental was now actually $449 not $221 that I was shown on the agreement. Budget is the worst business I can imagine. If you are a senior or in a hurry to rent a car be careful. There are people out there that will take advantage of you.

I rented a car for a week with Budget at Charleston, WV from the Yeager Airport site. When I returned my vehicle, I was parked in the 20-minute unload zone (so we could get our luggage, etc into the car we were headed home in). I went inside to bring the keys to the counter, etc. and told the lady behind the counter (Jennifer) that I was parked in the 20-minute zone and asked if that was ok. She said I would get a ticket if it wasn't moved and I then asked her if she wanted me to move it real quick and she told me to not worry about it, that she would do it (she already had the keys by this time anyways). I asked if she was sure. She said yes.

2 jerks at counter at Budget Rental 111 Rte 109 Farmingdale, NY. They don't explain why they don't accept debit/check cards. They don't tell you that it costs extra to return early. The Indian guy here was raised by wolves. He has ZERO customer service training. If you call Budget national phone number to complain or question the policies, they can't answer?????? Also the car was filthy. All around a bad experience. I will never use them again. ENTERPRISE is so much better.

Rented a Budget small car through Priceline and bought insurance since I would be in the Dominican full of reckless drivers. When I got to Budget in the Dominican Republic, the rep told me that Priceline's insurance would not be acknowledge there and if I want insurance I would need to buy theirs and get a refund through Priceline. I have no phone with me so I take their word. What a huge mistake. I called Priceline and they told me that of course it covers all collision damage and that it seemed like they just told me something to sell insurance. Now neither Priceline or Budget have refunded me. Budget customer service rep said they will not refund me because they have no way of knowing what was said and that this insurance was optional. This is news to us because apparently it wasn't when we were at the counter. So upset! I'll never use them again and tell others on social media never to use them!

Did a one-way rental from Chicago Midway to another airport in a different city in Illinois. Rented the car at 10:30 p.m. and returned it the next day at 10:05 p.m. (rented less than 24 hours) and was charged an additional $145.00 because the car was returned after the facility had closed at 10:00. I had proof of the return time on my cell phone from a picture I took of the gas gauge and odometer on the car, along with a pic of the car in the Budget lot. Have returned cars to closed facilities in the past with no additional fees.

My daughter and I planned a 10 hour car trip to Las Vegas and decided to rent from Budget since their prices were significantly less expensive than other car rental services. However, when I arrived at Budget to pick up my car, I was told that all they had was a SUV in the lot when I had ordered an intermediate several weeks in advance. The woman at the counter told me that an intermediate would be there at 10 if I wanted to wait. This setback would make us arrive at 9 pm in Las Vegas. She told me they couldn't guarantee what cars they had on the lot all of the time, even though I had reserved it in advance. I was upset for not getting the car I wanted and don't suggest ever renting there if you want fair service.

I am sooo angry and surprised this company would be so deceitful!! I rented a car from this company BUDGET RENTAL CAR so I could get the cheapest rate. When I got to the rental area the man kept trying to sell us an upgraded car. I told him that no the car is fine, we do not need an upgrade. He then tried to sell me insurance.. I said "no I have insurance, I do not need additional insurance." My girlfriend was a witness to this whole conversation.

Budget has some really bad practices. Unlike most rental cars that just put an authorization on your card, they actually charge a deposit to your card. I rented from them on Friday morning at 8 am. The charge showed on my credit card right away. I returned the car on Saturday night at 8 pm. I returned it a full day early.

I had rented the vehicle at Ft. Lauderdale airport for transportation to the Miami cruise Terminal E at the port of Miami. The rental agent mentioned dropping off at the Miami port is better since they will provide free shuttle to the terminal. If you notice, there is a change in the reservation for dropping at the port instead of Miami airport. As per agreement, I brought the car to drop off at 2ND Street, Miami FL. (Port of Miami location) on Sunday 18th at 1:30 PM. To my dismay, the budget rental agency had closed at 1:00 PM. Since my cruise was leaving shortly, I had no choice but to park the car in the Terminal D parking garage.

In April, I rented a weekend rate car from BUDGET in MPLS. The total was less than $100 for 3 days. I asked to extend the rental for 2 more days. BUDGET now says I owe them $367. I also got a letter from headquarters stating that I damaged the car. NOW they say they have no record of that (I have the letter). The phone rep was exceedingly arrogant, said she would send me a copy of the agreement-billing, which I never was able to get from the place where I rented the car. She never sent it. I asked to speak to a supervisor; she said that a supervisor would call back within 48 hours (at her convenience, of course). I think I was scammed by the local agent and the company is just stonewalling. I have used BUDGET often in the past (about 40 times). This incident is making think twice about a future rental.

I pre paid my rental 1 day before my trip and I ask the employee what else I needed to bring to the store the day of the rental. He told me just the card I used and my license to be better prepared. I even call their 800 number to be sure, the person there told me that since I had use a pre paid card, they will put a hold of $100.00 on it on the day of the rental. So next day I went to pick up my car and the employee (same one I talked over the phone) told me that I couldn't use that card. He was very rude when I remind him that I asked him the day before about it, even there was a manager there and she asked him not me about the situation and they didn't let me talk. He told her that he has explained to be VERY CLEAR the day before about this. And I remind him that he didn't, that it was in the 800 number were they told me since he didn't even mention anything to me about the type of cards they accepted.

My Partner and I were charged $250.00 on our credit card, extra, because of pet hair in the back seat of my rental. I was not told of this problem prior to getting my credit card statement. $250.00 seems like an excessive amount to vacuum a seat. I did not really notice excessive pet hair from my small 9-pound dog. We disputed it with Budget, to no avail. We even asked for a supervisor. They left a voice mail on our phone. I guess they are not on my Pet-Friendly Travel list. We have rented many times, will never again with Budget or their partners. Car was rented in Minneapolis. We will dispute it with our credit card company as a charge we did not approve of. When the car was dropped off, the Man checking us in looked at the car and said nothing about pet hair. Beware of hidden charges on good deals.

Rented a truck and was told I had till 430 the next day; now they are charging me an additional $121.68 when i made it back before the time; the male sales rep was extremely rude to me, refused to explain the additional insurances they were requiring you to purchase. I am handicapped. I had to walk from the end of the terminal to the pickup area without any assistance from these rude people. And the truck was nasty. Had a spider inside the truck, not something you want to see when you are driving down the expressway at a higher rate of speed.

I recently rented from Budget Rent A Car at Orlando International Airport. After watching customer after customer arguing with counter reps, it was my turn. When I presented my reservation, which included the purchase of the Budget Insurance, I was forcefully told that the State of Florida Required that I purchase SLI insurance and if I didn't they would check. After 20 min. of arguing, I finally gave in, purchased the insurance just so I could get my car and begin my vacation. Only after talking to the adjacent rental car company and reading my rental agreement did I realize it is not required. If Budget is so desperate for extra money, they should raise their rates, not lie to customers about unnecessary insurance coverage requirements. Shameful and they have lost a long time Budget customer.

I rented a car from Budget after a red eye flight from LA to Toronto. After walking through up and down floors, I found the rental place. Got the car, no agent to do the walk-through, just got handed the slip. The car was parked front-in of course in a dimly lit parking lot. I drove away. Hardly used the car all week long. Swear I didn't get it hit. Going back, I'm told it's damaged in the front. I had no idea. Now they want me to pay $1400 for it. How's that for a car I didn't hit, hardly drove. I am being screwed. I know, what I should have done is pull the car out, inspect it, be thorough, but fool me I trusted that Budget wouldn't rent me a damaged car. Don't trust them, cheaper yes, but you pay in the end.

Rented car through Costco travel services Budget for best price and nearness to dealer where my car was in for service. Rental agents did not have the car until four hours after the reserved time even though I called them in advance to confirm. Found the car to be filthy and disgusting inside and out. Food all over car interior. When I requested that they clean the car, I was told they do not clean the cars. At an hour and one half from close, was told take it or leave it on a Friday night, and headed out of town. Took car only to discover it was more gross than I thought. Called Costco travel who assured me dirty cars were not acceptable and transferred me to Budget who they said would take immediate care of my concern.

I rented a car for 1 day. I was conned into paying for insurance which my insurance would cover. I returned the car on Sunday, which they were closed. They claimed, without proof, that I was an hour late and charged me $97.00 for an extra day. No one will call me back! I would be very careful when dealing with this shady company!

I got to Santo Domingo and Budget didn't honor my reservation. They demanded 499 for the week. They explained I didn't book it directly and they won't honor my reservation with Priceline.... I will address this further with Priceline.

We went to Washington DC just last weekend. I have used Enterprise before, Great company! But this time, we went through Budget rental. Everything was very good, I have no complaints on the car, except that it was dirty in the outside, no big deal. My problem is that NO ONE READS YOUR PAPERS, (budget) I got charged twice for gas, because I did NOT READ! We ran 52 miles, it cost me only $8.75 to filled the car back up! Of course, for $8.75 I am not worry about gas, I FILLED THE TANK TO THE MAX! But they say I had to show them a receipt that I filled it up! WHAT, You dummies don't know to see your tank is full to the max?

I flew into Wichita and rented a "car" from Budget Rent A Car. It was a discounted Ford Cargo Van which was supposedly full of gas when I received it. After driving it around Pratt and Preston for a few days, I returned it to Budget, having fill the gas tank at a Phillips 66 service station about a mile from the Wichita airport. A couple of days ago, I received a letter from the Wichita Budget manager, Shannon **, indicating that they had to put 2.3 gallons of gas in the vehicle and charged my credit card $25.43. Budget charges an exorbitant per gallon rate of $8.99. In my opinion, this is a SCAM. I filled the vehicle with fuel in good faith. I am assuming that I returned the vehicle with very close to the same amount of fuel as I received it.

Our rental car experience all went rather smoothly until after we had returned the car. While checking in at the airport our travel guest realized her bag was a few pounds light and she had left a bag of clothing in the storage well behind the drivers' seat. We immediately returned to where we had returned the car and were told the car had already been driven away not more than 15 minutes later. We immediately started calling Budget trying to have her clothing located and returned. We kept getting shuffled back and forth - call here call there, no one willing to help or care in anyway. We made at least 6 calls and no one offered to mediate in any way. On returning home, we found a Budget Car Customer care email address. We have written about our problems, and 24 hours later got an email saying our letter has been forwarded to the appropriate office. Five days after we returned the car, and no one has been willing to find this poor girl her clothing!!

Stay away from Budget Car Rentals. My wife went to Vancouver and rented a car from Budget, returned it at 5:11am due to her return flight being at 6:45 am. Someone was there to check vehicle back in, when given her receipt she noticed she was charged for Insurance @ $25.95 per day for 5 days. Now here's the rub, before she left I called my Insurance Company to see if we had Insurance for car rentals and we did for all of Canada and USA which we pay a additional yearly fee for. So my wife says no she doesn't want the Insurance because she already has coverage, so when she returns vehicle that early, there is no one in the office to correct the situation, just the guy checking in vehicles for damages and to see if you brought it back with a full tank of gas.

I have frustration. I need help. My father is terminally ill. I have taken FMLA from work to travel from Seattle where I reside to Ogden, Utah where my father lives to assist with his care and spend quality time with him until the inevitable occurs. Since I will be gone for greater than 60 days, I thought it more prudent to rent a car than to pay for several suitcases of luggage on an airline to take with me. I did my price checking and decided on Budget Rental Car. I made my reservation with them via phone on the 27th of May and received a confirmation number. Note since I am requesting a one-way rental car, I was notified I must pick the car up at Seatac as no other Budget location in our area rents cars one way. I was quoted $370.00 or so on the phone for the one-way trip dropping off at Riverdale Road in Ogden, Utah.

When I returned the rental car at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Rental return, I was issued a Receipt. The receipt reads as follows: TAX 15.300% 62.02. My problem is that 15.300% of 146.73 = $22.44, NOT 62.02. In fact, $62.02 is 42.26% of 146.73. The service agent at the rental car return said I have to call customer service, the receipt prints automatically and she has no control over the tax being wrong. I called customer service. The rep I spoke to refused to listen to me as I tried to explain that 15% of 146.73 is 22.44, NOT 62.02. She kept telling me tax is not refundable or changeable - again, she simply was not listening to me.

We had made our reservations online in the US using Booking.com to pick up a car at the Budget office in Galway, Ireland. We planned to drop off the car at the Dublin Airport. We were to have the car for 12 days. When we arrive at the Galway office, we are told that our credit card was not valid to cover the mandatory insurance. This is correct. There are a few countries which will not honor the Visa/MC policies and Ireland is one of them. (This was a lesson for us, to check and double check when your travel and plan to rent a car in another country) The agent at the desk proceeds to inform us of the various insurance options, all of which were very expensive, but they will not rent the car to you without it.

I used reward points from a hotel loyalty program towards a budget rental vehicle. I opted for the insurance which according to the receipt should have been about $200. I also rented a gps which was $50 for the trip. However, the vehicle I rented came equipped with an in-dash gps navigation unit. When I tried to return the gps they said they could not take it off the bill and there is absolutely no way for them to know the vehicle already had gps before they rented me the mobile gps. In addition, there are charges that aren't explained on the receipt such as "@non pkg items, add pkg chgs". When I got angry the lady behind the counter went to speak with the manager and he wouldn't come speak to me. I called customer service and they also were not helpful in any way. I will never use budget again and will urge every else to let that company fold.

Budget charged me $233 more on a total of $629 for a 3-hr return delay which they were forewarned about. They also tacked on a gas charge when I returned the vehicle more full than when I received it (I saved all the receipts to prove this). The 37% surcharge (which includes gps rental, insurance etc for an extra day) is excessive and arrogant and bad business policy. Shame on Budget -- consumers should know as well as better business bureau. When I called it in, the attendant also told me the same thing - "you might as well keep it another day," but I did not do that - just returned it 3-hrs late which changed the cost of my Budget SUV rental from $209/day to $287/day. Never Budget - stick to Enterprise or Zip Car.

Rented a car in Marrakech, Morocco for two weeks travel in the country. When I asked for a map of Morocco I was handed a glossy map of the tourist center of Marrakech, the kind of cheap map you get at hotels, full of ads and that falls apart after a few uses. If I wanted a country map I had to buy my own at a nearby newsstand. So for a $600.00 two-week rental, Budget is too cheap to provide a map (it says it's under no obligation to provide maps!). When I complained to Budget and asked for a $10.00 credit to the charge they insolently told me, in effect, that they didn't have to provide maps and would only give me a credit towards a future rental. No thanks. Don't need them.

I prepaid for a rental, then explicitly told the counter agent that I did not want the extra insurance as I was covered by my credit card. I then initialed a long confusing list of charges, with no total--should have read it more closely of course, but I was tired from a long flight and seriously didn't think this type of ins ripoff was still going on in the US. The final bill was almost double what I had initially paid. I called to complain and while the charge was removed, the agent chastised me for not being more careful - best of all. When I said Budget should be more careful and I was not going to use them again, she said "So then, we're not going to refund you the money". Unbelievable!!! I got the money in the end but what a nasty experience.

When picking up my car, the Budget rep asked me what car I drove at home. I replied a Buick Rendezvous. He said, "Great, I'll put you in a Nissan Rogue, initial here, initial here, sign here." And off I went. When I returned the car I noticed the final price was $100 more than I thought it would be, but I was in a hurry and so I signed and went. Upon inspection of the receipt, I realized I had signed for a $20/day x 5 upgrade for the Nissan Rogue. I have called to complain and get this resolved, but they only offer to credit $50 back. What is right is right and I will only accept a full credit. It appears that Budget is complicit in this criminal behavior. I will not rent from them again and I suggest, if you do, buyer beware.

I was charged an upgrade fee after being told there would be no extra charge. Why would I want to pay an extra $15/day after renting through Priceline? I asked the mpg of the upgrade vs. the compact car we rented and was lied to by the CSR. I was told the Compact Focus got 22 mpg vs. the Full Size car at 36 mpg. I tried to resolve the dispute through the BWI rental location to no avail. I called Budget Headquarters at (918) 624-4210 and was pleasantly surprised to have the upgrade charge reversed after explaining my story. Moral of the story: never accept an upgrade when renting a car, even if told there will be no extra charge.

I made a reservation on the phone for a car with hand controls at Canada’s largest airport - Toronto Pearson and was quoted 182 including taxes and fees. Someone was supposed to call to confirm and no one did. I called to make sure they would be installed and was informed that the price was increased to 383.00! ALSO, they stated they were not willing to put the hand controls on a car but only an SUV and were charging me for the SUV. The most ridiculous part is that I am in a wheelchair and cannot transfer into a SUV by myself therefore making the request completely moot. Apparently, Budget will only install hand controls in a SUV at the Toronto Airport location which totally defeats the purpose of the client who needs them in the first place. Also would like to mention this was only made clear to me 4 days before I was to pick up the vehicle. Not happy with the service at Budget and no further assistance was offered.

Location: Budget Rental Car DFW Airport - I booked a standard car via Priceline at Budget Rental Car DFW Airport. I´m a German native and live in Europe. I always book at Priceline and never add any upgrade or insurance when I pick up my car. I have rented so far approx. 200 cars within the past 10 years. Never had any issue. At check in I ALWAYS refuse any upgrade sell or any additional insurance since I have my own coverage.

Let me start by saying for all of you with opinions, this is just my story and I'm probably 40% at fault. We rented the car from Priceline and paid in full $340 and change. It was 6 days and we were to the minute with picking up and returning the car. We have three children and one need a booster seat. On the Priceline website they said there maybe a charge for this. That was the last a heard about the charge until I saw an $83.06 on my credit card. At the counter in Houston, Pedro never mention the price of the seat. He just asked if we needed one and said he would be happy to get one out of the warehouse. We took one and drove off. When returning the car, we noticed on our receipt a charge for $83.06. We asked what that was for and they said we were not being billed anything.

I rented a vehicle via ebookers and was charged a fixed price. I then discovered on my return home that Budget had charged me an extra $300 at the end of the rental. I did not agree to these charges but Budget tell me I signed for them. What I was led to believe was that I was signing for the rental of the vehicle and to abide with the rules and regulations. I did not sign to include those other extras and I said so to the clerk but as it is 100 pages long of rules and regulations and you just want to enjoy your holiday you just sign and collect the car. I had no idea that Budget were a bunch of unprofessional cheats and I will never rent or recommend Budget again!

I gave 3 stars because of end result only.

You would be better off walking than take a chance renting from Budget. How they run their business is exactly what their name says - on a BUDGET! When you rent a car from them, they don't guarantee a certain car or class, just a vehicle. So if you rent a large vehicle because you need that much space for the number of passengers and luggage in your group, you would expect to have a vehicle as such waiting for you. But not so with Budget, you most likely will get a car much smaller. So much smaller that you can't get everyone and the luggage into the vehicle. Then what? Well you have to rent another car from them.

I rented a car from Budget (BMW) for 6 days fully insured. Got on the highway, a stone hit the front windshield, cracked it about 4 inches. Now they are asking me for about 1800 US dollars for it. I checked on social media for anyone with same problem. Nobody believe it.

Three weeks after dropping of car (03/20/14), they decide to put charge on our credit card $75 for vacuuming the car. Do they not vacuum every car after a use? Also why after three weeks such things can be seen and charged for at time of return if necessary and they do this after the initial bill has been signed and paid for! I do admit some sand in car but Florida known for sand - not dirty otherwise, and this type of business should own a vacuum. This is where credit card fraud starts with companies holding numbers. I also have called the customer care line now two times with them "a supervisor" will call back and they do not. Also, at the desk when we rented the car, we inquired about a transponder and we were quoted $14.95 per day. Have found out that the price was really $3.95/day - who was really getting the other $11.00 (turns out we didn't need one)? We paid as we went and that total was $5.00. The car was fine but the company kept trying to upsell everything - and the insurance being very hefty. We will not use that company again - consumer beware! Apparently, they have pictures of the sand we shoveled into the car.

I went the OAK airport Budget car rental to pick up my car that I had prepaid for. My rental dates were from Saturday, March 29th - Friday, April 4th. At the counter I upgraded to a BMW at the rate of $250 on top of what I had already paid. While driving the car, service light came on "Drive Moderately. Brake pads need to be changed. Call service center". Approximately 20 mins after the service light came on, we reached our destination & I called roadside assistance. They took the report & assured me that I would receive a replacement vehicle at 10:30 am the next day & someone would call prior to the drop off. The replacement car would come from Budget at LAX in Los Angeles, CA (closet Budget to my location at that time).

Recently shared a car rental with a friend in Florida. The rental agent at the desk was very friendly and seemed informative. He called someone in the garage to check on our rental and asked us if we wanted to upgrade. Assuming the car we asked for was not available, we asked him how much. He said no worries, he would take care of it. Nice guy .....right? Renter BEWARE!!!! He now had us in a false sense of security and we trusted this guy (both of us being new to the car rental game). He had my friend sign and initial a bunch of documents in a very hurried manner, all along talking, I realize now to distract us from reading the pages (the sad thing is we both know better than to sign something without reading it).

Budget Car Rental Sucks Major Wind. Reserved car not available at airport. We had to wait (from about midnight to 1 a.m.) at airport for car (2 of us are disabled, one 85-year old in wheel chair). I rented a full-size car for the wheel chair and need for 4 doors. Car delivered will not start. When the driver gave us the car at the airport, he said they had trouble starting it but it seemed okay now. 1-800-354-2847 Roadside Assistance agreed to deliver new car at 10 a.m., showed up at noon. 1-800-354-2847 Roadside Assistance tow truck diver was abusive when informed car MAY NOT start. (Before the tow truck came I went to the car to remove my stuff from it and the car fob was dead. I had to use the backup key to get in the car. I did not know if it would start.) I only know how to start it with the fob. I did not see a way to start it with key fob dead. 1-800-354-2847 Roadside Assistance told me to take the car back to the airport (several miles). I cannot start it. I am VERY unhappy with Budget.

3/16 vehicle rental online via Budget.com reservation with promotional code from USAA. My bill from this sale is itemized in the following way: car 191.15; options 0.00 (my assumption was that "fuel option" was promotional since not listed); fees & taxes 40.94. Total paid online: 232.09. 3/20: picked up car at Avoca Airport/Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. I immediately noted heavy cigarette smoke smell. I assumed it was from whoever parked the vehicle and would dissipate on drive to my home with windows down.

I reserved a car online for Friday to a Monday. 76.99 for a weekend special and I figured it would be a bit more with insurance. I picked the car up, added the insurance and was on my way. Monday car was due back at 1:00, I called them said I have a late appointment and will return by 4 PM. The rep said ok no problem, no mention that I have to pay an extra day. When I got back he said, "Oh you have this till tomorrow, why don't you just keep it?" I said I had no idea, then he explained the extra charges. I said, "Well you have an hourly. I figured that's what I would be charged." He said NO, you it's an extra day." So I said, "Fine, that will help in the morning and I will return by 1:00."

They added an upgrade but didn't tell me nor ask for my permission, but did take the time to discuss other details of my rental leaving me to trust I had all the information when I was signing. I only found the SURPRISE upgrade upon rental return.

I called Budget to rent a car and reached the 1-800-527-7000 reservation line several time after calling the local number with no answer. I reserved what I thought would be a Ford Fusion for $34.13 daily rate with total being $102.39 for 3 days. When I arrived at Budget I spoke with Lynn who advised me as soon as I arrived that she was about to close. I told her I had a reservation already for a Ford Fusion. She advised me for the amount quoted, I would have to pay an extra $30 for that car, even though that is what I was quoted. She was rude and did not take the time out to explain the insurance option to me.

This is a mixed review, but the billing really leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I rented a car from Budget in Vero Beach, FL at 1:25 pm on 3/10/14. I returned the car to Fort Lauderdale airport the following day at 1:30. As I left my phone in the car (idiot) the people doing the returns were good, they retrieved my phone, took 30 minutes, but they'd already moved the car to another location - but I got my phone back. Good for the crew. I looked at my phone when I got it back and it said 2:06. I'd been waiting 30 minutes at that time.