Q: I recently rented a car from Thrifty in Los Angeles. The car I had reserved was not available when I arrived, which I only learned after waiting over an hour in line. Thankfully, a kind agent found an available car for me, and I was able to get on my way. Unfortunately, it looks like Thrifty also increased the price of my rental by $250.
Each time I ask about the charge, I get a different response. When I originally signed the rental contract, the agent advised me to contact Thrifty’s main office during my rental to correct the overcharge. When I contacted Thrifty during my rental, they told me to wait until after the contract was complete. Now I’m being told that I should have ensured this issue was addressed at the time of signing the contract.
I never asked for an upgrade. The Thrifty agent was just attempting to honor the original reservation. I’ve written to Thrifty and have asked for a refund, but it refuses. Can you help me? — Leah Page, Portland, Oregon
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A: Thrifty shouldn’t have charged you an extra $250 without your consent. The industry’s standard practice when a location runs out of cars is to upgrade a customer to the next available class of car at no additional charge.
If an agent ever tells you to call the 800 number to correct an overcharge, walk away from the rental. The moment you accept the keys to the vehicle, you’re on the hook for the full amount.
Even if you’ve already agreed to the rental, you still have a decent case. Make sure that you keep the original reservation; then send a copy of the confirmation, along with the new invoice, to the car rental company and politely ask it to adjust your rate. If that doesn’t work, you can appeal to one of the executive contacts for the rental company.
You kept a great paper trail of correspondence between yourself and Thrifty, but Thrifty would not budge.
I contacted Thrifty on your behalf. The company refunded your $250.
Christopher Elliott
