National Car Rental

[Randywc]

Just Returned from first every trip to disney. Arrived after 12 hours of plane changing/travel at 11:00pm. We also had not eaten as the airline cut all food services to save money and we did not have time between connections to get food.

Took my confirmed reservation number to National Counter to pick up my full size car. Reservation confirmed at counter, but was told sorry sir, we have no cars left.

I indicated that I had a confirmed reservation but was told all they had left were compact cars. My family of five and lugage would not fit in a compact car. National counter person said thats all we have, have a nice night.

I then had to try and find another car late at night in a strange city after 12 hours of travel.

I had to take a car from another company, smaller car for $160 more than my confirmed National rental. By the time we got to bed that night it was 4:00am. The first day of our vacation was destroyed as we were too tired to get up and get to the parks, not to mention $160 poorer. Every time I looked at my rental car, I was reminded of my anger.

I plan on filing formal complaints with both National and Disney Club (since they are a prefered parter.)

Any recommendations where I could additionaly complain about this very poor customer service.

[Pluto4President]

This should be posted on the Transportaion Board!

First of all, sorry for the bad experience. You can email national right from their website:

National Website (http://www.nationalcar.com)

[KProuty]

And they say things are slow in Orlando? I would have been furious! They didn't have a bigger car to give you AT ALL? I'm flying in the day after Thanksgiving, and now I am worried! At least I'm not arriving in the middle of the night!

I will forward your post to National in email and ask for words of encouragement that this won't happen to me or anyone else in Orlando....

Whoever did that to you should be fired or extremely reprimanded.

Katherine

[Pluto4President]

OK, I'm not crazy - this was not initially on this board :confused:

while there will always be negative situations with all major companies, this is really the first "horrible" one that I have heard about National. Check the transportaion board for all kinds of National posts. Also, do a search for National in the transportation board.:confused:

[robinb]

I've always wondered what your legal rights are when you're "walked" from a rental car agency when you have a confirmed reservation. I'm sorry that this happened to you. Randy, could you keep us updated?

[Disneylvr]

Now I am worried, we have reservations with National for later this month. :( I made the reservations on their website and printed out the confirmation. Did you make reservations by phone or web site? National should refund the $160 difference to you PLUS your 1 night of hotel. This is awful!!!

[Rock'n Robin]

This happened to us years ago in Maui with another company--we (and two other couples) had to hire a cab to take us to the other side of the island because they were out of cars--and then go back to the car place the next day to pick one up. They reimbursed us both ways for cab fare but it put a big crimp in our first morning to have to go back and pick up a car.
Robin M.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

What a shame, I was under the impression that a confirmed ressie meant a guarantee of receiving what you booked. I am also surprised that they did not find a car for you, ie: other agencies, which is what they usually do in a situation like this.
Katherine,
Who would you fire and for what reason? The lack of cars is not the counter attendants fault.
A letter of complaint should be sufficient.
As Pluto said, this is the first complaint of this magnitude for National. Even when they were allowing people to drive their rented vehicles home after 9/11, they had cars available.
As to worrying, I would not. This appears to be an isolated incident. What kind of assurances could they give you on top of a confirmed ressie?

[ducklite]

Gail-

I agree that the lack of cars isn't the counter attendents fault, but it sounds like the attendent wasn't very sympathetic, and didn't care. A sincere apology goes a long way...

Anne

[TinkerbellRules]

DH had a horrible experience with the price he was quoted this week. They tacked on insurance with WE DIDN'T ask for it! He argued and argued. Even had his confirmation. They kept stating he couldn't change his EA information and had to take what it stated he preferred. Well, I looked it up on the website and it stated DECLINED on insurance. He paid over $100 more. I still don't understand it.

Be very careful! Even with a confirmation paper you may still get stick with a higher rate. I'm going to email customer service about it. He also stated they besides that, everything on the EA went fine.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Anne,
I completely agree with the sincere apology aspect, but, remember, we are hearing one side of this story, we were not there and we do not know what happened. Like any story or report we get here, we hear one side, and trust that the facts, as presented, are factual.
I generally believe the positive ones and discard about three quarters of the negs. as they tend to get inflated way out of reason. Not saying this happened in this case, but...... it does happen.

[Pluto4President]

uh oh - Gail's looking for trouble :eek:

[Tracie Wallace]

Hi Randywc:
Once in Chicago we had a reservations with Alamo. Well, they ran out of cars but made arrangments for us to rent from Hertz. The Hertz rental was much more expensive than Alamo, but Alamo sent us a check to reimburse us the difference between our reservation price with Alamo and the price we paid to Hertz.

I understand your frustration however. It actually took us longer to get a rental car then the trip by air from Los Angeles. We also had a 2 year old with us who didn't take kindly to all the waiting.

I'm sure that part of the problem is that so many people make reservations and never bother to cancel them if they no longer need them. Because of this, car rental agencies overbook.

[Carolann]

That's an awful experience. If this happens to anyone else, my suggestion would be to call a limo or cab service for transportation to your hotel. The rental company should accomodate the consumer by arranging to have the rented car DELIVERED to the hotel the following day. The rental company should also reimburse for the limo or cab service. When you weren't looking at the car, I hope you had a great time . . . . .

[TinkerbellRules]

I just got off the phone and they refunded half ($44), but I'm still working on the other half. Then, she charged it to the wrong account. DH handed her his business card to charge it on there and she charged to personal acct. It didn't have a card tied to the ressie. I asked the CS person on the phone and she said the person could have charged it to the business card instead. She stated they can't force you to take insurance, but I informed her they were forcing him to. She was nice about it and I told her I wasn't blaming her (phone person). I'm going to followup with letter.

[TinkerbellRules]

I just got off the phone and they refunded half ($44), but I'm still working on the other half. Then, she charged it to the wrong account. DH handed her his business card to charge it on there and she charged to personal acct. It didn't have a card tied to the ressie. I asked the CS person on the phone and she said the person could have charged it to the business card instead. She stated they can't force you to take insurance, but I informed her they were forcing him to. She was nice about it and I told her I wasn't blaming her (phone person). I'm going to followup with letter. She also stated it didn't say anywhere on the his profile that we accepted the insurance, but declined it.

[tonilea]

Don't flame Gail, she is right.... there is an old saying ... "there are three sides to every story, his , hers, and the truth". Many times it is simply a matter of perception.

BTW Randywc, I am very sorry you were treated so poorly, National is usually much better.

Toni

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Toni,
Thanks for the support, but, I really think Pluto was "tugging my chain". :) Pluto lives for these moments, giving advice (excellent by the way) about National, helping others with National rentals, looking for National deals and sharing them with us, doing the cruise stuff, and tugging my chain. LOL. Pluto is a wonderful person. :)

[Randywc]

I had made the reservation on the net. I got both a confirmation number and an email confirmation #. I also know for a fact that I was not the only one that night that was turned away. I spoke to a lady that was by the bank of phones who was also trying to get a car as she was turned away from National like I was. I also seen several people wait in line at National and leave without cars.

I might also add that I called back home to my travel agent (out of bed) that night to see if she had any more influence than I. I went back to the National counter and asked them for their phone number. My travel agent called National Counter, asked for a manager. The "manager" told my travel agent that they only had compacts.

At this point, I called around and ended up getting a mid size car from Alamo. Since I was not prepared for this, I had all my discount codes, entertainment book etc back at home. My kids had to travel with luggage on their laps.

I would agree there are three sides to every story. All I can say is I had a confirmed reservation and had to get a car from somewhere else, for more $. That would sum up my version. At no point did I say the counter person was at fault or rude. She did tell me to "have a nice night"

I posted for two reasons. (1) Anger and (2)as a note to others to make sure you have a backup plan for your car reservation.

I was very prepared for my Disney trip from all the good info on this site. I also read all the positive things about National on this site. National is a Disney Preferred Partner and I am a Disney Club Member. These factors convinced me to book with National. National may have never messed up before, but for me and others on Oct 17, they did.

I did not have alternate plans and the result was 1 day missed at Disney.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

I never disputed your story, as I stated in my post. Considering that Alamo and National are sister companies, I would have thought National or Alamo would have treated you much better.
Your advice should be well heeded, and it is something I always do. Learned that years ago with Hertz changing the rate when I hit the counter. Budget was the alternative and at a lower rate and an upgrade to boot.
Next time, use the Emerald Club, it is free with DC, and go through the EA. Assuming you ever use National again. I would write them and express my emotion to them, I am sure something will be forth coming. They do want to make the customer happy.
Bummer about the car, btw.

[Gabrielle]

Randy,

I'm glad you posted your experience -- but sorry you had this problem. I tend to think the negative posts are credible, and I appreciate getting a heads-up on other peoples' experiences, so I'll know what to avoid.

I used National just this past October and chose to pay more with them rather than go with an off-terminal company. No problems but I did find it a little disconcerting to be told to go just pick out a car - versus having a car selected and delivered to you. I think if I had had your experience, I would have been even more upset, since National costs a tad more than the other rentals.

Good luck in getting some kind of compensation!

-Gabrielle

[Pluto4President]

Originally posted by GAIL HAYDEN
Toni,
Thanks for the support, but, I really think Pluto was "tugging my chain". :) Pluto lives for these moments, giving advice (excellent by the way) about National, helping others with National rentals, looking for National deals and sharing them with us, doing the cruise stuff, and tugging my chain. LOL. Pluto is a wonderful person. :)

Absolutley right Gail - only playing. Just got to have a sense of humor. Life is short :)

BTW, where do I send the check for the compliments???? :p

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Gabrielle,
They don't select a car and deliver it to you. You can be assigned a car and go to the designated parking spot, or, select one when you get to the garage. Long gone are the days of curb delivery.
Also, National is often less than any other on site rental agency.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Pluto,
Just put it into my account. :)

[KProuty]

Gail,

The reason I said "fired" was because I assumed that what transpired was NOT National procedure. If it were, National would have far fewer customers than it currently has. If she wasn't trained in the correct manner, then that is National's fault. (Although, if I were on the front lines, I would have tried to figure out "something" for the customer -- given them a van, anything!) If she was trained in the correct manner and didn't follow through, then that is her fault.

If this is National's standard operating procedure when they don't have cars, then there are bigger problems than just staffing and training.

Katherine

[Gabrielle]

>>Gabrielle,
They don't select a car and deliver it to you. You can be assigned a car and go to the designated parking spot, or, select one when you get to the garage. Long gone are the days of curb delivery.
Also, National is often less than any other on site rental agency.

Hello Gail,

Thanks for the info. However, it appears you misunderstood me. I'm well experienced in renting cars and my comments were based on this experience.

I was referring to car rental companies which make the car selection for the customer based
on the customer's reservation. Which is how Hertz in Orlando handled my car reservation just
this past May. Which is how Enterprise handles its car rentals - from whom I've rented in Washington, Orlando, Tampa, Pa. etc.

The point I was making is that under these arrangements, the car rental employee
who shows you to your car....who, "delivers" it to you, curbside, (and, this does, in fact, happen) is right there to speak with, should the car not be the one that was reserved.
Under this type of arrangement, it doesn't become necessary for the customer to return to the counter and speak with an employee who is not involved in delivering the car to the customer.

With regard to your comment that National is less than other on-sites - I haven't found this to
be true. Instead, I've found that the least expensive car rentals are most often available through AAA which deals with Hertz. My decision to use National last time was due to its
convenience - not because it was the least expensive.

[Randywc]

Here is what National has to say about the situation.

Dear Mr. XXXXXXXXX

I am in receipt of your email regarding your experience with our Orlando
airport location. This matter was forwarded to me for special attention.

Let me begin by apologizing for the frustration over the experience
described in your correspondence. National Car Rental prides itself on the high level of service we provide to our customers. We understand that as a service oriented company, not only do we need to provide a quality product, we also need to be one step ahead of our competition when it comes to customer satisfaction.

Please fax your receipt from Alamo to 952-837-3425 and I will send a check for the difference. Also send you mailing address to have the check sent.

In closing, we believe the best ways we have to measure our successes, as well as our failures, is through comments we receive from our customers.
Let me assure you that your feedback will be used to help us in achieving our goal to be the car rental company of choice.

Sincerely,

Katherine YYYYYYYYYYY
Customer Service

[Pluto4President]

I think that is a good resolution.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Gabrielle
In all the years I have rented cars, from Budget, Avis, Alamo and National, I have yet to have anyone escort me to my car, or have I found an attendant there (except for the checkout person). I have been told where it is parked and given directions on how to get there.
Alamo sends you roaming around the parking lot to the assigned space, Avis, likewise and Budget and National (if you don't select choice or EA). Frankly, I don't see what the big deal is anyway. If you have reserved a full size and you don't like what the computer selects, you are surely within your rights to ask for something else, before you leave the counter. If you are told to select what you want from the full size aisle, then I feel certain you will find something that will please you. If not, I doubt the computer can generate something that is not there.
As to AAA giving the best rates via Hertz, I don't find that to be true. Hertz is offsite for one thing and are, without a doubt, the most expensive in the Orlando area. They are also the ONLY ONE I have ever had problems with. I have AAA and also USAA insurance and even with those discounts (only try one at a time) I cannot match what National gives. I also have Wal*Mart discounts and again, Hertz is way out there for rates.
In reality, this discussion is not really worth the effort, but, I did want to share my experiences.

[denisenh]

Randywc glad that you got a reply from national!
thanks for your post...definitley a heads up and it is appreciated!
We have a reservation with national for a full size car for next saturday, out of tampa though and we'll keep our fingers crossed that it all goes well. Only used national once before and it was fine.

[DebbieB]

One of the reasons I always rent from National is I like being able to select my own car. I've used Emerald Aisle 3 times now and each time got a nice full size (I wasn't looking for a van or convertible, although on some trips they had them available on EA). It's great skipping the counter and heading straight for the garage.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Randy,
Really happy that you have that resolved, hopefully to your satisfaction.

[SleepyatDVC]

Randy,
Glad it worked out for you!! Good for National for honoring your (hard earned) rate. Good for you for persuing the issue and not eating the extra cost by letting the matter drop. You still had to deal with the frustration and lost time but at least, you got some satisfaction.


I just got back from a long weekend at WDW. We had EA reservations and also got in late. 2 full size vehicles and 3 minivans were on the Aisle. It was just the 2 of us - so we didn't want the minivans. The fullsize vehicles were a bit banged up (nicks, etc.). So, we went to the Intermediate aisle. 2 left - one with 26,000 miles and one with 14,000 miles - we took the 2nd car.

There were absolutely NO vehicles left besides these 7 except for compact or premium. We got a low rate so we didn't really care. We found out later at the hotel, the car doors couldn't be locked from the driver's side and the passenger side door handle was kind of loose! :rolleyes: But we just lived with it for 3 days. It was still worth it for the convenient pick up and return.

I guess it all depends on the inventory at each location for each day. Sometimes, you get lucky. My parents got a rental from National in Miami with only 5 miles on it last month! Sometimes, all the cars are gone, you are the 27th person to complain, the CS rep is paid minimum wage and can't wait to get off in 45 minutes, and you are left to fend for your own.

I think that for myself, I will try to have a backup reservation in the future just in case. I actually had one this trip with Alamo for $9 LESS than National. But for $9 I would definitely stick with National for the convenience. But if we had to go with our backup, it was nice knowing that we would be spending less $$.

:jester: :jester:

[Pluto4President]

In which case, if you had a problem, you could have just shot over to the car care center and they would have given you a different car.

[Randywc]

Dear Mr. XXXXXXX:

Thank you for your reply. I will send the check to the address below, in
the amount of $140.82 as we will give back difference in base rate not taxes.
If you need further assistance please let us know.

Sincerely,

Katherine XXXXXXXXX
Customer Service

-----Original Message-----
From: RandyXXXXXXXX
Sent: Monday, November 05, 2001 1:03 PM
To: consumeraffairs@nationalcar.com
Subject: Re:

My mailing address was listed on my fax, please send to
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXx
XXXXXXXXXXXXXxx

The amount I paid Alamo was $470.95.
The amount of the confirmed reservation from National was $310.51.

This would make the difference $160.44.

consumeraffairs@nationalcar.com on 11/03/2001 02:17:00 PM

To: randy.XXXXXXXXXX
cc:
bcc:

Subject:


Reference #:

Dear Mr. XXXXXXXXXXX:

Thank you for your reply. I have receive your fax and I will send you a
check in the amount of $140.82 for the difference in rates. We apologize
for the trouble you had with this rental. Please forward your mailing address
so, that I can mail this check to you. If you need further assistance
please
let us know.

Sincerely,

Katherine XXXXXXXXX
Customer Service




So in the end, looks like I will be out of pocket about $20.00 and a great deal of frustration.
Just today I got my pictures back from the trip. One of the pictures shows my rental car from Alamo. Ya I know.......think happy thoughts.

[das]

I think the resolution from National is ridiculous.

First of all, they are responsible for the difference in out of pocket cost, so that's base rate and taxes. I would accept no less, and demand nothing less.

Also, you mentioned you booked a full size car with National, so you should be reimbursed even more to cover the difference between mid size and full size.

You need to be persistent. You have rights and National violated your rights by not making a good faith effort to honor your reservation.

This situation is really disturbing since National and Alamo are actually the same company and share their fleet of cars.