Thrifty Car Rental Reviews

Showed up for rental and despite website saying they had 24 hour pickup, the office was closed. I had to sleep on the floor until after 6:00 the next morning. It was after 6 because the employee didn't show up on time.

On Saturday, March 14, 2026, my reservation for a minivan was not honored and I subsequently had to cancel my Spring Break vacation. I made the reservation 4 months prior, and I had received a conformation. I was told that there was no vehicle there that could accommodate my request. I was offered a regular vehicle at double the cost which I felt was very condescending and unprofessional. I needed a minivan that could accommodate six people, and I explained this to the rental location, however they didn't seem to care and it being so late, I was not able to secure a minivan for the trip with any other rental car agency, so I had to cancel my trip. The way this was handled was very unprofessional and I will never use that location for any type of business again.

Due to weather I was not able to pick up my car. This resulted in never receiving a car unless I was willing to increase the cost for the rental over 4x the original price. The customer service was not helpful. This is an extremely unethical company that I would never do business with again

I asked to put boyfriend on the rental as a second driver and was told no because our ID do not have the same address. I was very disappointed that I was not able to do this without paying a daily fee for more than 20.00 a day. I really needed help driving on a trip that took more than 7 hours. I asked the clerk if I could speak to a manager to see if they can help me out with adding him as a second driver without the fees and explain to them we live in the same house with mail. I was told to go to the Hertz counter to speak to a manager.

I can’t say enough great things about our experience with Thrifty Rental car in San Diego airport especially with Marissa. After an extremely stressful travel day, dealing with multiple issues at the Las Vegas airport involving Frontier and TSA, we ended up missing our original flight. We had to spend the entire day at the airport and purchase last-minute tickets with Southwest just to make it to San Diego later that evening. Needless to say, we arrived exhausted and frustrated.

Arrived in Reno and went to get my Thrifty Rent a Car, Only to find over 20 people waiting and only one representative working. I'm about 1/2 way to representative as I write this and it's been an hour.

Rented for ten days at Thrifty Newark Airport. Said not to use their way too expensive EZ pass toll box. (26,- USD/day!) I used my own EZ pass New York Temporary Travel account using the license plate of the rental car. All the toll was payed directly from my credit card. But over a week after I gave the car back to Thrifty I got an e-mail from Thrifty with an invoice for the toll, 45,- USD. Above this a "convenience" fee from Thrifty at 44,- USD! Also no proof from EZ pass that this toll is actually billed in this period on this license plate to Thrifty. This all in an e-mail on which you can't reply. So no defense against this illegal bill.

Beware, they will take advantage of you and their parent company Hertz will try to shake you down! I rented a car here at the Thrifty at the airport through my credit card travel portal because they had a great rate. Went to pick up the car, there was damage to the trunk (several small dents). I took several pictures of the dents and of the car while it was parked in the stall. The pictures clearly show the damage and the pictures clearly show the car in the numbered stall in the Thrifty Rental Car pick-up area in the garage (I made sure to capture the sign & stall number in the picture as well). I took several pictures from multiple angles. I reported it at that time and was told the damage was already noted. I returned the car a few days later. When I returned it, there was nobody in the return area (at least when I arrived). Waited like 10 minutes, still nobody.

(Boise, Idaho, 1/10/2025) I wish I'd read these reviews before I rented a car from Thrifty. The process was easy, the guy behind the counter was very pleasant, the car was clean and in excellent condition and returning the vehicle was a breeze. It was my first time renting a car and I was sure I was going to be a Thrifty repeat customer. I'd have given a five-star rating until I checked my credit card statement. What was supposed to be a $34.15 charge was $357.00. WTAF??! After almost an hour on hold then dealing with an associate who struggled with English then calling the counter where I picked up the car, I found out that they place funds on hold in case of damage. But they don't tell you that when you pick up the car. So my credit card has been over the limit and frozen for days while I wait for the charge to be reversed, which could take up to a week. Not cool Thrifty, Next time I'm going with Enterprise. And yes, I've read the reviews.

Thrifty Rental car has to be one of the worse companies I have had the mispleasure of dealing with registered for skip the counter. Line of 20 people at Fort Lauderdale airport and one person working. Skip the counter apparently doesn't work unless someone from thrifty actually assigns a vehicle. Needless to say didn't happen. The person working the counter had the customer service skills of a zoo animal. In addition was not provided vehicle reserved or a similar vehicle. Customer phone service outsourced to Central American company and still awaiting for call back from Oscar.

Employees of Thrifty Car Rental in Detroit (289 Lucas Dr. location) participate in a “bait-and-switch” scam, to which I fell victim yesterday (12/23/25), mid-afternoon. After securing a rental reservation with a third-party booking site with a $200 deposit more than 6 months ago, two women on duty at Thrifty informed me they could not accept my PayPal Mastercard as valid payment. I have used this card frequently for months online and in person with no problem. The present available credit on it stands around $18,000, my credit is Very Good, and I have a new, enhanced WA state driver's license.

RDU Thrifty adds untrue charges after the rental experience. Two separate rentals they have charged me for gas when I returned it full, added an additional hour of rental when I returned it on time. This leads me to believe this is normal operating for this location. When I called, provided proof of filling the tank they remove the charges, but what a pain and I wonder how many people don't bother to call.

This is the worst rental car experience I’ve had in my entire life, and when I first arrived to the counter to pick up my vehicle. I was notified of additional charges that was not mentioned to me a month ago when I set up the rental agreement. This company invade your privacy. While you’re driving the vehicle tells you how far and how fast you can drive. Tracks your whereabouts and speed. I most definitely did not agree to invasion of my privacy. Charge extra fees on top of fees, unexpected fees. Just ridiculous company. Do not rent from this stupid ridiculous invasion of privacy company. You would surely be disappointed. Make sure you take a copy of your contract if they want you to give it back to them when you return the vehicle. They should change their name from thrifty to pricey! Nothing but scammers.

I have never had such a bad experience with a rental car company! The customer service rep at the Atlanta airport was the most disrespectful person I have ever had to deal with. Her name is Tammy and she told me it was not her problem that I had already paid my fee for the car rental. I told her I didn’t want to get double charged! We were double charged and we are currently trying to fight with my credit card company. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!

I received a car (Ford Puma) with electronic problems (apparently I am not the only one) when I rented a rental car in Alicante. It just stopped working while we were on the beach. Not only did it ruin us an evening, instead of taking responsibility and potentially thinking about compensation of such a disaster they made us pay for road assistance and the upgrade to a (defective) automatic car. Scam, I will try to take legal action.

I've rented cars at this locations for several years. Vehicles offered were not as good as those available at other car rental but prices were fine. This year has been the last time for sure I rented a car from Thrifty. First of all my reservation through EconomyCarRental was not honored and I was charged more without any explanation and I wasn't even offered the type of vehicle I had requested. I was charged a further 400USD for a car I didn't want and I didn't require beside the increased priced compared to my reservation. Both the manager and an employee tried to help me out stating that I was entitled to get what I had booked but a couple of employees seemed to have more power than the manager itself. I had the feeling that they wanted to scam some money out of me anyway when I had declined any additional service and being aware that in Denver car rental offices are in the middle of nowhere and customers are forced to accept any solution.

I reserved a vehicle a month before arrival at PDX airport. At the counter, I was told that the car category I chose online was not a real option (they didn't "carry any") and that they only had ONE vehicle, which was an upgrade (a Ford Expedition) for $1950 more after I already paid ($2200+ for the full reservation period). The two staff members stated that "this happens all the time" that this non-existent category is booked (an SUV comparable to a RAV4). You can imagine how flabbergasted and disgusted I am that you can make a reservation well in advance with no specific vehicle assigned.

On the 27th of October 2025 while traveling from crystal river Florida the car we had rented on the 3rd of October from Dulles international airport started surging and all electrical systems would go out and then come back on while driving. Roadside assistance was great in organising an exchange. However after having to divert to JAX from our original route for the exchange with instructions to go to Hertz rental counter. Upon arrival at the hertz counter a car was exchange car was allocated to us immediately, this was great and we thought no problem we are back on the road. Once we located the allocated car we found a car that was inappropriate for our luggage needs and was considerably smaller than the original rental.

I rented a 7-10 person van (with picture) for 6 of us & luggage. When we went to pick up vehicle they gave us a 7 person hatchback with no trunk room for all our luggage. They didn't have our van, i showed them picture from confirmation email. We had to take taxi to & from which incurred added costs! Then i returned & asked if they can waive gas charge for our inconvenience of wrong vehicle as we were just under full & they said no. Charged us $46 for 1/8 gal of gas. Will NEVER use Thrifty again. Staff was very rude!

If I could rate them zero or negative stars I would. Run… Don’t walk… Anywhere else. In fact, you’d be better off walking than renting a car from Thrifty. Total “bait and switch” fraud! I reserved a compact car months in advance for 2 people. When I arrived was told I rented a 12 passenger van! HELL NO! I was not driving a 12 passenger van with 2 people on a sightseeing trip all over UTAH! The gas would have cost a fortune. Forced to upgrade just to have a car late at night. Charges that hit my credit card were DOUBLE what I was shown on the credit card authorization screen. The people/company are CROOKS.

I have given a 1 because l can't put a minus 10. I got a toyota camry on 14 july. Took detailed pics that showed scratches and dents at detroit location. Returned the car on the 15th and on time. They took an additional 150 from account because l had caused scratches on the car. I sent them my pics which showed more dents and time stamp. Kept emailing @Tifanny and Roxanna the accident managers but my money wasn't returned and my emails stopped receiving a response. They are cheap but will end up paying more for damages you didn't cause. Use them at your own risks. THIEVES.

The person that help me made 3 unauthorized charges and was not happy because I had a really good deal on my reservation, the total amount of my reservation was $146.88 and they charge me $347, $506 and 852.15. This is clearly a fraudulent transaction by him, it was with Thrifty but it was closed and they send me to Dollar because they are the same.

Stick with a more reputable company and away from Thrifty. This has got to be one of the worst companies I have ever rented from. I rented a 12 person van online from Expedia 2 months in advance (since the model has adequate trunk space for storage). When I arrived at the facility, they added $1000 dollars of fees on top of the Expedia price I agreed on. They claimed that the Expedia insurance may not cover it and I needed their insurance to cover the vehicle. After feeling there was no other option and being pressured, we paid it to find out they didn’t have the 12 person van. Only the 15 person one with no trunk.

Not worth it in any capacity. Brought back a black Suburban with 102,924. Was told I caused this damage pictured. Checked the vehicle out at 12:30am with no inspection under zero light. Dirty vehicles.

Apparently we needed an upgrade despite pre-paying and booking exactly the car we were given. So $2500 later (on top of the $2500 we had already paid) we were on our way - begrudgingly and after a full day's travel we were too tired to argue. Which is part of their plan I am sure. Phone calls afterwards were useless - no concept of service at all. I’m not done yet - but for your own sanity, stay away.

Total crooks! About a week before I was due to pick up the car I called and asked that my pick up/return time gets changed from 12pm/12pm to 2pm/5pm because I wasn't sure I'll be back in time to return the car. That was all good. Got to the counter with minutes to spare before 2pm. Line moving VERY slowly. Finally my turn came. "Sorry, your car is not here yet". Some time later, I am asked whether I would take a sedan, Nissan Altima, instead of the SUV I bought... but for the price I paid. Really needed the car, so I took it. By the time I got out of there, 1/3 extra hours I paid for was already passed. They still charged me the full 3 hours "extension". Total BS. I'll stay away from these crooks next time!!!

I reserved a vehicle through Thrifty with a written confirmation that my car would be held for up to 8 hours after my flight’s arrival, even in the case of delays. I added my flight information and completed online check-in five days in advance. Everything appeared in order—until I arrived at the Portland Airport rental counter shortly after midnight.

Awful billing experience that I can only classify as fraud. My estimated charges for 4 days was $682.75. I brought the vehicle back on the day I was supposed to 10 min late and was charged a week rental for $1,377.96. I call this fraud.

Thrifty canceled my prepaid car rental on the day of pick up, without telling me, as they didn’t have a car for me. They won’t refund me as they use a 3rd party (CarTrawler) to collect online payments. Car Trawler won’t refund me as they can’t get any information from Thrifty. After 2 months of getting nowhere, I’ve handed this over to my credit card company who told me they get frequent complaints about Thrifty/Hertz for the same reason. It’s an absolute scam and a despicable business. Use another company.