So, as some of you might know, Nadia and me were traveling in Europe over Christmas (Travel report coming soon). This involved renting a car from Hertz in Frankfurt and driving it all the way to Poland and back. Arriving late in Frankfurt due to a technical issue with our 777 flight out of Dallas we picked up our reserved car in the Hertz Gold Canopy parking lot. In case you have never picked up a car at Frankfurt Airport - it's a complete organizational nightmare.First, identifying were to pick up is a lesson in patience. One has to hike through almost the entire terminal to finally arrive at the correct location. I stopped at the counter, just in case, but was told that my car was already waiting. Since I am a Hertz Gold member I just have to show up at the lot, look for my name, throw the bags in the car and go. Well, that's at least how it normally works.
After talking to the more than bored customer service rep at the Hertz counter we continued our underground tour of FRA airport to find the Hertz parking lot. It's a hike and signs guiding you the right way could obviously be much better.
Finally we arrive at the lot. We round a corner and there are the familiar digital displays with one's name displayed. I searched & looked and finally saw my name above a Ford hatchback. Great...finally.
Now, to make one thing clear - I reserved a D Class car from hertz, meaning a Mid-size Sedan. I could have gone with a cheaper Economy or Compact Class but I thought for driving across Europe in the Winter I should pay a little premium, plus we would be driving family around and a Fiat Panda or little KIA isn't very cozy for 4 people. So I reserved the car with confidence. The original reservation I made online at Hertz.com (utilizing a UNITED booking code) was for a D Class car and a pic told me that it will be a Ford Focus or similar.
Well, a Ford Focus Hatchback was hanging out under my name so, everything is fine, right? Bags into the back, set your seat, adjust mirrors and head for the exit. Now, how many of you ever check the rental contract, the little white paper hanging from the mirror or lying on the passenger seat? Probably not many. I stopped doing it because the charges are always wrong because discounts and special coupon savings are never incorporated in the total - only after you finish the rental is the price adjusted automatically. So, I didn't look at it, signed at the exit that the car is not damaged (I always walk around the car before driving out - you should too!) and off we went.
Fast forward back in the US. I receive a letter in the mail from Hertz Autovermietung GMBH in Frankfurt with an Invoice. Total: 507 Euro....Whoa....that was more than a 100Euros more than my reserved rate. I scanned the charges and soon found the culprit....a 100Euro Vehicle Upgrade charge..... Now, I was a bit perplexed by that. Sure I noticed a few 100 kilometers into our drive that our car had GPS installed and voice recognition and whatever else they crammed into the console but I had my own GPS with me and thought that the FRA Hertz location probably had nothing else available for us. So...Sweet!!!, a little automatic upgrade, which one gets once in a while from rental companies due to lack of specific car classes in the lot.
The invoice also stated that I reserved a D Class, was charged a D Class but Rented a Q6 class. I have never seen the Q6 identifier since I never rent crazy expensive cars. Cars are supposed to get you from A to B during your travels. People who rent Mercedes and BMW on their travels in our opinion are wasting money.
So, faced with an exorbitant and in our minds, fraudulent charge I did what any sensible consumer does - I called customer service and asked for an explanation/refund.
I provided my rental agreement number, name and dates and was told the matter will be investigated since it's on a different continent they couldn't help me right away and I should give them 10 days. While waiting for a response I received yet another letter from Germany telling me how much I owed.
Finally, the long-awaited email from Hertz customer service arrived in my Inbox. The more I read, the more I got frustrated. I basically had received a standard: "You used it - you have to pay for it" letter from Hertz.
I was shocked. Normally, complaints such as this (they are not uncommon - a simple good search of "hertz upgrade charge" will give you plenty of results) are resolved immediately with a simple refund.
This is the moment in any customer service interaction that has the companies on the edge of their seats. Will the customer raise more hell or will they bow down to our verdict? Well, if you know us, we don't bow down when we know that it is actually them who stands on weaker ground. Customer service is all about making the customer happy - while some people might have gone on paying the extra charge with slight annoyment or telling themselves to never rent from Hertz again or at least check the contract next time, we wasted no time. I immediately sent of a reply-email stating that this is unacceptable,an outrage even and that this means that Hertz, at least in Frankfurt, Germany is participating in very questionable business practices. A mentioning of "escalating the issue" coupled with "Better Business Bureau" and "never will use Hertz for my personal or corporate travel again", in our opinion would do the trick.
48 hours later I received an email, apologizing for the mishap, telling me that a refund of 119 Euros is on its way and hoping that I will use their services again. I also liked how they stated that my complaint will be forwarded to the appropriate management, meaning, I presume, that somebody will get a talking to behind the FRA airport rental counter. Well, maybe that's just our wishful thinking. Afterall, this is just business as usual. Imagine how much money the rental companies make each day on people that don't go the extra mile to complain or simply overlook extra charges. Same goes with banks and their millions of dollars in fees each year.
The moral:
1) Check your rental contract before driving off the lot - anything wrong, call Hertz or head back to the counter.
2) If you are Gold Canopy and simply pick up your car - don't rely on Hertz to give you the correct car.
3) If the rental counter is at the other side of the world (as in FRA) - just leave with the "upgraded" car and fight it later.
4) If challenged by customer service - persist and fight. You are in the right. You reserved a specific product and never requested an upgrade. You weren't told you received an upgrade by anyone and throw in how disappointed you are and the other powerful words (Better Business Bureau and escalation).
Our situation was resolved and had a happy ending. Many of you might not be so lucky or come across a stubborn Customer Service rep. going by the book. Keep at it. The more you escalate, the more embarrassing and dangerous it gets for them - this includes airlines, rental companies and hotels. The customer is definitely still king in the USA. Believe me, complaining about this in Europe would have gone probably nowhere.
Hope this little episode helps you to stick up for yourself and standing your ground against ridiculous charges.
