Screw ERAC!

[TheAdvocate]

ERAC = Enterprise Rent A Car

So I rented a standard sized SUV from them last week. $327 and change. Did it online, and PDF'd the confirmation, etc.

Picked up the SUV - They were slammed and oversold, and they had to scramble to get me one from another location. Despite the fact that I handed them my confirmation paperwork, they apparently had to re-enter the entire order manually at the front desk (this wasnt an airport location). My rental was for a week, but they close early on Saturdays. Told the manager there that I might not make it back by noon on Sat but I'd try. No big deal he said - just turn it in on Monday and we'll just carry forward the avg daily rate for 2 more days (closed Sundays). I've rented from them several times, and they did this exact same thing for me before last year. Avis manager had been calling me because he wanted my business, and Enterprise knows that and was trying to keep me.

Fast forward a week - I made it into town about an hour late - 1pm, and they had closed the shop. Oh well, my fault, I'll have to pay for 2 more days.

Turned the car in today. Asst Manager took my paperwork and keys, did the damage inspection (none), and then processed the check out.

Him: "That will be $936 sir, would you like that on the same card."

Me: "Pardon me?"

Him "$936"

I made him itemize the charges. He had tacked on dmage loss coverage at $30/day or so, which I had signed paperwork in hand that I had declined. After I showed him that incontrovertible proof, he reluctantly deducted those charges. That knocked $210+ taxes off the $936, but I was still looking at about $700...

Then he explained that he was charging me 3 extra days, because by that time in the discussion, it was 12:05 pm (nevermind that I dropped the car off at 11:30). And he was charging me an extra $85 + taxes for each of the 3 days. That was the full, nobody-actually-pays-it daily rate for the next car class up from what I actually got. I booked the car under a corporate discount, and am also a AAA member failing that (and a frequent customer).

I was incredulous. This was a shakedown, plain and simple. He haggled with me for a while - first dropping it to like $640, then his final "I'm really doing you a favor man" rate was $525, or $200 more than my quote.

Now, I'll admit, I kept the car two more days, but for $100/day? I could have just extended the rental for another week for $279. Why in the hell would I pay $100/day extra? I told him, screw that, give me the keys back and I'll keep it til next Saturday. He wouldn't do it.

I'm not trying to get out of paying what I owe, which is more than just the week, but his tactics are pure bullshit. He was trying to see if I was stupid and would agree to any of his higher numbers based on just outright fraud or deceptive practices.

He ran the last charge ($525) through against my wishes. I am disputing it with my credit card company, filing a complaint with the better business bureau, calling my (very large) company's travel center folks and the people who put the discount program together, and I'm calling AVIS (local manager is dying to get more business from us) and telling them what happened. I also filed a complaint with ERAC, though the area manager told me he isnt gonna do a damn thing about it. I talked with a fellow employee whow orked there 5 years and he says this kind of bullshit is standard OP at many ERAC's and to not put up with it. I'm just so pissed. How do you pull this stunt with a reservation made to an officer of a big company using the corp discount program and a frequent customer too?

BTW - My reservation does not say anything about the rates he's trying to charge me. My average daily rate after taxes was about $47.

CLIFFS:
1. Rented a car from Enterprise
2. Turned it in and the desk guy tried to shake me down for almost 3x what I reserved it for. Said he already had my card # on file and could charge me whatever he wanted to, then did so.
3. Do not do business with Enterprise. They will try to fuck you.

So fucking pissed. I hate companies who pull shit like this just hoping you won't fight back.

 

[OUCaptain]

Might want to edit that title

 

[Anubis]

this is exactly why the fairly large company i work for does not use them. we have discounts with Hertz and Avis, never had issues with either

 

[LtPage1]

Why do you hate Middle Easterners so much?

 

[vshah]

ugh, i hate renting cars. If its not through a corporate program, its a massive scam.

hope your CC company backs you up

 

[spaceman]

i woulda driven u around for
alot less
Ms. Daisy

 

[TheAdvocate]

Might want to edit that title

Oops. Didnt realize that was a rule here. My apologies.

 

[mmntech]

I worked at a car rental agency through college (though not Enterprise). The clerk should have gone through all the charges with you when you signed the contract. We always had to. So either they didn't or you failed to read the contract. 90% of the time, it's the latter. You still signed it though without getting all the information. Lesson learned: ALWAYS READ BEFORE YOU SIGN!

Secondly, they were scrambling to get you the car, which means they're short already. You kept it longer than you should have. Supply and demand. That's why you were charged $85 per day. Most rental agencies today don't carry a huge stock of SUV in their fleets. People prefer smaller, cheaper cars. Most of the SUVs they do keep are for insurance customers. If you were going to be late, you should have notified them. They're basically punishing you because that car could have gone out to someone else. Rates are set by the head office and there really isn't much flexibility at the branch level, unless it's franchise owned.

We used to get these complaints occasionally. Some of the complaints we got were so silly. One woman threatened to sue us because we couldn't find her the specific truck size she wanted. Yeah, we did some shit when we were thrown to the rail. Call centre would over book us a lot. However, most of the issues were caused by customer error, either because they weren't paying attention when we read out the contract, or they thought they could cheap us out.

I can tell you with confidence that you won't be getting your money back. Being a car rental agent is probably one of the most stressful jobs on the planet. I couldn't wait to get out of there.

 

[apac]

i woulda driven u around for
alot less
Ms. Daisy

This is now a spaceman thread.

 

[BrokenVisage]

I hear the USA is going to declare war on ERAC.

 

[apac]

Actually I think your best course of action here is to call the regular manager, who you talked to in the store and is aware of the Avis business he's competing with. Politely ask him to reverse the extra charges based on your earlier verbal agreement. If he declines, inform him that you'll no longer be working with his company and going with a competitor. Then call the corporate office and relay the same message.

He might be OK with ditching a repeat customer over $100, but the corporate office will not be happy about that.

 

[TheAdvocate]

I worked at a car rental agency through college (though not Enterprise). The clerk should have gone through all the charges with you when you signed the contract. We always had to. So either they didn't or you failed to read the contract. 90% of the time, it's the latter. You still signed it though without getting all the information. Lesson learned: ALWAYS READ BEFORE YOU SIGN!

I did. I signed an agreement for $327.19. I don't dispute I owe that (plus a little more). There are no extra day rates on the contract or the online reservation.

Secondly, they were scrambling to get you the car, which means they're short already. You kept it longer than you should have. Supply and demand. That's why you were charged $85 per day. Most rental agencies today don't carry a huge stock of SUV in their fleets. People prefer smaller, cheaper cars. Most of the SUVs they do keep are for insurance customers. If you were going to be late, you should have notified them. They're basically punishing you because that car could have gone out to someone else. Rates are set by the head office and there really isn't much flexibility at the branch level, unless it's franchise owned.

Actually, I notified them 3 times. I told the branch manager when I made the reservation, I told the desk gril when she was punching it in, and I called them Friday to let them know I'd probably be late. Not that there's any requirement for me to do so. As I said, they wanted my business and knew this was likely to happen, just as it had in the past.

None of that at all explains his attempts to screw me out of $936, or did you conveniently forget that? Or the fact that they oversold a car class after I, a frequent customer, made an online reservation 8 weeks in advance. You're acting like that's my fault. :Incredulous:

And not to disrupt your sanctimonious diatribe, but I am getting my money back. I just faxed my confirmation and contract to the dispute manager at my credit card bank, and she said this isnt the first time this has happened, and they are going to reverse the charges on enterprise once they process my complaint..

Also, I happen to be a former attorney and a former 10 year editorial employee at a major regional newspaper. My old boss is still an executive editor there. Guess where my next call is going?

Lesson to the pricks at ERAC: do not screw with good customers. You never know who you are dealing with.

I'm going to make it my mission for them to lose their preferred provider status with my company. Say bye bye to all that business. There are plenty more companies who are licking their chops for it.

 

[Supersonic64]

How dare you mock the war to protect us from radical terrorists? I bet you are one of those liberals who doesn't give a damn about the country. Our people put themselves on the line to keep YOU safe and you insult them and make fun of the war.

You suck and you should sincerely GTFO.

 

[TheAdvocate]

Actually I think your best course of action here is to call the regular manager, who you talked to in the store and is aware of the Avis business he's competing with. Politely ask him to reverse the extra charges based on your earlier verbal agreement. If he declines, inform him that you'll no longer be working with his company and going with a competitor. Then call the corporate office and relay the same message.

He might be OK with ditching a repeat customer over $100, but the corporate office will not be happy about that.

I tried that. I think you're right, but he didn't think so. Pending on the regional manager actually caring enough to call me back.