I booked car for hire through an internet booking agency and paid a small deposit towards the quoted cost.
The agency allocated Budget car rental to supply the vehicle and upon arrival at Belfast Airport the Budget desk was easy to find and conveniently located.
They had details of my booking and the paperwork process commenced without difficulty. Then the Budget representative became irritated when I declined the excess waiver insurance.
I was then presented with a grand total to pay and I asked for details of how it was broken down. I was keen to ensure that my deposit paid to the agency had been deducted from the amount to pay. The representative had increasing difficulty explaining the breakdown of costs. First she said some items were shown VAT inclusive and others as VAT exclusive. Then when pressed she could not tell me which and I was still unconvinced of the basis of charge. Eventually, after several attempts I was finally satisfied that the total was correct although still lacked proper documentation to indicate this.
I was handed the key and a docket showing one pre existing item of damage to the rental vehicle. I asked what I should do if I found other sites of damage and suggested that they would not be interested in minor scratches or stone chips. I was abruptly told that as I had not taken out the excess waiver insurance I would have to ensure that every item of damage was identified however minor unless I wanted to be charged the £600 excess!
Upon examining the vehicle in the collection compound I found numerous scratches and even a broken rear light cluster - none of which had been identified on the docket. As instructed I reported to the nearby Budget garage where a friendly and courteous guy entered the additional items of damage on the docket. I got the impression that he thought the process unnecessary and did not seem surprised when I described the rude member of staff at the reception desk. The process took half an hour out of my holiday.
The car was satisfactory and I returned it to the Airport in advance of the scheduled return time.
Upon arrival back in England, I e-mailed the internet booking agency and advised them of my disappointment with Budget customer service. They in turn contacted Budget Northern Ireland, who to their credit, contacted me very quickly.
They inevitably had a different version of events and certainly implied that the additional items of damage that I had been told to identify were too minor to be of significance. They did not seem to grasp that I only acted on the instructions of their own staff!
In respect of the confusing charging arrangements, Budget claimed that they cannot give a detailed breakdown of charges until the hire is completed and a final invoice issued! I have rented from Budget before and never received a final invoice. One arrived through the post today - I wonder why! - and is totally confusing with no reference to my deposit paid. It is actually reflected in a slightly reduced daily rate although there is nothing to indicate this. It has an unexplained figure for "adjustment" and some items are shown as VAT inclusive; then the VAT is deducted; then a grand total of VAT is added! This clearly seems designed to confuse.
Happily my Trading Standards office is interested in progressing this Company's failure to ensure transparency of charging and I hope for progress in due course.
Potential Budget customers - be careful.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Welcome to Ciao. Not a good expeience of the company. Maureen
phil2001 08.05.2004 23:36
Good straight forward review, you could also contact the BVRLA which stands for British Vehicle Rental & Leasing Association which is an industry trade bodie that can help you the customer. Regards Phil
anthmack 08.05.2004 23:30
Wow, what a great start. Gave you a V. Helpful, and will be cautious.... Cheers. Antony
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petermountain 30.11.2006 (30.11.2006)
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