Customer ReviewsforBudget Rent-A-Car

Horrible horrible! I will NEVER rent from Budget again. I had to wait one hour and forty five minutes for a car that I had reserved.

BBB Review#:35646

Dear ******* ************, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

Once this complaint was received, we tried to conduct an investigation. Unfortunately, there was not enough information provided, and your rental was unable to be located if you would kindly provide us the following information below, so we can investigate this matter further.

Reservation Number;
Renter's Name;
Rental Location;
Exact Date/Year of Rental;

Thank you for allowing us to assist you, please note you can also contact our **************** Team directly at ************ for assistance. 

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator 

If we could review this as a zero we would. Rented an Electric car at ***. We had never done so before. But we're reassured by the employee that we could trade it at any Budget if not satisfied.The vehicle was not fully charged when received. We drove to Tillamook and need to add charge. Sat there several hours and car only charges partially. We decided to trade it in the next day, as we wanted to sight see.The car said we had about 100 miles, which would get us to ********. However, driving with no heater the car was loosing charge very quickly. We could only make it to the ******************************** location and only had 22 miles left. The car was saying to charge it.However, Hillsboro Budget would NOT trade the car. They claim that they could not because they had no charging station. We had to call roadside assistance. They said they could replace it with another EV and we would have to go back to the airport to see exchange cars. This wasted a whole day of our precious limited vacation. Budget didn't even apologize for the misinformation given to us or any inconvenience caused. I talked to someone that works for a car manufacturer and they propose that the battery was defective or needed to be replaced, as it did not hold a charge.

BBB Review#:35631

Dear ******* ********, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

Once this complaint was received, we tried to conduct an investigation. Unfortunately, there was not enough information provided, and your rental was unable to be located if you would kindly provide us the following information below, so we can investigate this matter further.

Reservation Number;
Renter's Name;
Rental Location;
Exact Date/Year of Rental;

Thank you for allowing us to assist you, please note you can also contact our **************** Team directly at ************ for assistance. 

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator 

They told me the car smelled like weed when I brought it back. I did no smoke in the car . I asked if he could get someone and get a second opinion the guy was rude and told me no . and charged me $250. But in the policy it says if you smoke in the car you get Charged $450. He said he only charged me $250 because he was being nice. - Saint ****** Mo

BBB Review#: 35620
Case: 69316591

Dear ******* ********, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

Once this complaint was received, we tried to conduct an investigation. Unfortunately, there was not enough information provided, and your rental was unable to be located if you would kindly provide us the following information below, so we can investigate this matter further.

Reservation Number;
Renter's Name;
Rental Location;
Exact Date/Year of Rental;

Thank you for allowing us to assist you, please note you can also contact our **************** Team directly at ************ for assistance. 

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator

I was quite dissatisfied with the condition of the vehicle and the service associated with this rental. After I picked up the car and got almost home, I noticed that instead of a full gas tank, per the agreement, the gas tank was half full. I called customer service right away and got put on terminal hold. I'm guessing you want me to return the vehicle with a full tank. After driving a while, the low tire indicator showed all four tires low on air. I spent $ to put air in the tires to match the suggested pressure readings from the panel inside the door yet the leakage continued. The next morning, the left front tire had lost several pounds of pressure. I had to buy a can of fix a flat to stop the leakage. I was constantly warned that the car was due for an oil change. I eventually had to drive through rain. The wipers did nothing more than smear the window, making that vehicle dangerous to operate. I tried to wipe/clean the wiper blades with no success. A fairly miserable experience, all due to the lack of quality control by your company. Having read your canned responses to other complaints, "We cannot (if we don't try) make up for a disappointing experience...". How do you plan to make this right for my having to tolerate this low quality experience with your vehicle?

BBB Review#:35612

Dear ******* ******, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

Once this complaint was received, we tried to conduct an investigation. Unfortunately, there was not enough information provided, and your rental was unable to be located if you would kindly provide us the following information below, so we can investigate this matter further.

Reservation Number;
Renter's Name;
Rental Location;
Exact Date/Year of Rental;

Thank you for allowing us to assist you, please note you can also contact our **************** Team directly at ************ for assistance. 

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator 

Re: Budget rental in *****, *****, October 26, 2024 to November 3, 2024.Ten days after returning the vehicle and paying for the rental on my credit card, the original amount of $834 that my daughter paid as damage deposit still hasnt been refunded, even after three phone calls to customer service asking that the problem be remedied.I am furious. They are keeping $834 hostage, making my daughter unable to use her credit card for important purchases. That is totally unacceptable and they should be sued!

BBB Review #*****
 
Dear ******* ******,
 
Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.
 
Upon the end of the rental, typically within 72 hours of check-in, Budget will automatically release any unbilled hold amount back to your account. Depending upon the policies of your financial institution, they may take additional time to make the funds once again available for your use.  ************************* will return your funds within 15 days after the transaction date.  However, some holds may last as long as 30 days, depending on the issuing bank's policy for travel-related transactions. 

Unless a rental's charges meet or exceed the value of the hold, Budget doesn't actually receive the total amount of the funds in the hold. As a result, most banks and card providers do not show the return of the unused hold amount as a credit; it will simply be returned to your available balance. If no pending authorization holds remain, this typically indicates that the unused amount was already allocated back to your balance by your card provider. 

While we understand your concern, we are unable to discuss any details as you are not listed on the rental contract. If there is still a record of any unexpected completed or pending transactions, please have the renter reach out to us directly to provide screenshots of the transaction dates, amounts and transaction details for further review.

 
Sincerely,
 
Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator

This company has so many flaws. The latest one is, I reserved a car 11/13/24 and less then 30 minutes i cancelled because i didnt need it after all. The date of the reserversation is 11-16-2024 3 days away. they charged me $50. **** or hertz would never do that. Budget must be money hungry. i wont rent from them again. on top of that, the cars are always flity.

BBB Review #*****
Budget Case: 69200485
 
Dear ******* ********,
 
Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.
 
Our prepay policies, as disclosed on our website during booking, indicate that reservations cancelled within 24 hours of the reserved pick up time are subject to a $150.00 cancellation fee and reservations cancelled more than 24 hours from the reserved pick up time are subject to a $50.00 cancellation fee. Cancellation fees are common within the travel industry and to avoid similar fees in the future with car rental, hotel stays, or even airline travel it is recommended to fully review your reservation source for any possible fees prior to completing a booking. 

Although we realize that we cannot make up for a disappointing experience such as this, we do appreciate your contacting us.

Sincerely,
 
Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator

I have had nothing but trouble with Budget Car Rental. I should have learned my ****** the first time. The first time, a couple of years ago, they claimed I had never returned the car and my credit card was charged a LOT of money. Evidently, they took it for an oil change/service and forgot to scan the car in. They thought I had not returned it. It took multiple phone calls to straighten that out. Fast forward to this summer and I rented a car to be picked up at the *************. I pre-paid and chose 'mystery car' just to see what that was like. None of the reservation paperwork or emails indicated that the mystery car may come with an upgrade charge. I was charged an additional $248 for the upgrade. I argued with the representative when I discovered the additional charge on my credit card and the best he could do is refund me half the amount. Otherwise, he said, I would have to go back to ***** to discuss the matter at the Budget counter. This company is ********. Fool me once, fool me twice but never, ever again. My next step is to talk to my credit card company to see what they can do about this fraud/bait and switch company.

BBB Review#: 35561
Case: 69174322

Dear ******* *****, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

With a mystery car booking you could be provided any make/model including passenger vans or electric vehicles. If you choose not to accept the first make/model that is offered than you do have the option to upgrade to a different class of vehicle. Our records show that you did agree to the upgrade at the time of booking and that our **************** Team did discount the upgrade by $146.81 as a gesture of good will. 

Thank you for allowing us to assist you.

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator

Rented a car from Budget. Literally less than 2 days. Returned it with a little dirt on the floor mat. It is 11 days later and I am now recieving a notice stating I am being charged an excessive cleaning fee of $250. Literally a quick vacuum and it is done. Not excessive at all. I called and was told they will take 50% off the cleaning charge. Asked to speak to a supervisor and that took 14 hours to get their call. They are no better. What happened after I returned it and left it in line? No inspection with me there. No paperwork. Nada. I certainly did not leave the vehicle in a condition that would warrant this. Do not rent from them. They will scam you.

BBB Review#: 35558
Case: 69159752

Dear ******* *******, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

Charges for cleaning vehicles that are returned in such a condition that the vehicle must be sent out for detailing, will be charged in proportion to the level of cleaning that is needed. This includes, but is not limited to, vehicles returned with food stains on the seats, dog (or animal) hair that cannot be removed through normal vacuuming of the car, excessive odor, smoke odor, dirt, sand, trash and cigarette *****. 

After careful review of our records, we find that the location has provided documentation of the condition of the vehicle at return. Based on this information, we find that the charges are valid, additionally, we show that as a gesture of **************** we have offered to discount the cleaning fee by 50% after it has been billed. 

Thank you for allowing us to assist you.

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator

Rented a car in ******. After I Returned the car I was cleared by the return agent and was told there was nothing else I needed to do. I few days later they charged my credit card $350 cdn for a damaged wheel. Complete lies. A month later I'm still waiting for a resolution. They make it very difficult to dispute anything. I would not rent from budget! They are thieves! I took a video before I took the car and they are still being very difficult to deal with. Worst company for customer service.

BBB Review#: 35546
Case: 68515138

Dear ******* *****, 

In regards to the aforementioned BBB complaint, thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concerns.

Budget values the relationship that we have with our travelers and always strives to do the right thing. We apologize for the inconvenience this matter has caused.

We have contacted our Claims Manager to review the issues you raised.  When we have received a reply from their office, we will advise you accordingly.  We appreciate your patience during our investigation.
 
Thank you for allowing us to assist you.

Sincerely,

Avis Budget Group
Customer Advocacy Response Coordinator