Whilst in the USA for my business trip, I took on a car rental. However I did not book directly with the company. I went through a 3rd party company as they offered a much lower price. Lower Price for the same product.
The purchase through the 3rd party company did not allowed me to purchase insurance. Hence, when I collected the car at the airport, I requested for insurance.
The person at the counter did not explain to me everything about the insurance. The conversation went very general and I signed the dotted lines.
On the day I returned the car, I was given the receipt and I was totally speechless. The amount charged to my credit card for 2 days of insurance was USD158!!! Again, I asked the counter person to explain to me, to provide me with the cost breakdown. The counter person could not explain. HUH????? All he said was, the amount is right, we just trust the computer!!!!! OH MAN!!! Even if the amount is right, I want to know how did USD158 came about because on the day I took car, the lady said, insurance is about USD30 a day. Given +-5%, it wont come up to USD158 right???
When I returned the car, it was already night time and the next day, I was flying out of USA. I had no time to contact Budget. I got very worried because if there is anything to rectify, it should NOT be delayed.
Anyhow, I came back home and I decided to email them. I got prompt reply from Budget and after a few emails, out of gratitude, they prorated the amount and I paid USD120.
Now, let me tell you.
When you take an insurance on retail price, say, at the airport while taking car, there is a base charge, airport tax, state tax and misc charges. The airport and state tax can be like 22% high!!!!! Their rate is based on time. Let say, your car rental is from 8 am (day 1) till 8 am (day 2). You came in earlier at 7am on day 1 to take the car..they start counting from 7am. and from 7am-8am..its considered as 1 day charged.
So remember, take your own insurance the next time or look for better offer.
All these wont happened if the 3rd party company did a good job!
Its the same in Europe...
ReplyDeleteWestern countries have tons of bargain deals through online booking.. But we must read the fine prints as there might be tons of hidden or unexpected charges.. For us, this is something new.. perhaps Airasia will teach more about this culture.. :)
It’s certainly not a good experience! I never tried to rent a car through 3rd party company, and now I’m thankful for that. It’s better to get a rental car directly from the company, and it’s not always that expensive. There are companies that provide very affordable rental fees, friendly personnel, and flight monitoring service to make sure you’re on time for your flight. These services make everything convenient. :)
ReplyDelete{Earnestine Novick}