Fireflly car rental, Never Again

[Pipkin]

I had a Dollar rental car also reserved, but I called Firefly and asked specifically if there was an additional driver charge. I was told, no. I repeated exactly what I was told, made the reservation for the same price and that was that. Today we picked up our standard car after waiting 45 minutes with two customers ahead of us Surprise! At the counter I was told there is an additional driver fee. Should have left then but we proceeded since we had already wasted an hour. Our "standard" car turned out to be a Versa. That is an economy car, a compact at best. As an alternative we were offered a red Jetta. We made our way to the lot and I took numerous pictures of the dings and scratches, mailing them to myself so u would have them dated and time stamped. I have to say that 42K is the oldest car I have rented. No problem, we are on our way....until we traveled about 5 miles outside of the airport and the tire inflation indicator light came on. We drove to DTD, the tire inflation was a little low, but I notified roadside assistance to document the problem. I was advised to drive back to MCO. Instead we went to lunch at HOB, searched for a local number, (there is none that answers), And assumed like most cars with sensitive indicator lights, figured we would have to drive 10 miles for a reset. No reset. Called Firefly Customer a Service, which is no service. Called Hertz who again connected us to Road side assist. Our options? Drive the car back to MCO OR HAVE IT TOWED BACK. I asked specifically if we could continue to drive the car with the indicator light on. I was assured Yes and the issue was previously documented. Low inflation could happen with any rental car but you would not have to make a 50 RT to rectify it. I learned my lesson for giving the new kid in town a chance.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

So you are driving a car with a low tire??

Umm.. why don't you just go over to Hess and spend 75 cents on air? Because if it goes flat you are probably going to spend a lot longer dealing with it then you would like...


I know that this board loves the "save $10 system" but I stick with National and pay more, I have learned that "cheap" often has a price when it comes to rental cars.

 

[Pipkin]

So you are driving a car with a low tire??

Umm.. why don't you just go over to Hess and spend 75 cents on air? Because if it goes flat you are probably going to spend a lot longer dealing with it then you would like...


I know that this board loves the "save $10 system" but I stick with National and pay more, I have learned that "cheap" often has a price when it comes to rental cars.

NO! I am driving with a low tire pressure indicator light. Of course I added air. BTW, I know you would rather pay the buck and a half at Hess, but the air is actually free. I posted thus as a warning to others about Firefly , it is not a "tell me what to do thread "

 

[Donna M]

I hope there are a lot more posts about Firefly since I have a reservation with them in Feb. for a very good price. If I am able to get a good deal on another company closer to my date I probably will change, I don't need the hassle.

 

[Pipkin]

I hope there are a lot more posts about Firefly since I have a reservation with them in Feb. for a very good price. If I am able to get a good deal on another company closer to my date I probably will change, I don't need the hassle.

I had confidence in them because they are a Hertz subsidiary. That said, I could have gone with Dollar for the same price. The lure was the second driver for
No additional charge. Not true. I would book with another agency were I you. The counter people were nice but they aren't
The problem. The bright side of this ? I know now I would
Never own a Jetta.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

NO! I am driving with a low tire pressure indicator light. Of course I added air. BTW, I know you would rather pay the buck and a half at Hess, but the air is actually free. I posted thus as a warning to others about Firefly , it is not a "tell me what to do thread "

Sorry

Your post came across more as a whine and cry then a warning.

 

[hops&dreams]

I had confidence in them because they are a Hertz subsidiary. That said, I could have gone with Dollar for the same price. The lure was the second driver for
No additional charge. Not true. I would book with another agency were I you. The counter people were nice but they aren't
The problem. The bright side of this ? I know now I would
Never own a Jetta.

DH and I both had them. That's how we met. Seriously. They were broken down so much we commiserated with each other and it's how we started talking/dating. Our service rider stopped at his grandpa's house the day DH proposed. He happened to be in the neighborhood driving by and recognized our cars and knocked on the door to say hi. He was excited, as he knew us both pretty well by that time.

16 service requests in 14 months on MINE ALONE. 4 days before our wedding, DH's drivers seat started on fire, through his pants and underwear, because of the heated seats. We had a loaner car on our wedding day. (and accidentally dropped part of our wedding cake on the upholstered seat, creme-icing side down. oops. Glad I wasn't there to smell that come that summer - you can just never get that dairy smell out!)

I'd never own a VW again, but I am glad that I had one. Not sure DH and I would have ever met otherwise!!!

 

[lpearl]

That's an awesome story we have a Rabbit that I love, but it was rear-ended last night everyone's ok.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

My neighbor has a Jetta Diesel. Never had any problems. She loves it. I considered one based on her success

 

[leebee]

I had a Dollar rental car also reserved, but I called Firefly... Our "standard" car turned out to be a Versa. That is an economy car, a compact at best. As an alternative we were offered a red Jetta. We made our way to the lot and I took numerous pictures of the dings and scratches, mailing them to myself so u would have them dated and time stamped. I have to say that 42K is the oldest car I have rented.

No guarantees on car size with Dollar, either. We rented Dollar for our summer vacation/family reunion tour this summer, reserving a full sized car. We were driving Dayton-Detroit-Indianapolis-Dayton and wanted the full size for both suitcases (DD had been in Detroit for a month, had three suitcases as she had to bring all her bedding) and comfort. I reserved MONTHS in advance, got to Dollar in Dayton, and they tell me the biggest car they have available is a Fusion. Um... NO. That was all they had, inventory was very low, or so they claimed. But they did have an Avenger, and they'd give us a credit. OK... got the keys, went to the car. 75000 miles, no waterproofing gasket around the inner hood of the trunk (with wet trunk), and a bald rear tire. NO AGAIN. DH went inside to "talk" about the situation. He noticed eight sets of keys lined up on the counter and asked about them. He was told that these are for customers with reservations who hadn't arrived yet. DH did his magic (usually involves loud voices, sometimes swearing, etc) and we ended up with an Avenger with 'only' 26000 miles, but at least the trunk was dry and the tires were decent. It was a tight ride, especially after picking up DD and her luggage; the drive from Detroit to Bloomington, IN, packed into the rear seat with suitcases stacked next to her, was not particularly nice. I called, emailed, and wrote to Dollar customer service and they all said the same thing: Gee, we are sorry, but a reservation doesn't guarantee they'll have the car you reserved.

SO... not just Firefly, and Dollar might not have been any better. Thanks for posting about Firefly, though; another company to avoid!

 

[katallo]

Thanks for the post. Neighbors rented at MCO from Firefly and were not impressed with the service or car, so I think we will reconsider as well. The car had mechanical problems and they said it was a loooong wait to resolve. They actually needed a service call and said it was quite an ordeal.

 

[RweTHEREyet]

No guarantees on car size with Dollar, either. We rented Dollar for our summer vacation/family reunion tour this summer, reserving a full sized car. We were driving Dayton-Detroit-Indianapolis-Dayton and wanted the full size for both suitcases (DD had been in Detroit for a month, had three suitcases as she had to bring all her bedding) and comfort. I reserved MONTHS in advance, got to Dollar in Dayton, and they tell me the biggest car they have available is a Fusion. Um... NO. That was all they had, inventory was very low, or so they claimed. But they did have an Avenger, and they'd give us a credit. OK... got the keys, went to the car. 75000 miles, no waterproofing gasket around the inner hood of the trunk (with wet trunk), and a bald rear tire. NO AGAIN. DH went inside to "talk" about the situation. He noticed eight sets of keys lined up on the counter and asked about them. He was told that these are for customers with reservations who hadn't arrived yet. DH did his magic (usually involves loud voices, sometimes swearing, etc) and we ended up with an Avenger with 'only' 26000 miles, but at least the trunk was dry and the tires were decent. It was a tight ride, especially after picking up DD and her luggage; the drive from Detroit to Bloomington, IN, packed into the rear seat with suitcases stacked next to her, was not particularly nice. I called, emailed, and wrote to Dollar customer service and they all said the same thing: Gee, we are sorry, but a reservation doesn't guarantee they'll have the car you reserved.

SO... not just Firefly, and Dollar might not have been any better. Thanks for posting about Firefly, though; another company to avoid!

I witnessed this myself at Port Canaveral. We had just gotten off the ship and there was a man that was furious and pitching a fit. Evidently he had reserved a larger vehicle for his group and their luggage, and they had nothing bigger than a compact at the time. He couldn't fit his crew in the car and demanded a refund (must have paid in advance). He cussed and fussed to no avail as there was nothing else on the lot.

I am not sure how he ended up getting to the airport or whatever his destination was, but he left there without one of their cars.

 

[Pipkin]

The advantage with Dollar, over Firefly, with the exact same problem is that there are multiple locations where one could go to solve a problem without going back to the airport; the hotel plaza at WDW, International Drive, etc. With Firefly there is one fame in town and it's 30 miles away. I have some concern about how the return will go. Hopefully it is better than the pickup.

 

[rlduvall]

I know that this board loves the "save $10 system" but I stick with National and pay more, I have learned that "cheap" often has a price when it comes to rental cars.

I'm with you. I love National and Alamo both - never had any issues and I like being able to pick my car. I do have a December reservation with Dollar that saves me about $60., but I'm gonna cancel it. For me personally, I will never miss $60. from my budget and I would rather not worry about the rental car experience.

 

[Lilo&Stitch]

Pipkin thank you for your experience with firefly, for the record I didn't consider it a whine at all and I'm sure MANY of us are grateful to hear your experience with them ! Pay no mind to the DIS'Rs who just love to nit pick

 

[bumbershoot]

Pipkin thank you for your experience with firefly, for the record I didn't consider it a whine at all and I'm sure MANY of us are grateful to hear your experience with them ! Pay no mind to the DIS'Rs who just love to nit pick

But occ wasn't nitpicking, she was trying to help.

 

[Lilo&Stitch]

But occ wasn't nitpicking, she was trying to help.

How is saying someone's post is coming across as whining and crying helpful ?!?!?!

 

[bumbershoot]

Reminding them they can fill the tire on their own isn't helpful?

 

[The Hendies]

OK, kids....no bickering or I'm not taking you to Disney!

Just kidding! In any case, I took the advice to heart and found a Thrifty rental for just $15.00 more than Firefly! Thanks OP for the heads up. Now if I see a "Don't use Thrifty" thread, I am in real trouble!

 

[Lilo&Stitch]

OK, kids....no bickering or I'm not taking you to Disney!

Just kidding! In any case, I took the advice to heart and found a Thrifty rental for just $15.00 more than Firefly! Thanks OP for the heads up. Now if I see a "Don't use Thrifty" thread, I am in real trouble!

Yeah I think I'm going to go with Dollar, it's only like 20 bucks more than the Firefly ressie I have, but I've used Dollar a few times before and haven't had any issues