Hell on wheels

Christopher Elliott Travel columnist • Profile • E-mail

Never underestimate a car rental company’s drive to make an extra buck. Amy Villa did when she rented a car from Alamo in Columbus, Ohio, recently, and she ended up paying twice as much as she expected.

Villa’s flight from San Jose, Calif., was delayed, so she phoned Alamo to let the company know about the hold-up. A representative assured Villa, who works for San Jose State University, that her reservation and rate would be honored, “because I would be arriving within 24 hours of my original reservation,” she says.

When she finally touched down in Columbus, an Alamo agent handed her the paperwork. “The contract and the price was essentially double what I was quoted, going from $268 to more than $400. And that’s for one day less,” says Villa. “Alamo never told me that the rate would go up.”

Welcome to the tricky new world of rental cars. Unable to raise their rates or impose significant cancellation penalties on their customers, rental companies have always relied on fees and surcharges to eke out a profit. But they are doing so now with more creativity and zeal, leaving frustrated customers like Villa swearing they’ll never rent again.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Here are four of the latest car rental scams — and how to avoid them:

Rules are meant to be enforced
The biggest car rental scam is technically no scam at all. Car rental companies are just enforcing existing rules more strictly than ever. In Villa’s case, what Alamo did was perfectly legal — and at the same time, completely wrong. Traveling with her husband and daughter last Christmas, she says she felt broadsided when the car rental company changed her price. In fact, car rental companies have different rates that are based on the length of your rental. These rates are disclosed on the agency’s Web site. Not so long ago, companies used to look the other way when a customer picked up a car late or brought it back early. No longer.

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So what, exactly, was that agent promising Villa? Alamo charges a $10 “no-show” fee for customers who don’t cancel their reservations within 24 hours of pick-up (it began doing that in 2005). Perhaps the company was assuring her that the $10 penalty wouldn’t apply to her. Now that’s the holiday spirit.

The only way to beat a car rental company at its own game is to know the rules. Read the terms and conditions on your company’s Web site, and make sure you do your next car rental by the book.

Your needle isn’t quite on “F”
Car rental companies have offered a “pre-pay” fuel option for almost as long as there have been car rental companies. But their definition of a “full” tank has apparently not always been the same. Reader Penny McLain wrote to me recently about two recent car rental experiences. “Both times, the attendants had supposedly checked the gas gauge — we saw them do it,” she wrote. “And although we knew the tank was full, we were issued a receipt that reflected a big charge for gas.” After I covered the gas gauge scam in my blog, I decided to do a little research of my own. I returned a car I’d recently refueled (but hadn’t topped off, which you’re not supposed to do anyway). The needle was just below the “F” mark. Wouldn’t you know it, they tried to charge me, too? I returned to the gas station and topped off the tank, as ordered.

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But some car rental companies will even bill you if the needle is on “full”. Several readers reported that when they drove less than 75 miles, they were subjected to a $10 surcharge from Avis or Budget. The fee was waived if they could prove they filled the tank before returning the vehicle.

To get around this scam, fill your tank immediately before bringing the car back and keep all of your gas receipts. Otherwise, you might find an unwelcome surcharge on your bill.

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