Hertz Car Rental - Fort Lauderdale - Fort Lauderdale-hollywood International Airport (FLL) — Local services in Dania Beach

I have worked customer service for over 19 years, and dealing with Hertz at FLL was the worst, unwarranted, and disgusting yesterday morning. I returned my rental very early yesterday morning and my return time was mid afternoon.( I tried to adjust the times prior to my trip since their representative messed the times up and they were going to charge me an additional $100+ for giving them the car back earlier than they had it notated🤨.) Upon arrival at the car return, an employee arrived at my rental and walked around it not addressing us or acknowledging our presence. We quickly retrieved our belongings and stepped aside for her to do her thing. I went to hand her the keys and asked if she wanted them, her response was “well you don’t __ need them!” I was shocked! She grabbed them and threw them up on the dash forcefully. I was still just stunned. (I knew I didn’t need them, I was simply asking to see if she needed them or if I should leave them in the car, apparently that was the wrong question).

I would like to say this car was not in the best shape when we picked it up, but we took our pictures for documentation and went about our way. There was no windshield wiper fluid, the alarm went off every time the push start ignition was used. It needed an oil change, and was poorly cared for. The cars plastic dash, door panels, etc were all scuffed and faded as well as the cloth seats. The inside was just okay cleaned wise, but again not something I was going to make an issue about.

Back to the rental return, after she threw the keys across the dash, told me she would I would be charged for a cleaning fee. I asked for what and she told me sand on the mat. I said how much it that? She said “at least $80. It was going to take hours to vacuum that car. That’s someone’s job, to vacuum and this will take them hours.” I was again floored, I said “I’m sorry but don’t you vacuum all returned cars? It’s your job?” We DID not have a dirty car and again it wasn’t clean when we picked it up. I walked over to the car, removed the mats, and cleaned them. There was literally normal traffic sand from getting in and out of the vehicle. I took pictures and before I could finish, she ripped the carpet out of the driver side. I asked her to put it back and she told me to take my pictures. I said I will when she puts the carpet back. (Mind you, I have worked with all sorts of people and am not a triggering, responsive person because adding to a situation is never worth it, but this girl had me so upset, shocked , and just disappointed in humanity). I took my pictures (which I have added to the post) and before I walked away she embraced the softest tone she spoke that day and wished me a good day. I walked right to the counter.

I know from previous unsolved case numbers with Hertz that you can not reach the counter or get a true resolution so I knew I was screwed. Randi at the ticket counter ensured me I would not get charged. The shock of the situation had me shaking and in tears after walking away and processing what the heck just happened. She took my booking info and made a copy of my rental because it was not closed and wrote her name down to ensure it was going to be okay.

When I got to the gate, my email went off and I was charged, $125!!!! If I could have ran to the counter I would have. I saw my slim chance of getting this resolved faded as I still have a case number floating around unresolved from April 2022 when their car needed oil on a deserted road and I had no signal. I bought oil, funnel, etc to get us unstranded bc their roadside never contacted us after calling 3 times or helped. I gave them copies of my receipts and talked to them at least 5-6 times and never got my money back.

I called them and they said it will be reversed, I highly doubt it and I’ll have to take further action because I am not giving them more, wrongly charged money I’ll never get back. I will never recommend using this service and I will never be treated like this...

Read my review to understand how a seemingly great deal of $95.58 for a Thrifty car rental escalated to an alarming $725.60.

Let's start from the beginning.

THE BOOKING I used the Capital One Travel website to book a “Q6 Compact Or Larger Wild Car” for a total of $95.58, expecting a smooth and straightforward rental experience.

PICK UP EXPERIENCE The front counter experience was unacceptable and aggravating. My wait time was slightly more than 1.5 hours. Only one or two people behind the counter were servicing a crowd of about 50-60 people. Although the actual car pick-up was quick, it came with poorly explained, forced, and unexpected fees.

AFTER THE RENTAL I was shocked to find an additional charge of $630.02 on my card, broken down as follows:

UPGRADE FEE = $136.96 This was unexpected because the reservation turned out to be for an electric vehicle, not a gas vehicle, which was a surprise to me. I didn't want to chase charging stations, so I've decided to upgrade to a gas vehicle. I was led to believe the upgrade would increase my total rental cost to $136.96 total, but instead I was charged an additional $136.96 on top of the original rental price.

SERVICE CHARGE FEE = $321 This happened due to an extraordinary event, where FLL airport temporarily closed on December 17 2023 rendering me unable to return the car to the original pick-up location. Having to change my drop-off location resulted in a hefty service charge. The unexpected part was the unexpectedly-large service fee amount. A call to customer service and talking to a "manager" did not help resolve this issue. Another call to Thrifty Road Assistance did appear to help - the rep said I will not be charged the drop-off fee, but I was charged that fee anyway.

DAMAGE WAIVER FEE = $139.96 I am not sure why this got lost in translation - when I waived the damage coverage, I was still charged a "DAMAGE WAIVER (CDW/LDW)". Maybe the play on words made the counter staff charge me the "waiver", instead of "waiving" the fee. This fee was unexpected because I thought I waived the coverage.

CONCESSION FEE RECOVERY FEE = $32.1 I've learned that this fee is a standard surcharge for my picking up the car at the airport. The unexpected part was omitting this fee from my original reservation at the beginning. That's not being transparent.

Thrifty/Dollar, your customers deserve clear upfront communication, transparent pricing, and efficient service. Be better.

Lack of transparency, poor communication, and hefty unexpected fees left me feeling shocked, deceived and financially exploited.

To consumer: when you rent from Thrifty/Dollar, be prepared for a less-than-smooth experience: long wait times at counter, hefty unexpected charges after the rental, bait and switch with cars, and if you want to deal with this mess - multiple calls to various many support numbers.

I urge anyone considering renting a car from Thrifty/Dollar to proceed with caution. Read reviews, ask explicit questions about potential additional charges, clarify what the total of your rental cost will be, ask to detail final charges ahead of time, and consider exploring other rental services with more transparent policies and better customer service and reviews. Be more aware of your options and do more thorough research before committing to a rental.

And if you are reading this, I sincerely hope your experience will be better than mine.

My response to Thrifty's response to my review: talking to m.me/hertz did not help me resolve any of my issues, they were LEAST helpful channel out of all the Thrifty service and customer support agents I've talked to...

I am writing to express my deep dissatisfaction with my hertz rental experience that occurred on June 21st to 23rd. During my rental period, an unfortunate incident occurred where an employee stole my DJI Osmo Pocket camera from underneath the seat of the rental vehicle, and despite my efforts to seek assistance from your management, I received no satisfactory resolution.

Firstly, I would like to emphasize the seriousness of this incident. It is highly concerning that an employee of your company would engage in theft, especially during a customer's rental period. As a loyal customer, I expect a certain level of professionalism and trustworthiness from your staff, and this incident has certainly tarnished my perception of your company.

When I discovered the missing camera, I immediately contacted your customer service line to report the theft and seek assistance in recovering the item. However, I was met with disbelief and indifference from your representative. It was disheartening to experience such an unhelpful response, especially considering the value and importance of the stolen item.

Furthermore, when I requested to speak with a manager to escalate the matter and ensure appropriate action was taken, I was shocked to hear laughter on the other end of the line. This lack of empathy and professionalism from your management team only compounded the frustration and disappointment I felt as a customer.

I understand that unfortunate incidents can occur, but it is the responsibility of the company to address such situations promptly and with utmost seriousness. I believe that Hertz Rental has failed in this regard, both in terms of preventing employee theft and providing adequate customer support.

I would like to request a thorough investigation into this matter and appropriate disciplinary action taken against the employee involved. Additionally, I expect a sincere apology from your management team for their unprofessional behavior over the phone. Furthermore, I would appreciate a resolution regarding the stolen DJI Osmo Pocket camera, either through replacement or compensation for the item's value.

I hope that you take this complaint seriously and make the necessary changes to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. As a customer, I expect to be treated with respect, and it is your responsibility to ensure the safety and security of your customers' belongings.

I look forward to your prompt response and a satisfactory resolution to this matter.

I cautious anyone going to this place. I rarely write reviews. This would get a 0 star review if I could. I've had to jump through hoops and call the police to file a report and I'm still being laughed at by the management on the site. Refusing to give me names. Any other car rental would be better if you value your things. In this economy, you would expect someone to treat you with the same common curiosity to return such a high price item with...