obsessive credit,debit rental car question

[luvsTink]

Hi all,
Can you tell me if there is a difference for when the rental car actually gets charged between a credit and debit card? Is it charged when rented or when returned? We are using Alamo if that makes a difference.

Anne

 

[RainbowsMist]

We rented with Alamo our last time..it never hit our Credit Card until after we were home...

 

[kaytieeldr]

The actual charge isn't completed until the rental is returned - and sometimes, not until the agency confirms the car was returned in the same condition as it was rented.

 

[Joyful3Heart]

I worked for Alamo while I was in college...so its been awhile. I know that though we didn't "charge" the credit card until return we did put a "hold" on the card, which resulted in some very unhappy customers who were unable to use their credit/debit card for anything else if they were close to their limit. For example, if you have $1000.00 in a debit account and rent a car totaling 370.00 for the week, Alamo would put those funds on hold (rounded up). So essentially even though you still had $1000.00 in that account, only $600.00 is available to you.
Like I said, it's been awhile and they may not still work this way, but you might want to call your local rental counter to check. Good Luck!

 

[mom2mikel]

We rented from Alamo in Boston in September using our debit card. The total rental for the weekend was only like $84. Alamo put a hold on the $84 on our debit card and it was officially debited once we returned the car. No extra holds were placed above our rental fee.