Never renting from THEM again!
Feb. 2nd, 2009 06:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
indigo_rose99Worst rental experience ever.
We worked out the paperwork in the usual way, but Thrifty has a new approach to giving its customers the actual car. There is no exchange of key and location of parking space. No, it is "Go pick a color you like out of Section 6."
Section 6 contained exactly ONE of the car I was trying to rent. As I examined the back bumper, someone else got in it and drove off. I scoured Section 6. No other cars. I am completely ignoring the minivans. I Am Not Renting A Minivan. Other people wandered section 6. I began to wonder if this is standard practice. I asked for a car from the guys in casual employee clothes wandering the lot.. "Yes, yes, I bring you car." Ten minutes passed. I became sweaty and mildly crabby. I walked back inside and complained. She took my paperwork, crossed out the six, and said, "Pick one from section 3!" I eyed section 3. Well, first I had to FIND section 3. That took a while. After finding it, I discovered it had exactly one kind of car: Large. Really large. Possibly the largest non-SUV modern car I have ever seen.
I seriously tried. I put my stuff in it. I spent a while trying to figure out how to move the driver's seat (on the door?!) forward. And then I realized one deadly truth: Though the car was parked diagonally in the direction I wanted to exit, there was No Possible Way to get it out the parking space without hitting at least four other cars. Possibly more. No way. My frustration level rose another three notches and I admitted that if I couldn't get it out of the damn lot, I wasn't going to be able to drive the damn car. So I pulled my now-REALLY-sweaty self and my gear out of the car, and went in search of yet ANOTHER official person.
Other customers wandered section 6, looking lost. Still no cars appeared.
I would like to say that I used tears like a well-honed weapon. But the truth was, I just lost it. I ended up with a manager, practically yelling, "A SMALL CAR! I cannot drive these enormous cars! I reserved a SMALL CAR!!! And every time I try to get a car, someone else drives off in it! Where are the SMALL CARS?!" He clearly wanted to be rid of me as quickly as possible. "These convertibles are our smallest cars. Take one."
Fine. So I did. Lousy cheap-ass convertible with zero acceleration and a cloth top. *general glower* If they try to charge me more than the contract I signed when I return it, I am going to blow about eight gaskets.
We worked out the paperwork in the usual way, but Thrifty has a new approach to giving its customers the actual car. There is no exchange of key and location of parking space. No, it is "Go pick a color you like out of Section 6."
Section 6 contained exactly ONE of the car I was trying to rent. As I examined the back bumper, someone else got in it and drove off. I scoured Section 6. No other cars. I am completely ignoring the minivans. I Am Not Renting A Minivan. Other people wandered section 6. I began to wonder if this is standard practice. I asked for a car from the guys in casual employee clothes wandering the lot.. "Yes, yes, I bring you car." Ten minutes passed. I became sweaty and mildly crabby. I walked back inside and complained. She took my paperwork, crossed out the six, and said, "Pick one from section 3!" I eyed section 3. Well, first I had to FIND section 3. That took a while. After finding it, I discovered it had exactly one kind of car: Large. Really large. Possibly the largest non-SUV modern car I have ever seen.
I seriously tried. I put my stuff in it. I spent a while trying to figure out how to move the driver's seat (on the door?!) forward. And then I realized one deadly truth: Though the car was parked diagonally in the direction I wanted to exit, there was No Possible Way to get it out the parking space without hitting at least four other cars. Possibly more. No way. My frustration level rose another three notches and I admitted that if I couldn't get it out of the damn lot, I wasn't going to be able to drive the damn car. So I pulled my now-REALLY-sweaty self and my gear out of the car, and went in search of yet ANOTHER official person.
Other customers wandered section 6, looking lost. Still no cars appeared.
I would like to say that I used tears like a well-honed weapon. But the truth was, I just lost it. I ended up with a manager, practically yelling, "A SMALL CAR! I cannot drive these enormous cars! I reserved a SMALL CAR!!! And every time I try to get a car, someone else drives off in it! Where are the SMALL CARS?!" He clearly wanted to be rid of me as quickly as possible. "These convertibles are our smallest cars. Take one."
Fine. So I did. Lousy cheap-ass convertible with zero acceleration and a cloth top. *general glower* If they try to charge me more than the contract I signed when I return it, I am going to blow about eight gaskets.
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no subject
Date: 2009-02-03 01:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-03 02:19 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-08 04:30 pm (UTC)personally, i'd email exactly that narrative (well, minus the tears commentary) to thrifty customer service and suggest to them that they owe you a free day's rental to a) make up for the stress they provoked and b) convince you that it's worth renting from them ever again. it's not like they're the only game in town for cheap cars; they should want to retain your patronage (especially if you point out that it's for business travel).
and then i'd redeem it somewhere other than that particular franchise... *wry grin*