Dont rent from Alamo/National!!!!!

[djarhansen]

I also tend to disregard posts which go overboard on hyperbole such as .

OH MY GOODNESS!!! I thought we were all on the same team here, trying to give advice and opinions to help our vacations be wonderful. My bad. Don't take me as creditable b/c I posted it several times. Go ahead and disregard my post. It's not my loss. Again, I was just trying to help. I figured people doing DCL wouldn't check the universal forums, people doing sea world wouldn't check DCL forums etc. so I posted it on several forums. I used cut and paste and it took me a total of 5 mins. I just wanted my experience told so others can learn and hopefully not be put into the same situation I am! When preparing for my DCL trip I never checked any of the other boards!

Sure, if National has the cheapest rates then book it BUT just hope you dont need customer service for anything! IN MY OPINION!!! I strongly advise if another company’s quote is comparable to Nationals, it might be worth the couple of bucks to go with the other company. Again, in my opinion! I still stand behind my quote of "obviously they dont clean their cars" b/c not only did they originally give us a dirty car but after I returned it, they didn't find my MP3 player, which makes me conclude once again they must not have cleaned it very well. Of course, there is always the possibility that the employee cleaning the car, saw it and kept it himself. Either way, it doesn't give National a thumbs up in my book.

I NEVER meant for this post to reach the level it has. I had no idea what a troll was until today but yes, I do agree there are definitely a couple of trolls on this forum but I am not 1 of them. I started this post more as an FYI. Take my advise or don't, that what these boards are for. As for the couple of you who are just trying to "stir things up" hopefully you will find something better to do with your time.

Like somebody else said, crap happens (could not have said it better)! Yes it does so that being said... Good luck travelers. Be safe and I hope you all have a magical hassle free vacation with no problems.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Again, I was just trying to help. I figured people doing DCL wouldn't check the universal forums, people doing sea world wouldn't check DCL forums etc. so I posted it on several forums.

But it would make sense that posters interested in renting cars would look on... the Transportation board.

Sure, if National has the cheapest rates then book it BUT just hope you dont need customer service for anything! IN MY OPINION!!!

Starting the original thread with this phrase would have been extremely sensible. In MY opinion, Alamo/National service is excellent.

I'm still not sure why you didn't just go back to the garage when you realized the MP3 player was missing - because somebody at the 800 number told you to wait and call Lost & Found?

 

[wdwfan1]

I have some Alamo credit vouchers (through Airmiles) - do you think I could use them at the garage or just through the main -long line - terminal? Thanks. Deb

Sorry, I cant answer that question. I have never used a voucher.

 

[goofy4tink]

To the OP, thank-you for sharing your experience. We like to hear the good, as well as the not so good, experiences of our DIS friends. It does seem that when someone posts a negative experience there can be a backlash effect. We need to remember that sometimes people are going to have a completely different experience than we may have had. It doesn't make them liers, cheaters, or trolls. I have had two pretty decent experiences with Alamo. And one of them could have been much worse due to my ignorance, but the ALamo counter person was very helpful....something I was not prepared to encounter based on reports here on the DIS boards.
So, lets keep in mind that there are many types of experiences out there and try not to be inflamatory here. We'll all on the same side!!

 

[meandtheguys2]

I can't stand Alamo, either. But, since I used Priceline, I couldn't use QS. Rude agent, ins./ upsell pressure, and they tried to say we dented the car. We had video with their staff that proved we didn't. No apology.

 

[clkelley]

Car rental agents receive a commission when they upsell extra services. This is why they hard sell insurance coverage, etc.

I always refuse the insurance, so I ensure I always say "I'm refusing all insurance" -- they usually start the conversation stating -- do you only want "basic insurance"?

What a racket.....

Not only do they receive a commission, their jobs depend on it!! My brother worked for a rental car agency locally, and was put in a location at a dealership. He sold very few of those extra coverages, because most of his customers the insurance company or the dealership was paying for the rental!! and was subsequently let go!!

 

[Joann]

Sorry you had such a bad experience, thank you for posting it! We always have used alamo/national never had a major problem but yes have had a very bad smelly car from them ..it was cleaned but it smelt like ppl left wet towels in it with the windows rolled up for a month in hot humid weather! We didnt take it back as we were lucky we got it as they were all sold out plus we were behind. I did tho go to a walmart and got car spray to spray in it lol. We also got ripped off once with the extras, the guy confussed me on something and I ended up paying for something we didnt need! I do however always turn everything down as we are fully covered for rentals. I dont need it so NO i wont be paying for it! Not sure who we are renting with this May I am watching prices right now

 

[rie'smom]

To the OP, thank-you for sharing your experience. We like to hear the good, as well as the not so good, experiences of our DIS friends. It does seem that when someone posts a negative experience there can be a backlash effect. We need to remember that sometimes people are going to have a completely different experience than we may have had. It doesn't make them liers, cheaters, or trolls. I have had two pretty decent experiences with Alamo. And one of them could have been much worse due to my ignorance, but the ALamo counter person was very helpful....something I was not prepared to encounter based on reports here on the DIS boards.
So, lets keep in mind that there are many types of experiences out there and try not to be inflamatory here. We'll all on the same side!!

great post-very even handed-goofy4tink, I can understand why you're a mod!

 

[Rachael Q]

Thanks for posting your experiences. We have used various car companies over the years, not just for Disney but other vacations. Hertz, Avis, Dollar, Budget, Alamo, Enterprise, and National. We've had good and bad service with most, awesome service with none and horrendous service with one.

However National has been the most consistent, and who we use more frequently. We have brought issues to their customer service agents, and have always had the issues addressed and received an apology.

The one company I prefer not to do business with is Thrifty, but I wont say never again. Maybe they were having a bad week, maybe their manager was new/inexperienced etc. Maybe next time we rent Thrifty will be the company that has the car we need, or the price we like, and then we will give them a chance.

For now we will continue to rent from National.

 

[Kitzer]

WOW....where to begin. Believe me or not, I dont care. I was actually just trying to help/warn others from getting the same treatment as I did.

Yes, I know nobody is perfect and mistakes are made. That would hold water if I had been dealing with just 1 person in general from NATIONAL however my experience with several different people has not been pleasant. Just my opinion. Again, you can do whatever you want. As for being a "troll" I wasn't even going to respond back to these forums b/c my vacation is done, again I just wanted to warn others. The only reason I did come back and check them is b/c somebody sent me a private message. You can do a search of my screen name and view all my previous post ever made. All of which were questions or pleasant comments. Before you start defining people as "trolls" maybe you should do some research or better yet realize these boards are to help one another. Take what you read as advise and either use it or don't.

Just to clarify, we booked our reservation with NATIONAL. When we got to the airport and tried to retrieve our car at the self-check computers our reservation could not be found. Being as there was NOT A SINGLE person behind the desk to help us, I walked over to the Alamo desk. The lady explained that they are owned by the same company so she could look up our reservation. Being as we have a common last name, they gave our min-van away to another family with the same last name several hours earlier. I wasn't mad, no big deal. Just give me another car and let me on my way.

Reason why we didn't return the car when we realized it was dirty the next day is b/c we were leaving for a Disney cruise. After getting the car we drove straight to cape Canaveral (keep in mind it was very late at night,being as our flight was delayed). It was the next morning when we saw how gross the car really was. I didn't have time to drive back to Orlando. Nor did I care. The car got us to the boat. That’s all I wanted. Had that been the end of our adventure with them, I wouldn't even think twice about it. Maybe the kid who cleans the cars was feeling lazy that day. We all do sometimes, who cares? My point with my whole post is the HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE. At this point, I dont want anything from them. I am hoping (not holding my breath) that whoever rented the car after us is a honest person and will turn in my daughters MP3 player. Obviously, once again they didn't do a good job of cleaning the car before renting it or they would have found the MP3 player. Either that, or 1 of the employees has a new MP3 player.

Again, do what you want. I am not going to loose any sleep over it. Every car company has it faults, I was just sharing my experience with National/Alamo.

You go girl!! Thanks for sharing your experience and you're correct, that's what these message boards are about. I only rented from Alamo once and they we're fine and even upgraded me to a Premium car but everybody's experiences at any kind of service company can depend on so many things. But honestly now, you're not really a troll just posing as DIS friend right? (joking of course). Do you always invoke such a reaction in people. Tell us a story about the time you went to the Jewel and the cashier was rude!!