Intolerable

[jay]

Never, ever again will I try to rent a car with Payless Rentals. They changed the price quote at the counter (upward), required mileage charges (reservation was for unlimited mileage), were condescending, and the minivan they brought out had been in a fender-bender and had a meter-long scratch and dent along the rear left quarter panel. And wasn't non-smoking. When patgreene and I walked away from this peachy deal, the agent informed us that since we hadn't given them 72-hour cancellation notice, they were going to charge us one day's rental ($100) even though I'd never touched the keys.

Vacation in jeopardy, I found an SUV (sigh...) at Hertz for a $50/week higher rate. But it was worth it to be dealing with a reputable, service-oriented company.

Aargh. I'm simultaneously exhausted and want to demolish something. Just what I needed, this week...

Comments

[geekchick]

Another vote for disputing the charge with your credit card company, especially if you've got a copy of the original quote. After one experience renting from a non-major company (due to lack of credit card at the time) which got me a 10-year old Toyota whose alignment was so out of whack that I spent the entire drive essentially turning left, I swore that I'd never again rent from a similar company, theory being I got exactly what I paid for. =/ Next time you might try using Travelocity or Hotwire or something similar to look for rates at the national chains; I got the Lancer I had out there in January for something like $18/day through Travelocity, and there were a couple of even cheaper options.

I'm glad to hear you got something worked out though. Have a wonderful vacation, and take pictures! =)