Budget Car Rental Reviews

Everything about this company sucks. The Budget right by the airport in Birmingham Alabama is the worst rental car place in history hands down. I booked a vehicle a week in advance got there on time and tried to offer me a small ass sedan when I booked a 7 seat suv a whole week in advance. The budget Rental car company should be shut down completely!

I rented a car at Islip Airport and prepaid and there was a 45 minute wait online as the car was not at Fastbreak for pick up. I signed the contract which said it was full of gas, it had 1/4 tank so I took a picture and thought I would deal with that at return. As soon as I got on the highway I realized that the car was completely out of alignment and pulling to the right. It was 8:30 at night and pouring rain so I continued on to my lodging thinking I would return it to a local office as I did not want to go back on the highway with it. The local office ended up being closed for July 4th so I called roadside assistance which told me they had no idea when they could bring mr a new car so I took Uber ($130) every place I went that day.

I am very disappointed with Budget and the car I rented for a week. I waited in line for 45 minutes, to go through rental process and then another line to pick up the car. When I got the car, it was smelly and dirty. There was trash under the driver's side and the glove box (e.g. receipts). On a positive side, the car itself, Ford Bronco was good. When I returned the car, they charged me extra for gas and I had the car filled. I had to stand another liine for 20 more minutes until the credit was given. I tried to speak with the manager and he walked away and never returned to address my complaints. Bottom line, I will not use Budget again.

Your company is awful. Neither I, nor my family, nor anyone in my business will ever use Budget or Avis EVER again. I did not agree to this refund amount. You all said this is all you would give me. You all owe me more than $282.60. You can keep your dirty money. I haven’t received it anyway. You owe me now an additional $679.52 on top of that amount. My rental agreement was for 1 day which was for July 31 through Aug 1st. The total on the agreement was $167.25. I returned the car within the time of the rental agreement as I dropped off the car on August 1st. However, your worker there failed to check in the vehicle in your system and I was charged $1,129.37. Apparently he didn’t check it in until August 6th. I actually was in Nashville TN on August 6th, so I’m not sure how I could have returned it then. Even with the $282.60 refund (which I still have not seen btw), you all still owe me $679.52.

The desk was greatly understaffed, and the lot itself had just one person available to provide cars to the very long line of customers waiting outside in the blazing sun and 90° heat. I am a heart patient, and the heat was causing me to feel dehydrated and light headed. I had no water with me, and unfortunately there are no vending machines on the premises. I was legitimately concerned that I might go into afib or even pass out, and the entire experience was extremely stressful. Then when it was finally our turn, we were told that there were no SUV’s available, even though we had pre-paid for one. Our only choice was to accept a Chevy Malibu, which we did out of desperation to escape the heat, but we never received a refund.

We had rented through Budget for our trip. When we got home I had noticed our bill and it was way more than what it should of been. They ended up charging us for 2 insurances, which why would you need two of them, and wouldn't do anything about it. Customer service is poor and they obviously try and scam you out of more money. Would not recommend!!!

What a nightmare. I made a reservation at the Avis/Budget location on US Hwy 19 in Palm Harbor, only to show up and be told they had no cars available — even though I had a confirmed booking. Instead of taking responsibility, they sent me to the Tampa airport, over 30 minutes away, claiming I could pick up a car there. But when I got to the airport, the Avis office said they had nothing to do with my reservation and basically shrugged me off. The woman at the counter was completely unhelpful and seemed annoyed I was even asking for assistance. This whole experience was a waste of my time, money, and patience. No accountability, no coordination between locations, and clearly no respect for customers. I’ll never book with this company again. Fox rental car was the one that help us!

Falsely accusing me of damaging car and breaking windshield. I did my research and they have done this to so many people. It’s a scam. Sarasota, Florida location. I took car to get washed before turning in, pictures showed a dirty vehicle.

Very bad experience. First I’m given a key fob with Scotch tape holding it together. We were at the San Diego zoo and the car was dead. 2.8 miles away from the Rental facility. We could have walked there in one hour to exchange the vehicle but we were told that the tow truck would be there in an hour and a half and that they would pick myself, my wife and son up. Instead we waited four hours and a second tow truck company to pick the car up and just myself. My wife and son took a taxi. Incompetence. Unacceptable service. And then no partial refund because we prepaid. Horrible.

I rented a car from Budget at the Hilton Head Airport. Long story short, I lost my key. This lead to 22 phone calls and 3 emails between myself, customer service and emergency roadside service. It also took two days and three tow trucks. At one point, emergency roadside needed to talk to the Hilton Head desk and could not get through. They literally asked me to do so and then call them back! On more than one occasion, I had to call customer service to connect me to emergency roadside assistance because when I would call, it would ring eight times then disconnect. Ultimately, they told me the car would be towed to Hilton Head Airport. I changed my plane tickets from Savannah (where I was flying out of) to Hilton Head Airport. That cost me over $1000.

I was changed $773 for a $329 rental. When calling customer service to get an answer I got the runaround. The representative kept back peddling and trying to use rental car lingo. When I asked for clarification, she was unable to provide because the charges were erroneous. I was told I would pay a fee of $177.13 on top of rental agreement, NOT $443 additional dollars. I spoke to 4 separate representative prior to dropping off car to confirm charges.

If I could give zero stars I would. We had to wait over an hour in line at the airport to get the car in the first place, it was in bad condition as far as cleanliness goes and was only half filled with what we thought was gas. It turned out to be an electric car which they never told us it would be, and they did not provide us with an adapter. We have wasted two hours on the phone to try to figure this out. They have sent us to two different charging places, neither of which can accommodate us and we’re still waiting to figure out how to charge this car so we can get back to the airport. Horrible service!!!

We had a reservation through Costco Travel for a 7-seater minivan with Budget at the Long Beach Airport location for pickup on a Thursday evening. The vehicle was reserved a couple months in advance for a family vacation that had been planned for months. When we arrived, we were told all vans were under recall and worse, the staff had no backup plan and could ONLY offer us a 5-seater, which obviously didn’t work for our group. We were told to call customer service to check other locations ourselves. After a long call, we were informed that John Wayne Airport had a 7-seater elite SUV available for $300 more. Frustrating, but we agreed to pay the extra just to move on.

My husband truck was down so we decided to rent through Budget 'cause of what we was quoted. We kept the truck a few extra days and they gave us an estimate of what it would cost of 404 so my husband took the rental back yesterday and they sent him a final bill for 5 days of 868.97. Please tell me where all these extra fees came from. They overcharged for the insurance by 115.00 and then the others fees of such as a taxable product fee and rental tax of 340.59, plus a nota-taxable fee of 44.95 on top the 238.87 already paid. What did we miss 'cause budget this is rip off and will not be renting from you gain ever. You are worst than HERTZ.

My family and I rented a small vehicle at Budget in punta cana international airport. It was the worst experience ever, our booking price was $233 for 5 days. We was ok with the price but then they tell us that we have to pay for insurance par day, and a collision deposit that was going to transfer back to my account in 30 to 40 days. The total came up to $633. Now I tried reaching out to them and they tell me I don’t have any refunds. That should of read the fine prints before signing. A total rip off.

We rented a luxury car at DTW. After our wait at checkout, we waited under a white tent for them to bring a Volvo to us. Pulled up in a Mazda and told us it was a Volvo. Next car was a Mercedes that still had trash inside. It was electric with only a 25% charge! Call center said we could exchange it at any Budget location. Drove 30 mins only to be told that was not the case. Drove an hour back to the airport and dropped it off. Went across the street to Enterprise. 10 mins and we were off in a clean car. No issues! We were charged extra b/c we were 1 hour over 24 hours! Still fighting that since we were given incorrect info as to retuning at any location.

I only gave it a1 because a 0 was not an option. If you rent online they will not tell you they need a major credit card to get the keys but if you're like me, I like paying everything off for my vacation so the only cash I need to bring is for souvenirs. Budget took my Mastercard debit card and reservation and paid off vehicle. When the time came to pick it up they told me I needed to show a major credit card to get the keys. I rented from them yearly since around 2015. Never no problem till now. The problem was now they wouldn't give us the rental and we had to look around for another company to find an 7 passenger SUV with no reservation and not expensive as all our money for a rental went to Budget who said 10 days for a refund. When making the reservation there was no mention of a major card. Found a small SUV 7 passenger at Enterprise same price with bumper to bumper insurance. Yes it was smaller but we had a vehicle.

The representative was very rude and patronizing and attempted to upsell me on everything — resulting in double the Costco estimate. The key I received was broken and they could not care. The rude treatment was unreal— was this N. Korea or USA? Manager was rude as well. Never received such a depressing and discriminatory experience., They should not be in business at the Fort Lauderdale location-/it was a nightmare from communism-. Could not care at all about customer. Worse experience ever in car hire, Costco and AAA should warn customers-this was bad and unsettling!

I’ve done numerous rentals with various rental car businesses over the years, but by far my experiences with Budget Rental Car are the worst! Recently, I rented a car from Budget Rental Car at a nearby airport, only to receive a car that not only reeked of cigarette smoke but had several damages to the outside of the vehicle. It wasn’t even cleaned out but was dirty and still had numerous brochures in the back seat. There was even cigarette hole in the driver’s seat! Needless to say, I contacted Budget Rental Car Services, and they requested I take pictures of everything and submit it via email to specific case number. I was then informed to bring the car back and exchange it at any nearby Budget Rental Car.

I had reserved my car weeks before I was to be at the Albany airport. My flight went well and was on time getting in at 4:15 p.m. EDT. When I got to the Budget Car rental office (they share a kiosk with Avis) I experienced a 25 customer line with three agents helping customers. I was discouraged but thought everything would proceed on a timely basis. I was so wrong. After 30 minutes I had not progressed one step. The same customers were with agents the whole time and had not moved on. It was a slow go. After and hour I had progressed roughly two customers. People who's turn to was to get a car and move on were going nowhere.

If I could give it a zero, then I would! I stood in line for about 2 hours to rent a car with one person working the front desk. Never told me how much would be charged to my card when I did the pre-check. Find out it’s twice as much! This has been an absolutely horrible experience!!!! Do better Budget!

I am not one to leave reviews, but I would give zero stars if I could. My husband and I packed up everything we own to move across country and rented with Budget because USAA has a relationship with them. Not only did the first truck’s check engine light come on 3/4 of the way to our new apartment, but my husband was stuck for ten hours before someone could come out and look at the truck and ANOTHER two hours before it could be towed, as the mechanic deemed it out of commission. Mind you- It’s the middle of summer with a high of 93 and he’s stuck at a rest stop in the middle of nowhere while all of this is happening. Fine, we get it, life happens.

Extremely Disappointing Experience – Major Customer Service and Vehicle Issues. I waited in line over 102 minutes to pick up my Budget rental. The pickup process was complete chaos — the line order was disorganized, and only two representatives were working the counter for a large number of frustrated customers. When I finally reached the desk, I was told the passenger van was not clean and needed attention. After waiting another 20 minutes, I was informed the van was actually at a different location and not yet brought over. I was then told I could walk with my entire group of eight people, including seniors and children — all with luggage — to retrieve it myself.

I rented my vehicle from the Budget at the MCO airport in Orlando. If you choose to rent a car with them, review the contract thoroughly and ask questions before signing. Their staff will not voluntarily explain the nuances between their different offerings. For example, they have two different E-Toll options for their vehicles. A standard option (pay for the tolls that you incur and a small convenience fee on the days you incur them) and an unlimited option (pay a flat rate every day of your rental regardless if you go through tolls). The staff member that finalized my reservation simply asked me, "Do you plan on using the toll unit in the vehicle?" to which I responded, "Yes." I had no idea at the time there were two different toll programs. He then proceeded to sign me up for their E-Toll Unlimited program and I was hit with a hefty fee at the end of my reservation. Be careful!

I rented a car from Budget in Florida and it completely stalled while at a red light about to get on the Florida Turnpike. I called customer service and they told me I was in an unsafe spot to be towed, so call patrol. I called 911. The police officer got me a tow truck who took us with the car back to the airport Budget for a new rental. I received a bill from the tow truck company in the amount of $282 and Budget is not reimbursing me the money. They left me on the side of the road in their broken-down car that the hazards wouldn’t even go on. Their customer service is horrible and their cars are even worse. I will never use Budget again.

I booked a van 3 months before my daughter's graduation to move her back home. I received a call during the graduation that I could not pick up, obviously. Two hours later we arrived at the Haynes Mall location to pick up the vehicle only to find out that there was no vehicle for me to rent. Dennis told me that he tried to call me. He didn't say he was sorry or even attempt to help me in my situation. He told me I could drive to the Greensboro airport and see if they had anything. I asked him to call, but he said he couldn't. I called Budget while driving and they couldn't help me either. We did drive to the airport and ended up getting an SUV that worked okay. They couldn't have been nicer and more helpful. I can't believe how bad the Winston Salem customer service was. No help, no apology, nothing.

Never and I mean never rent a car from Budget. Budget has become real shady. I reserve a car from Budget on July 10. In my reservation I refused the Budget insurance, because my Allstate Insurance covers me for rentals. When I did pre-check, Budget ask me again and I refused. When I got to the Budget counter, they ask me again did I was insurance on the car and I said no. My Allstate Insurance covers me for rentals. Why did the Budget representative charge me insurance of $114.45 on my car. They specifically added the charge after I told them several times that I didn't want the insurance.

DO NOT RENT FROM BUDGET. This company scammed me to pay for damage their own employees did to the car. We picked up our car at the Tampa Airport. As we were leaving, the customer service agent said, “It’s a new car. If anything happens to it, it’s your fault.” We thought, “That’s a really weird thing to say.” 10 minutes into driving, the whole underneath of the bumper fell off and began dragging on the ground. We realized we’d been given a broken car on purpose to get out of claiming the damage I assume one of their employees caused and hid. When we were safely able to pull over (it fell apart on a bridge to make matters worse), you could see that someone had tried to tie up the bumper, the tie snapped, and the whole thing fell down.

I rented a car from Budget and was charged $ 483.91. I was given a refund by the counter agent when I picked up the car of $ 27.05. I was then charged an additional fee of $ 34.74 when I returned the Car (showed up on my credit card). When I called they said it was for refueling which was a lie, we filled it up in the gas station on the same road as the airport a whole $ 6.50 (I didn't want any questions) so I had to send them the receipts and copy of all the other charges, they kept saying I was only charged $ 456.86. They refunded $7.69 and said it was resolved but kept the $ 27.05 and told me it was a computer glitch, they couldn't explain why. I will never rent from this rip off car company. I hope you won't either. The counter Lady was really sweet but the customer service sucks. Just talked in circles, really had no excuse. I wasn't supposed to not see that and the believe it was refueling.

Renters beware renting from Budget. We rented a car at Dallas Fortworth Airport June 27. The car inside was dirty but we were in a rush so for a week it would do. The next morning we drive and the driver’s front wheel was leaking air. We put in air and observed. 2 days later tire was deflated again. We call roadside but had trouble getting through to a live person so we called the local Dallas Budget. He told us that they would charge us for a new tire and recommend we go to Discount Tires to get it patch. At Discount Tires, they told us both front tires were so bad, the treads were less than 2 and they could not patch it. In fact, they said Budget should have never let us drive in it.

Budget Car Rental is nothing but bullshit they overcharge you, they are rip offs and the customer service sucks. Do not and I mean DO NOT ever rent a car from them.. I'm getting a hold of the Better Business Bureau and reporting these people so they don't take advantage of any other customers. 👎👎👎👎

I reserved a car to be picked up at Logan Airport in Boston Massachusetts on July 9th. As I arrived at the counter there were at least 50 people ahead of me. I got in line after almost an hour and a half. A lady (Budget employee) started yelling that if anyone had a reservation get out of line and go to another line in a different area. So we went. There were about 20 people in that line. Shortly after getting in line another Budget employee began yelling that unless we had a special membership we had to go back where we started. Grrr. There was NO ONE to get information from. I canceled my reservation then and there. Went to another rental company and within 15 minutes was on my way.. for about the same price for the same grade vehicle. I will NEVER use Budget again.

I recently rented a 7-seater vehicle and prepaid $179.01 for a one-day rental. After a 20-hour international flight, I wanted to ensure my family could travel home comfortably, without being cramped or struggling with our luggage. Unfortunately, the rental process was already slow—due to limited staff handling a high volume of customers—and took about an hour.

I am writing to formally file a complaint regarding my recent experience with Budget Rental Car, which involved misleading pricing, poor customer service, and the failure to return a $194.20 hold that I was assured would be refunded. When I booked the rental, I was told that the total cost would be $257.75. I paid this amount in full with the understanding that an additional $194.20 hold would be placed on my card temporarily and refunded upon return of the vehicle. However, the total charge to my account ended up being $451.95, and I was never refunded the $194.20 hold, despite being told otherwise at the time of rental.

Reserved a larger van for our vacation MONTHS in advance. When we went to pick it up, a smaller van was substituted with no compensation. We requested a larger van for a REASON - now we have to tow an extra box to carry our items that would have been "okay" in the larger van. Not acceptable and I will tell others not to go here if you have an expectation of being treated fairly.

Just spent $44.55 filling my rental up before returning only to get charged a $100 refueling fee. RIDICULOUS!!!! I AM BEYOND LIVID!!!! AND 3 -5 DAYS TO GET MY MONEY BACK?!?! And I have to wait for the deposit????

⭐️ (1 out of 5 stars). Unacceptable Delay – Missed Business Meeting Due to Poor Service. Very disappointed in Budget’s customer service. We reserved our car for Friday at 10:00 AM and arrived at Atlanta International Airport on time at 9:30 AM, checked in at the Budget counter at 10:00 AM — but didn’t receive our vehicle until 1:30 PM, after waiting 3.5 hours.

During the rental, I discovered a significant tire bulge (approximately one inch) on the rear, right tire. This kind of sidewall damage made the vehicle unsafe to drive, particularly on highways or over long distances. I contacted Budget’s roadside assistance, but they were unable to help. All they said was that I could drive the vehicle to a repair shop (risking my safety in doing so) and that they would reimburse me if I went out of pocket to replace the tire. No repair shops were open, as it was Sunday, on 4th of July weekend. So, I was advised that replacement vehicles were available at the nearest Budget location, so I reluctantly risked driving the unsafe vehicle there. However, once I arrived, I was told that no vehicles were actually available.

I placed a reservation with Budget for a full size SUV but was given a standard SUV. It would not fit our all our luggage and was told we would receive a 20 percent discount but only received less then 10% discount. We had to rent another vehicle just to carry our luggage.

As I write this, my husband and I are waiting in line to pick up a rental car from the Cleveland airport, we have been here about 45 minutes. There's only one clerk working and now they only have electric cars left. We're airport car rental experience ever

This is the worst experience I’ve ever had with a rental car company. Two lines to wait in. Completely inefficient. No one is working. Those who are, are incredibly rude. This is the second line after waiting 30 minutes for a shuttle and 30 minutes in the first line.

Where most companies publish the total price, Budget excludes taxes. They obscure thus until you pay. We hit the pay button, saw the confirmation, immediately called to cancel and was told we cannot. I travel quite a bit. No longer using Budget.

Horrible experience in Blountville Tn. We reserved a full size car from Budget 2 months in advance for a trip. Went to pickup the car and they claimed they have no cars available in full size. They then tried to put us in an economy car that is way smaller and also charge $225 more. To me this is deceptive overcharging practices. It's a con job and fraud!!

I recently had a frustrating experience with Budget that I feel compelled to share. I was assured by an agent over the phone that I would be reimbursed for a charge, but when I followed up later, they completely refused to honor that promise. It’s incredibly disappointing to deal with a company that does not stand by its word. I expected better customer service, especially after receiving confirmation from their representative. I won’t be using Budget again in the future, and I would advise others to think twice before renting from them. Budget is trash.

Had to stand in a long line at the off site Budget Car Rental at New Orleans Airport. Completely understaffed. Absolutely unacceptable - avoid Budget at all costs. Poor poor service and not a great start to my work trip here.

We received a rental car that had a crack in the windshield that could not be noticed from the outside and could only be noticed once the windshield wipers started, which they did about 30 minutes into our trip. At the counter they had told us to simply take pictures of any damage and it would be easy to rectify this. We called Budget and they instructed us to return the car to Cork Airport where they could get us another. At Cork, they commented that Dublin had dumped their problems on them and were not joking and treated us as such. They kept insisting on showing us the initial damage report despite us telling them that we already knew that Budget had missed the initial damage on the car. They charged us 660 euros to pay for a new windshield that we had not damaged.

Budget rental is a scam customer service is horrible and they lie about everything. Please save your money and use another car rental service. They quoted me several different then they kept me on the phone 2 hours trying to find out the correct price. USE ANOTHER RENTAL SERVICE. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.

Worst rental experience of my life!! Picked my car up Friday 7/4 at CLT. I reserved a premium SUV but the lady at the counter said the full size Expedition I got was a premium. So shafted from the start. Had to take because we were leaving the next morning for vacay. Left with my family of 7 at 4am Sat 7/5 and quickly realized I only had one headlight and no high beams. Couldn’t see anything. Stopped at a QT and realized the entire underpinning on the front end was falling off. I’ve called customer service 4 times since then and all they want to do is make me drive 5hrs away to get a replacement. Won’t offer to meet me half way or anything. This whole thing has been terrible!! Now I have to drive back 11hrs with the same pathetic car. Never again!!

We booked a rental from Budget in Niagara falls NY. New girl at the desk. Another employee was trying to help 3xs to do it and it was pre reg. Ask her to add my son, my CC back. She said I gave it back, my son said no it's hidden under that pile of paper from the many times she. We pay for pre fill gas. After 2 hours we go get the car. It's electric, wth, side panel flapping off. We got another car. Stop at a store. Realize the little ** didn't give me my license back. Wth. Now this was Bday gift so son couldn't drink since I had no license.. He had to do all the driving and no cocktails at his own party. We returned the car and there was my license. Pay $$ to get a replacement so I can drive to work. They did give a mere $ 50 credit.

The car was so filthy I had to clean the inside of the car. The tires were bald, the car shook going 50 mph and the wiper blades did not work. Customer service was worse than the car. I called to complain and was told I would be refunded a day (including taxes) and was given 2 coupons. I received the coupons but was never refunded a day. I called and talked with a supervisor and she said we received coupons and would get nothing else even though we were told we would get a refund.

I had a reservation at the Atlanta Airport on 6/25/2025 at 2 pm. Upon arrival to pick up my vehicle, I am informed I am way down the line! It was people that had a reservation at 11:30 am that were still waiting on their vehicles. I must say it was a total cluster! I ended up staying at the Budget reservation until 6:pm when I was told again I was way down the line for a vehicle that I paid for in advance! I had to cancel my reservation and purchase a rental agreement with Hertz! I ended up paying $850.00 for a new reservation! This is unacceptable!!! I would never recommend or use your services again! There is no accountability at all! I really expected more from Budget!

Renting the vehicle in Grand Junction went well even though the car could have been cleaner. We allowed six and a half hours to make the four hour trip. Unfortunately, there was a horrific accident that had us in a traffic stoppage for three hours with no cell service. When we let the Denver office know we'd be late, they said no problem. We got there and nobody to check us in with a long line inside. They went ahead and charged us for an extra day and wouldn't budge. Be careful with their fine print and lack of understanding. Back to Hertz we go!

Website is not intuitive and I ended up making 2 reservations for the same day. When I saw my credit card statement, I attempted to contact customer service and never got anything other than an electronic response. When I finally got confirmations for the two reservations, I cancelled one of them only to find out that it cost $50 just to cancel one of them even though the reservation was still almost a month away. Still no contact with customer service. They are now on my AVOID AT ALL COSTS list. Would give 0 stars if possible.

Budget San Juan, Puerto Rico Airport was horrible! I reserved a car online and then did a pre-check to speed up the service at the counter, they failed to let us know that the person making the reservation has to be the driver listed in the pre-check. I put in my husband's information as he is usually the one who drives in PR. They told me that I mixed the information and the reservation was no longer valid. I had to update it myself. I asked them if they could override the information on their system and they said it was not possible. Which is a complete fabrication as I work in IT and know you can override the system. They ended up renting us another vehicle for about $200 above my original reservation price. This was a complete and total racket! I will NEVER rent from Budget again!

Staff at counter difficult to communicate with due to language barrier. So miscommunication was a huge factor. We were charged the extra insurance even though we clearly said no when making the reservation and no at the counter. After reviewing charges, the added insurance cost was taken out of our account without consent. Customer service did not assist and said "they couldn't do anything to help." Explanation of reservation was not clear due to staff at counter could not speak clear English. Long wait lines. Dont use Budget! They'll trick you into paying more without your consent!

Prolonged wait time. Lack of explanation for the delay. Failure to provide reserved vehicles. Customer without vehicle remains at desk with representative until it is ready. Rest of customers, still in queue.

My husband and I rented a car with them in July 5th, we arrived at JFK at 13:30pm, our reservation was for 14:00pm. A huge line with more than 30 persons and just 2 people working. After a long time we just give up and found a new place to rent the car. Why do you need to pick up a hour if you are not getting the car on time? Super rude staff. No recommend at all.

Customer service agent at the Hampton, VA location was very unprofessional and rude with us and the customers before us. When asked any questions her answer was to call customer service and I get off at 1pm. Secondly, after paying for my reservation the night before and already having my account charged, I was told we did not pass a credit check and therefore could not pick the car up without a major credit card. YOU HAD ALREADY CHARGED MY ACCOUNT. YOU HAD THE MONEY. We had to call customer service and wait on hold for 1/2 hour to cancel the reservation and get a refund.

Doesn’t matter what state we are in -THERE IS ALWAYS A PROBLEM. Somehow we make reservations months in advance and the car has been given away, they have to get it from somewhere else, car seats reserved and sorry we don’t have anymore. How do you do business and plan a day without knowledge on how to run a business.

I recently rented a car from Budget in Sarasota Florida. I was taking it and my daughter with cerebral palsy back to Nashville. I had all of her stuff with me. On the way to Nashville, we were inundated with roaches all over the car, coming out of every crevice and getting into my daughter’s stuff. We had to change course and go to Atlanta to change cars. At the budget office, no one helped me move anything in fact they were quite indifferent to my situation. I had to move an entire car full of boxes and bins and bags and suitcases by myself out of one vehicle into another.

Worst shopping experience of my life. Horrible communication by staff, I was never told I needed a credit card until I showed up to pick up my rental. My spouse tried to use her credit card and we were told that we couldn't do that and would need to start a new rental process. When we did that, the "only" car available was 1/3 the size and $750 more than the Rav4 I had paid to rent that they refused to rent to me when I showed up. They then had me escorted off the property by police when I asked for a refund when they refused me a refund at the store.

I rented a car from the airport location in Wilmington NC. They never inspected or cleaned the car before they handed it over to me. They did apologize and offered me an $18 discount on a $300+ bill. I also changed my flight home and the person checking me in assured me it wouldn’t be a problem bringing the car back later in the afternoon. The $20 late fee on my bill confirms that was a lie. I called them and they told me there’s nothing they can do. So they got $20 but I guess the $18 discount covers that and I should just deal with it.

My wife and I rented a car from Budget at the Salt Lake City Airport and were absolutely impressed with the service, friendliness and professionalism of Spencer **. Spencer explained every detail of what options were available as far as insurance, upgrades and of the goodies. All of vehicles were newer and in excellent condition. Thank you Spencer for all of your help.

I rented a car from DFW Budget for several days. While using it, the weather was terrible. While getting in and out of the vehicle, grass and dirt were left on the floor mat. I was told to leave the fuel close to empty on return. I returned the car with dirt and grass on the floor mat on the driver's mat and some debris on the rear hatch mat as I was traveling alone. I was back charged an additional $125.00 for "vehicle cleaning cost". When I called to talk to the person who sent me the letter, I was told that was impossible. The "customer representative" said that I was supposed to clean the car before returning. My contract did not state that. I received no help form the representative and was put on very long hold times during the process to no avail. It doesn't seem right to need to clean a rental car before returning it. That's why people rent things. And if it is required, then that should be stated prior to rental.

Surprise by the hidden charge of a fuel service charge. The vehicle should have a full tank of gas when you rent it, but they charged me a fuel service charge for the convenience of having a full tank when you pick the vehicle up.

Everything was great EXCEPT I got charged $107.00 additional for toll pass. I DID NOT HAVE this option chosen in my original reservation. I DID NOT use or plan to use it. I did not realize it was added to my reservation until I returned the vehicle and they emailed my receipt. Dirty, shifty work by the ticket agent. Needless to say, I WON"T be using Budget again!!!

I rented an SUV that seats 7. Paid in advanced. When I got to Budget, they insisted that I ordered a car that I had rented 6 months ago. Finally someone came over and found the mistake and I got an SUV but it only fit 5 passengers. The SUV I paid for cost $49.99 a day. The one I got cost $28.99 a day for four days. They would only give me $50.00 for the difference. On top of that, I was told that I don't qualify for a Veteran's discount even though I can prove that I served Two tours in Vietnam. Budget Car Rental is a scam and have NO respect for their customers. I was told that I could not talk to anyone higher than the manager Dalton ** or Manager Zena **. I would love to talk to the CEO to tell him how I was ripped off but I don't think he cares.

Do Not Rent from Budget!!! I flew into MPLS Airport on Fri 6/28/25 in Terminal 2. From the beginning my experience was awful at best. I went to the Budget Car Rental Desk around 5:30 a.m., the desk was closed. Signs said proceed to the Budget Rental Car area upstairs and outside. It too was closed. A phone call to Budget said they will have a car for me at 10:30 a.m.!!! Are you kidding me!!! Never mind that I had plans to meet folks earlier than 10:30 a.m. Horrible Customer Service. I then decided to go to Terminal 1 to see if I had any better luck. Am pretty irritated by now. I get to Terminal 1 and it is open. I think to myself success. At the counter I briefly share the events, told her never again will I rent from Budget, and she said, "Let’s see if I can make things right." She was wonderful!! She got me processed, handed me my info and up to the 5th floor I go to get my vehicle.

Reserved 1 month in advance. 1st time using Budget and the last. Arrived early at 230 pm for my reservation, even though set at 4pm since was told if I could arrive anytime between 1 and 4 PM. Got to desk, no one is there. Instructions to call 2 different phone numbers, called both numbers several times with no answer. Called customer service to find out what else I could do. Talked to two different people after the first person told me to keep calling the number, he didn't want to deal with me anymore and transferred me to another agent. Once off the phone with that agent, the number I called previously was calling back. He said he would be there between 4 and 415, we waited. Called number back several times again at 420 pm as no one has yet arrived. They finally answer and tell me another 10 minutes.

We booked a car and are now waiting in a loooong line of other customers. Only 2 people working, it will take us about 2 hours and we will miss checkout time at the hotel. Never again, such poor service!

We had an awful experience renting a car. After arriving on time, we were forced to wait over 2 hours just to get a vehicle. The car we reserved was unavailable, and there were no upgrades offered to make up for it. The vehicle we were finally given was dirty and reeked of urine—completely unacceptable. Since the rental, I have called customer service four times and have been told each time that a case is being submitted for reimbursement. Weeks later, I still haven’t received any credit or resolution. This has been incredibly frustrating and disappointing. Overall, the service was unreliable, unprofessional, and unsanitary. I won’t be renting from this company again.

DO NOT RENT FROM BUDGET — They Do NOT Honor Reservations. Just spent $45 to not rent a car from Budget. Why? Because they decided not to honor my prepaid reservation due to "inventory issues." But they had ALL DAY to call, text, or email me — and did nothing. I showed up, 4th in line, only to be told there were no cars. The man in front of me? He didn’t have a reservation. But he had his kid with him. I overheard "Sam" (Budget) tell him no cars were available — then suddenly, Sam "makes it happen" for him. I watched as he was handed keys to a red SUV and walked away smiling.

Bait and Switch? I reserved an electric Luxury Elite Long Range vehicle (Genesis G80E or similar) at Houston Intercontinental (IAH). Instead, Budget provided a Ford F-150 Lightning. I was told it belongs to the same rental class, but the truck I received was the Standard Range model (240 miles), not the Extended Range (320 miles). Budget’s website clearly labels “Long Range” as the higher-range offering, so this felt misleading. On top of that, the rental line was extremely slow. I waited over two hours at noon on Saturday, and the queue length had not shortened by the time I finally got to the counter.

Let's start with the 1st Suburban we got. Picked it up June 21st. 1st thing I noticed was the "CHANGE OIL SOON" light is on. On Monday the 23rd we had a flat. Pulled the tire off and found it is bald with cords showing. Upon inspecting the other 3 we found they ALL are bald with cords showing! After waiting on hold and being transferred twice we got a replacement suburban lined up. Unfortunately for us, we had to drive an hour to Bangor Maine to swap them and then drive the hour back to where we were staying.

I made a reservation and prepaid for a large SUV with Budget Car Rental in Kendall, located at 13760 North Kendall Drive, Miami, FL 33186, USA. I called before picking it up and was told they were sold out for that day, meaning they had rented the vehicle I had reserved to someone else. Either they overbooked or they couldn't care less about a prepaid reservation; the service is terrible. I was told the nearest location with an available car was over 40 minutes away. I ended up canceling my reservation, and to top it all off, they only refund my money within two weeks. What the hell!!! I will never do business with Budget again.

I made a reservation for a rental car on 4/10/25 for a family vacation 6/18-6/25/25. I received numerous email confirming my reservation. When I arrived at the designated time on 6/18/125 at 8 AM I was informed that there was no car available. I was shocked. The young gal at the desk called the manager who said they'd call me when there was one available, probably needing to come from the SLC airport. She also mentioned that I should have gotten a call from the manager the day before but I never received a call. :-( This is degusting customer service!!! Luckily for me I was able to get a car from Enterprise Car Rental and able to leave for our trip within 2 hours.

I booked and paid in advance for a compact car with Budget Car Rental in Englewood, CO located at 1101 Dartmouth Avenue. Two hours before I was to pick it up, they called me that they were all "sold out" for the day, meaning they'd rented my reserved vehicle to someone else. Either they overbook or a paid-in-advance reservation means nothing to them. I discovered that the closest location with an available car was over 30 minutes away. They didn't have a comparable-sized car and I had to reluctantly pay additional for an SUV. I will never do business with Budget/Avis again.

I had a terrible experience with Budget Rental Car. I paid for the car through Expedia and arrived in Albany to find a wait of over an hour in line. When I finally reached the counter, they refused to accept my Chime card for incidentals, despite having already paid for the car with that same card. It was a long, frustrating day, and I ended up breaking down crying. Staff simply told me to step aside and offered no help or solutions. I was left stranded in New York with my 11-year-old and no car I had already paid for. Completely unacceptable. Someone from the Enterprise counter came over and asked if I was ok, and they set me up with a vehicle! They were so kind! Budget is not answering my calls, I still have not received a refund.

We rented our vehicle on 6/14/25. It had a slight smell of "skunk" but because it was in the shade of the parking garage it wasn't super strong. Within hours of driving and the car sitting in the hot sun, the overwhelming smell of marijuana was giving us headaches and making us stink. We called Budget and they said to exchange it at the nearest Budget rental location. We were already hours away from where we originally rented. The person said they put notes in the system that read "will not be charged you until you have been able to exchange the vehicle". We called Hickory, NC; we spoke with Jay. We requested a new vehicle as suggested by Budget. Jay, from Hickory, was extremely rude and she only offered for us to sit there for an hour with a machine that could "hopefully" take care of the problem. This Hickory Budget location was not close by either.

Our car failed to start after shopping at a farmers market. After our initial call to travel assistance in which they sent a tow truck to pick up their car and provided an Uber voucher for a ride back to the airport we were unable to reach a live agent to inform them that there was no Uber drivers in our area of breakdown. We were left stranded, and only by luck was I able to call my daughter 2000 miles away who was able to arrange a taxi to come rescue us at a cost of $165. Budget refuses to reimburse us and accepts no responsibility for renting a car that was not raid worthy. DO NOT RENT FROM THIS COMPANY.

Total ripoff. I rented a car in Florida for a week out of Fort Myers. Rented a pool home, and never went to the beach, not once. $450 charge for excess sand in the vehicle? My credit card company will be telling to the same thing soon enough. Charging double the actual rental rate to clean the car of sand in a state made of sand. How do you people sleep at night?

Never rent from Budget! We went to pick up our mini van and they said there was a rental car shortage. We needed the mini van to fit all of the girls and luggage but they didn't have it. So they gave us a small SUV and said to bring the car back without filling up and they would comp our gas. Well they didn't and they charged double in gas what I would have paid if I had just filled it myself. They won't do anything about it. It was a nightmare and I will never do it again.

I reserved a car and only one employee is working to check people in. Some people ahead of me have been waiting for three hours. No refund available because I booked through Expedia. They knew in advance when and how many people would be here. I will never use Budget again. This is the Detroit airport location.

We will never use this company again period. Poor customer service ..Scam at the fuel process. Make sure you read the odometer mileage before taking the vehicle out of their garage. They charge extra for just anything they can think of.

In Orlando airport. Arrived in long line 2 hours ago. 1 agent. Maybe 50+ people in line. Rest of other rental brand lines moving smoothly or now empty. Will never use Budget again. This should never happen.

I recently rented a car from Budget at the Ontario Airport. Immediately upon starting the vehicle, the "Change Engine Oil Soon" light came on. I asked the attendant at the gate about it, and she assured me it was just a routine maintenance alert and that the car was fine to drive. Shortly after, I received news that my father was having a medical emergency, and I urgently needed to get to the hospital in Las Vegas. While driving through the desert, the check engine light came on, along with a warning that said "Engine Power Reduced." The car automatically slowed down to 60 mph on a 70 mph highway, creating an unsafe situation.

We received the vehicle filled with sunflower seed shells…everywhere. That I had to clean after we arrived. There was no one to report this to when we arrived because no one was at the airport. There was sand in the vehicle because it’s in Florida. A $250 cleaning fee for vacuuming sand is insane. When we arrived, we were told that the car seat that we needed wasn’t available and waited 40 minutes for a vehicle. So much for fastbreak. So with no customer service, a lack of any sort of care, and then being given a dirty vehicle that you have the nerve to charge ME to clean is crazy.

DO NOT rent to these company PLEASE!!!! They are NOT pet friendly!!!! They will charge you $487.34 for any pet hair they will find. If you have a pet make you a favor, look for a pet friendly company.

I have been a long standing customer of Budget. I have always had a good experience. Until our recent trip. First, we were supposed to be FastBreak client, we were not. Second, due to riots in LA, I called to verify costs to return the car to another airport as I knew the contract stated additional charge would apply. When I called, talked to Amanda, she quoted me my total rental fee. I confirmed that was returning to the different airport and she repeated the TOTAL rental fee (below $500). After changing flights, based on my conversation with Budget, I called Budget back to confirm the new return location. After much back and forth, I was charged over $700.00 for the return car. Budget continues to refer me to what their contract says. to which my response is 'I know - that is why I called BEFORE'. Budget will be my last option from now on.

I rented a car in May 22, 2025. Everything was great. I knew I would have the car for at week but had to call weekly to extend and pay for another week. They were very friendly and great to work with me. They asked me to bring the car back on the 22nd of June to do a new contract. I went in and was told I couldn't rent it again or get another car because they weren't supposed to rent to me using a Cash App card. They told me the day I rented it that they would hold $200 because I was using a Cash App card. They refused to help me and I was left to figure out how to get home from the Salt Lake Airport! How could they do this after me paying for the car for an entire month with the same card?

I rented and paid for a midsize sedan. I got a Kia Forte. That's a compact according to everyone except Budget who rips their customers off that way. I was expecting a toyota corolla but was cheated out of size and style.

We rented a Budget car in Tampa for a weekend family event. Day two - We noticed that one tire was low and added air by the next morning. The tire was totally flat. We had to miss a family breakfast to change the tire to a spare doughnut that was in the trunk. A Few hours later, we returned the car with their donut on and their spare tire with a slow leak in the trunk and I reported the incident at time of checking in car. I exchanged many emails with budget where they would not consider the case because I did not have documentation.

Unexpected emergency led to reserving a car. Took $30 Uber to location, no cars. Sent me to a second location, $30 Uber. No cars. Did nothing to help me and left me stranded with all the money in my bank account locked up for 7-10 business days. I had to walk 37 miles home.

I had a nightmare experience with Budget two days ago. We rented a 2025 Ford Escape from them. The car broke down in the middle of nowhere on the way to International Falls. It was extremely difficult to reach a live person on the phone. When we did reach live person, they have strong accent. It is hard to understand them. Then the first 7 calls somehow got disconnected or they just hung up. No one called us back. On the 8th call, the phone rep told me that we have to pay for the repair and they won't reimburse us!

First off. I prepaid my rental. When I arrived at the airport I noticed they downgraded my car. I went to the counter to dispute it and the guy gave me an attitude. He actually told me not to rent with Budget if I didn't like the way they do business. He ended up putting me in a Tesla Model 3 which was the class I rented. I added roadside assistance remembering a previous experience I had with Budget. Unfortunately on the last day of my trip I lost my car key. I phoned Budget Roadside would scheduled a tow but the tow sent the wrong size truck despite me telling them the clearance of the garage. I had to head to the airport. Had to pay for a shuttle which Budget was also supposed to reimburse. That didn't happen. I explained the situation to the Budget counter lady at the airport. She said they would take care of it. After I got home the key was found.

Highway robbery! Fees are anti-consumer in every way. For example: a $2.95 toll turned into a $9.90 charge because they rip you off for a $6.95 "convenience fee". If I had seen a toll booth, I would have paid toll myself (I did on other tolls). That fee was minor compared to all the other additions and fees. I will never, never, never rent from them again.

Beware of doing business with Budget Car Rental. I rented a vehicle from them at the Cincinnati airport. I paid in full online, returned the car filled up and on time, and was charged and additional 450.00 three weeks later. The claim was that the car was left excessively dirty. This simply is not the truth. They sent a picture of a single water bottle and a bit of grass from typical use, and used this to justify charging me almost a half grand extra for the rental - which I don’t have to give to them! I’ll never use them again, and would caution anyone else considering using them.

Tried calling PIE Budget for a question about my rental car, automated system gave me the option for a call back in15-20 minutes. 2 hours later I have yet to receive a call. Poor customer service, I will be seeking another option in the future.

We reserved a premium SUV (Chevy Suburban or Ford Excursion) with you 2/2/25. We reserved that particular size SUV for a long-distance trip with 5 adults, two dogs, all our luggage, and dog kennels (which were a non-negotiable requirement for the VRBO rental...) and supplies. We contacted Budget well in advance of our reservation, these past 6 months, on three different occasions: two in person and once over the phone. We explained how important it was for us to have that size SUV and each and every time, they GUARANTEED that the vehicle would be available.

Picked up a car on 4/16/25 in Oregon to drive to Southern California. Stopped in Sacramento for the night. On 4/17/25 we continued driving south. We were going to get home on 4/17/25 and return the car on 4/18/25. As we were driving I noticed the brakes were not working that well and then one of the tires literally fell apart. This was a situation that could have killed us. We were forced to pull over on the side of the freeway in the middle of nowhere. There was no spare tire so I called roadside assistance. We were stranded in the dark on the side of a busy freeway for several hours waiting for a tow truck. We were supposed to be home this night but instead we had to get towed 150 mile to Los Angeles, completely out of our way, to get another car and we had to spend the night at a hotel.

I’m honestly shocked by how bad this experience was. Budget’s Miami International Airport location is completely disorganized and poorly run. I spent nearly half a day dealing with their incompetence — a total waste of my time and the start of my trip. The first car they gave me had bald tires, a nail in one, a barely attached front license plate, and other visible damage. I flagged it immediately. Instead of helping, the staff sent me in circles. No one communicated with each other, and not a single person took ownership.

I prepaid for the vehicle and the only thing they needed was a credit card in my husband's name (as I booked it under his name with my credit card and there were no issues while booking). Unfortunately THIS location apparently didn't accept Visa debit cards so they refused to give us the car we already paid for and tried to get us to rent another for 1000 instead of the 300 I paid.

I got a call in June after I had rented a car April 14 thru April 17 and was told I had to pay $600 for a windshield that was cracked. I told the agent I picked up the car from the airport after Budget had closed and got the car assigned to me. I had a card to circle the damage to the car if any. I circled the windshield and wrote cracked on it. My card used to rent the vehicle in April was charged $600 in June for a cracked windshield the vehicle I was given. This is not over. The vehicle came from Florida.

Extra charge for Cleaning car $250.00. It is additional to the bill, totally unexpected. Poor customer service. They don’t care that I am not a smoker. They are scamming for extras. Way they conduct business is very disappointing trying to charge for everything.

If I could pick zero stars I would my experience with this rental place was very bad, first and foremost I paid in full for rental car. So when I got to Nashville airport to pick up they said I couldn’t get approved because they didn’t take debit cards which still don’t understand why they processed my payment and I told the rude lady that I had paid for it in full. Also noted that online nowhere did they say they didn’t accept debit card. Safe to say I will never use this place again and won’t ever refer family and friends.

I rented a car in OCTOBER 2024, went in with a prepaid voucher. I picked up in Orlando and dropped off in West Palm Beach. Fast forward to May 2025, I was slapped with a bill of over $4k. My credit card was left on file for a security deposit and they cam back with bogus fees, extra half a day stating I returned my car half hour later. The time I have for drop off, I was actually back in the Bahamas! Then there is a charge for "License recoup" fee at over $700 per day and I had the car for 3 days. I think they realized the foreign Credit Card Companies do not dispute the charges like the ones in America so they are getting away with it. I am not stopping until my charges are removed. I wish there was a way to leave worse than terrible as a review.

I was charged $933 for "Optional Services" I had not accepted. Yet, the bill I received after turning the rental car in showed this amount. A copy of the contract shows "accepting" all of these add-ons. The lady who checked us in did not acknowledge my response of "No" to additional services (i.e. Vehicle Damage Coverage, Supplemental Liability Insurance, etc.). I already had additional Rental Vehicle Damage Coverage through Travelocity. I did not need this additional Insurance. I have a witness that will verify I said "No"... The rental agent tried to slip a fast one on me. I will never rent from Budget ever again. They are dishonest and need to be investigated.

They don’t deserve not 1 star the staff is rude. Shawn is the manger at that location, It’s the budget on Airline next Pepboys in Baton Rouge Louisiana. I was over charged for a rental car I had for 1 day. They doubled charged me and I didn’t notice it until I checked my email and saw my receipt. My rental was for $146 and they are now charging me $253. This has been a stressful day. I have called customer service and they’re doing everything they can to get this issue resolved. Thank God for the customer service representatives, but as far as the staff at that location, especially the manager is rude, disrespectful and a theft because he was the one who over charged me. I recommend people to stay away from budget if you can, I know they may be a lil cheaper than other car rental companies, but I rather pay a high price for a car rental than pay a low price and get overcharged and be treated with such disrespect.

Offered an upgrade at no cost presumably because they didn't have the vehicle I had reserved (Suburban), This is a premium SUV. Gave me a Pacifica after many "modifications" to the price it was within $10 of original reservation. THEN actual billing was $120 more. Las Vegas store would not stand behind what their agent (Ali) said.

Worst experience with a car rental service ever. I will never use them again, staff are the worst, not at all helpful. They will not reimburse you for any unexpected travel changes at all. I would rather use Enterprise than these con artists. Only had the car for one day but was charged the full $638. They honestly did not care that a family emergency changed our travel plans.

Jairo at Budget inside Walmart off of 35 and Palo Alto....can't say enough!.. Thank you so much for turning a bad day into a great one! Customer service is very rare these days with all that we have going on. But Jairo proves that there is still good out there!

I spent hours on the phone last night to make sure there wouldn’t be any problems. The lady working is so rude I’m not renting from here I’m taking my business somewhere the employees aren’t so unprofessional.

I recently rented a car from budget. It was the worst experience I ever encountered. I would not recommend this company to rent a car., the vehicle broke down. I called customer service had no they had a lack of empathy. No regards for my personal safety or well.

I made a reservation a few months ago in Milwaukee for my wedding. I go to check my reservation today and find out the car that I rented to pick up at 10:30pm won’t be available because they decided to change closing time to 8:30. I had nothing from explaining this to me. If I did not check I would’ve been stranded at the airport. I called customer support and they told me to have someone pick it up before they closed and that’s the best they could do. Terrible company. Watch out or you could get stranded too.

Rented from Budget in Ireland back in April. Had to pay a towing charge because of an incident. Was told I would be reimbursed for the charge by the customer service rep on the phone when I called to request the tow. Tried to submit the receipt when I returned the car and was told to submit an inquiry online, which I did as soon as I got home. Have spent the last two months trying to get reimbursed for the nearly $200 I paid out of pocket for the tow (emergency call out) and every time I email customer service, I get told I should have a response in 15 business days. Total **.

*Beware of Budget Car Rental at Columbus Airport—A Nightmare Experience!** I wish I could give zero stars. **Budget Car Rental at Columbus Airport took $700 from my account before even confirming that I was eligible for a car**, leaving me stranded without transportation and severely limited funds. No verification, no consideration—just instant withdrawal with no regard for the customer’s situation. I contacted them for help, and their response was dismissive and unhelpful. A rental company should prioritize **honest transactions and customer service**, yet Budget failed at both. If you value your time and money, avoid this location at all cost!

I've used Budget twice recently, but never again. Both times they added fuel and toll charges totaling about $90, even though I topped off the fuel right before returning the cars, and I did not go through any tolls or request their pre-paid toll charge. They are absolute SCAMMERS!

Stay away. At the counter the prices will triple. Way too many hidden fees. If you are in a hurry and don't have the time to argue, will will get screwed. The car was nice, I will give credit to that.

I will never be renting from Budget again. The car broke down at the gas station at the airport. I had to call roadside assistance to get the car towed and then ask a stranger for a ride to the airport so I could make my flight. For this wonderful experience, they charged me full price for the rental. I had to call customer service not once but twice to get the charge for that day removed. And that was a struggle. They insisted that since I was able to use that car that day that they should not refund me the day's rental cost. WOW. Amazingly terrible customer service.

Highly recommend renting from Budget (specifically the Clinton Hwy location). The customer service rep was very nice, knowledgeable, and helpful with pick up and return. They also have the best pricing (which is what originally made me choose them but now for many more reasons). I rented a midsize SUV and got a Dodge Hornet in which I had never heard of before but absolutely fell in love with, so much I now want to buy one. It is a Hybrid so you can use gas or electric and it comes with all the bells and whistles (auto assist, heated/cooling seats and steering wheel, turbo/sport mode, etc. etc, the list goes on and on). I extended it a extra day just because I enjoyed driving it that much. Overall great experience with Budget and they now have a lifelong customer. If you are looking for a good (great actually) place to rent from, look no more. This is the right option!

Beware, Budget charges you late fees even if your vehicle is returned on the right time. They put it on the camera that was unable to read the license plate. Seriously? We had all the proof, we also had tire issues with car which was flat two times and we had to deal with the trouble of getting it fixed while on vacation. The tire had issues from before which we didn’t know. My husband talked to the front service desk associate the same day he returned the car. Yet we were charged a huge amount of late fee. The manager did not cooperate in spite of explaining him Eve and asked him to check the video camera. Such a bad experience. Please be aware before renting it.

Rented for 2 days, returned the vehicle. On time and two the same location. And my receipt shows I returned the vehicle to Bangor, ME. Charged my card $1,387 when it should Have been $397, Never using Budget again, I rented from The LGA location in East Elmhurst, NY 88-08 23rd Ave. This particular location needs to be investigated For fraud.

How is this company still in business? The worst customer service in the history of car rentals, we had a prepaid reservation and we still couldn’t get our car. Left us high and dry did absolutely nothing to help us. For the love of God never ever use this company.

BEWARE. They have hidden fees. Charged $125 for a cleaning fee, said had animal hair on the mats. Gave me a Sentra as a mid-size car and when I asked what was considered an economy car, they could not tell me. Charged 397.00 for a two-day rental plus 125.00 to vacuum the car. Guess business is bad that they have to charge these crazy fees. Will never use them again.

I rented a car at Nashville Airport. I drove it to my location approximately 50 miles away. I noticed a shimmy in the steering wheel at 50+ miles an hour. I drove the next day and it seemed to sway across lanes on the highway. I looked under the car and I find the front tires in a condition that was unsafe to drive. (See Attached) I spent about 3 hours on the phone between 4 different people trying to get a replacement car lined up. Since in my opinion this car was not safe to drive a tow truck was scheduled to come get it and take it back to Nashville Airport. I was in the middle of a family event that I had to leave to wait for the tow truck. Given this was Friday afternoon (3pm) before the Labor Day weekend it would have been a 3-4 hour round trip for me to ride back to Nashville airport to retrieve a replacement car.

I rented car in Prague to travel to Vienna which incurs extra charge for not returning car to original location. One week after I returned car in Vienna, I received personal email from Budget employee trying to extort me for windshield damage. Needless to say, there was no damage when I returned it.

I had a car reserved for a price. When I got to pick it up, they offered me an upgrade with Costco discount. When I got bill, no discount. I was contacted supposedly by Corporate, but email address they gave me to contact, is wrong. When I try and email, says failed.

Want to know what annoys me Budget Car Rental? Being lied to by your company after receiving a rental we waited 2 hours for only to find it full of trash and vomit! After calling and speaking to a manager, we were promised a guaranteed 50% discount and told she would try for 75%. To our surprise, when we dropped off the car we found that not only was there no discount, but also a late fee added when we provided our flight info in the reservation and were actually early dropping off. Called multiple times and have been hung up on, told nothing can be done and refused escalation. Will NEVER use your company again and will make sure all I know are how you treat customers. Check out the puke and trash pics.

Actually a No Star. I rented a car from Budget in Rock Springs, Wy. Which has a good staff. Was going to Salt Lake University of Utah Hospital, hopefully in time for my wife's emergency surgery. Above 65 mph the car had a thump thump right front. After the hospital. I went to Salt Lake Airport to swap cars. Easy Peasy. Stayed in Salt Lake for a few days and returned car to Rock Springs. Rock Springs could not check in the replacement car as it was listed as sitting in Walla Walla, WA.

We rented a vehicle from the Budget in Punta Gorda, Florida. It was pouring down rain, so we were unable to do our routine check of the vehicle. We drove an hour and a half for lunch and it was at this time that we noticed that most of the tires were worn. The right rear one had the steel cords showing through. We had to put the spare on to return the vehicle. Budget doesn’t seem too concerned that this put my family and others on the road at risk. Routine maintenance doesn’t seem to be something they do with their vehicles.

We rented a car in Punta Gorda Florida. We went to the beach a few time and got sand on the floor mats. They charged $450 for cleaning! Attached is a picture of what they consider $450 worth of cleaning. SAND! while renting a car on the beach.

After making a prepaid reservation with Budget, I arrived at Cincinnati airport finding out that my car is not available and will not be given to me because it was same-day reservation. I was devastated because it was at 7:30 PM and everything around was closed and no other cars were available. I was stuck at the airport until late at night trying to figure out which way do I go which costed me triple the money of any car, I could possibly rent it from other places previously that day. I would say that, and Avis together at Cincinnati airport show the true corporate horror of poor management. After almost 3 hours of standing and waiting, I was offered a 12 passenger van which I had to deny due to the safety reasons of driving. What I learned was that same day reservation with Avis budget will never be honored!

Once AGAIN I am being charge for a toll transponder and a toll. I did not rent a transponder, and I pay all tolls in cash and have a receipt for payment. It is impossible to get an American English person on the line and their foreign dialect is impossible to understand. Budget makes the charge without checking with the DOT in the state where the alleged charge is owed. That is done purposely to "float" your money while they get around to crediting your card. The onus is always on their good customers to send a receipt in and wait for them to acknowledge that the toll was paid and then they tell you it will take a week to 10 days to credit your card. It would take their employee less than a few minutes to access the state DOT where the toll charge was made to find out the toll was paid. BUT, that would mean they can't float your money for a couple of weeks. There has to be some way to put an end to this abuse and fraudulent charging!

I had a Rav4 or similar, they tried to put me in a Subaru Crosstrek (yes a crosstrek, not an outback), which is hardly even an SUV. Then almost doubled the price to get an equinox, which is closer in size to a Rav4 than the crosstrek was. Familiarize yourself with the "similar cars" before renting with them and assume your going to get the worst one. Also car was dirty, and staff was rude - it's about as bad of an experience as I could imagine.

Avoid Budget. My experience was terrible. It began at LAX with a wait time that was hours long. Continued with rude staff. Continued with a vehicle that was incorrect and in poor condition. Continued with unhelpful and rude customer service. Ended with charges that were well in excess of what they were supposed to be. Any alternative would be better than this.

I picked up a one way BUDGET rental at Newark airport. I was directed to pick up the car at an assigned spot as there was no BUDGET agents anywhere on the floor. Upon inspection I noticed that the car had visible paint specs on the rear. I took pictures and showed them to the guard on exiting the airport. Since she was not an agent, she said to inform the agent upon return which I did the following day (at the Trenton Mercer airport). A few days later I received an invoice for $450 for car cleaning of the paint specs. I have been in contact with BUDGET customer service multiple times with time stamped proof that the paint specs that were on the car before I picked up the car. They maintain that the car passed all inspection when it was rented to me. To date they have refused to budge on the charge. Communication on the resolution has been poor. The matter is not yet resolved. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH BUDGET AND REFUSE TO BE A FUTURE CUSTOMER.

Rented a car at Panama City Beach Airport and was hit with “your vehicle not ready so you will have to either wait at least 30 minutes or pay more for a different vehicle.” Absolutely ridiculous!! Never been told this before! Ironically, my son also picked up a vehicle at same location earlier in day and was told the same thing! Budget, you need to do better!!!

It was a bad experience for us. They had Very long wait time. Waited 1 and half hour in line before we got our car. Only 1 staff at work. I would not recommend if you want easy and swift service. 1 star.

Won’t go back! After waiting 2.5 hours in line at BWI because Budget was combined with the Avis counter, I finally got my car. Counter staff moved slow and did not care about 100 people waiting in line. Upon return, my low tire light was on. I filled my tank to the top since I know better than to return a rental and have to pay their fuel prices. Well, surprise surprise. I got hit with an $84 charge for gas. When I called to dispute the girl credited it, BUT I need to send the receipt for gas, BECAUSE it has to go through a review process and I can be recharged! I told her, "If you really think about it, how the heck do you really know a receipt I give you was from the rental car?? There’s no way to prove I filled the car or just put in $25 bucks." I’m not using them again. Going back to Enterprise. Never had a problem with them!

I rented a 2 vehicle from Budget at the Daytona airport. I had two reservations both were not there when we arrived and the second rental which was late at night was not available regardless of a reservation or not! We ended up getting a dirty vehicle with a quarter tank of gas, waited over an hour and of course the staff was rude. To top it off when I returned the car I was charge $96.00 for a full tank of gas even though I had pictures of the gas gauges in and out and there was a notation on the agreement about the quarter tank! I called customer care two times, just more wasted time!! Now I am contacting Delta who I booked the cars through and American express about the fraudulent charge! I never had this problem with Enterprise or Hertz!!!

Charged 64.00 for refueling a car returned for mechanical issues. I was hung up by lovely customer service and put on an endless hold. I had to drive 100 miles out of my way to get another vehicle. No more!

I’m really not happy with the service from Budget in the St. Louis Mo. They tell you one price and add a 200 dollar deposit, tell you that the 200 will be refunded back with in 24 to 48 hours. But then add extra service at the counter, that you never asked for to keep from giving you back your deposit. They don’t care about the people that are renting from them. You trust that their workers have your best at interest, but they don’t. I rent from them all the time when I visit there. I also send others to rent from them. I ask them 5 times before leaving the counter will the deposit go back on my card. Once I got home and called to ask about my deposit they tell me, he added stuff at the counter that I wasn’t aware of and that I won’t get my deposit back but they can give me a percentage of 30% to 50% back.

This has been the worse rental car experience of my life. I have been dealing with a billing issue for the last 2 months hoping to get answers and every time I call to speak customer service they say “we can’t see that so there’s nothing I can do”. I tell them okay can I speak to a supervisor. The first time the customer service representative gets an attitude and says “all they going tell you is the same thing I’m going tell you”, and that’s exactly what happened after waiting 45 minutes for someone to come to the phone. And the last time magically the phone plays some music and then magically disconnects once I ask to speak with the supervisor. I will not recommend this company to anyone.

After waiting 50 minutes at MCO with just 3 agents working we agreed to purchase the fuel through Budget. We specifically said we’re only going to drive a short distance, will we have to pay for a full tank? We were told no. We asked again, “if we only use 2-3 gallons will we just pay for that”? “Yes.” Again “so they’ll check the gas gauge when we return the car”? “Yes”. Liars. When we returned the car we were charged for a full tank. We drove 63 miles. After we had a huge hissy fit they took off the charge. On top of this we took the toll transponder because we were told we would pay the $13 fee only on the days we used it. We knew we’d use it only 2 days. Again we clearly reiterated this. We were charged for the full four days. Included in our hissy fit was this charge and they took that off. Awful company to do business with. Car had dirty windows inside and out.

Terrible service. I rented a car and received a confirmation for a price of $256.00. After returning the car, I was BILLED for $500.00. They are untrustworthy. I called and they said that it would take a week to resolve their indiscriminate overcharges.

I ordered the car through Costco and it was a standard Elite SUV and it verified 7 passengers. There are only 6 seats in the Jeep Grand Cherokee. We realized it the next day after we needed it and flipped the seats up. We called them and there was nothing they could do. We had to get another car from someone else. They insisted it had 7 seats. There are different models of that car and this one had 6. The person overseas kept insisting it had 7 seats, but it didn’t. They also forced me to pay to fill the whole gas tank at their price even if I turned it in full, it was mandatory they told me.

I rented a car and paid $350.72 ahead of time online. We had bad weather at the airport and our plane was delayed 4 hours. Upon picking the car up 4 hours late, the transaction seemed to go smooth. They told me which car to take then some other woman told me she would email my rental agreement. Upon returning from my trip, I checked the emailed receipt and realized they charge me $968 instead of $350. There was a $90 fuel fee which I anticipated but otherwise nothing to suggest why the cost was so much higher.

Hands down the worst experience I ever had with the Car Rental company. It started out by them charging me double the posted rate because I was a walk up customer. I chose them because they were close to my home. The next issue was a $20 per day fee to add my 25 year-old son. The next issue was trying to book the car online to get by the double the fee. The only thing it showed available is a 15 passenger van, which wasn’t even on the premises. He told me to make the reservation effective tomorrow and bring it back on Tuesday. I only needed the car till Sunday. The next issue was there was pet for everywhere and the car had not been cleaned. Do yourself a favor and use anyone but budget.

emergency roadside services said they were NOT bringing me a new car and I was to ask the tow truck driver for a lift back to airport. So I, a woman. Was to get in a truck with a stranger and he was to drive me over a. Hour back to the airport. Tow truck driver spoke no English and took the car. I Ubered it to my home. $$ and my neighbor just happened to see me and offered a lift to nearest Budget office. Sterling Heights, MI. 45 minutes away. Pleaded my case to Justin and after an hour put me in a car. Now I missed the family event by now as it was half over and I had a 2 hour drive to get there. The plane ticket, budget rental, dress, gift, etc. Missed the whole thing!! I'm not in any family pictures. Top it off, Budget is fighting me for a refund!!!