Thrifty Car rental scam

Seeing if anyone might know how to get their money back from Thrifty Car Rental pulling a fast one. I called my credit card company and even they agree what I got billed for is insurance, even though Thrifty says it’s not insurance. Here’s the review I left on Google Maps for thrifty, it will explain the ordeal. Hopefully someone knows how to get the money back…

Place is a total scam. Rented a car through a 3rd party booking site and prepaid for everything. The credit card I used pays primary rental insurance so I turned down the rental insurance on the 3rd party site. When I got to the rental counter I was asked if I wanted insurance and I said no because my credit card covers it. The clerk explained that anything over and above what the credit card pays I would be responsible for and I said ok. That was the end of what the clerk tried to get me to buy. He then gives me a paper that says Thrifty will charge $506 on my credit card as a deposit which gets removed after the car is returned. I asked him, just to verify, if the car is returned with a full tank and no accidents none of the $506 would be billed and he said correct. So I returned the car, full tank and no damage, and Thrifty bills me $305.91 for what they call Loss Damage Waiver. The Thrifty website states:

“When you purchase our Loss Damage Waiver (LDW), which is not insurance, you are relieved of financial responsibility if your rental car is damaged or stolen.”

So they had asked if I wanted insurance and I said no, so Thrifty changes the definition of what Loss Damage Waiver is by says it’s not insurance. Insurance being the term that I declined. On the same Thrifty webpage it also states:

“At the time of rental, Thrifty offers for purchase at the option of the renter, Loss Damage Waiver (“LDW”), Personal Accident Insurance (“PAI”), Personal Effects Insurance (“PEI”) and Liability Insurance Supplement (“LIS”). The cost, coverage, provider and availability vary by location.”

Now, it says at the time of rental they offer the renter four different items. I was asked if I wanted insurance and said no. Never once was I asked about any of the four items they claim the renter will be offered, yet they added it to my bill. The $305.91 was listed on the paperwork for the $506 which I was told would not be charged if the car was returned with a full tank and no damages.

Place is a scam. Don’t rent from them.

Shocked! Used Clark’s advice to hit a company on their social media sites and got all the money back. Posted over and over on their Facebook page and they returned the money. :+1:t3:

2 Likes

FYI, I used to be asked and I would say “I DECLINE EVERYTHING AND WILL BRING IT BACK FULL”. Of course that was a while back in time.

I think we might widen the topic just a bit and call it Scams!

We rented a car in a city that was familiar enough to avoid tolls not long ago. But they keep changing lanes and adding foreign toll segments so the inadvertent can happen. Like this:

  1. Wrong lane ka-ching. TWO tolls to first exit, 95 cents each for $1.90 toll.
  2. Wrong lane to airport: One toll to get off, $1.70

Total $3.60 in tolls. Here’s the rub: EACH toll incurs $15.00 ADMIN FEE! That’s 45 bucks in admin fees, 12.5 times the cost of the tolls!!!

A simple way to avoid this charge is if you had written “The $506 on my credit card is a deposit which gets removed after the car is returned. If the car is returned with a full tank and no accidents none of the $506 would be billed.” and then initialed it. MY guess is they would not honor the change because that is not what would happen.

You see, (after many years of watching court tv shows) I understand that a verbal agreement cannot alter a written one. Thus the clerk or a used car salesman CAN lie to you and your only remedy is the written contract.