Rental Car Etiquette

[Pacolovestacos]

When you take a rental on a decent length road trip, the car will definitely accumulate lots of junk, dirt, and dead bugs on the outside. Are you obligated to clean that or just return as is?

 

[usnuzuloose]

I clean up the inside. They know the cars will come back needing a wash.

 

[LYSE]

Heck no that's their mess to clean up..I'm on vacation

 

[bcla]

Not at all. They always wash a car after it gets returned and before the next customer takes delivery. I've accepted a rental car that had had just been washed and was still wet.

The only worry is that maybe any kind of dirt or debris is hiding any kind of scratches. There's always the chance that a rental agency will attempt to charge for damage claiming that it was uncovered after it was washed.

 

[bcla]

I clean up the inside. They know the cars will come back needing a wash.

I don't even do that. I've left behind empty drink cups or paper bags, and had leaves on the floor mats. I've been specifically told when returning that if I don't need it just leave it in the car and they'll have a detailer take care of it.

I've read rental terms that say that a car has to be returned as clean as it came in, but I have never been charged for returning a car that needed to be washed or a few things removed/vaccummed from the interior. I personally think of it like a hotel room. Nobody is expected to leave a hotel room in the exact same condition, but there's a certain point where the cleaning effort is excessive. Leaving behind a bag from McDonald's takes 2 seconds to remove. Dropping a slice of pizza face down on the passenger seat will obviously take more time and effort.

 

[fly girl]

Nope. They wash the cars upon returning.

However, I do pick up any trash on the inside (ex: parking pass, empty cup).

 

[cluvsdisney]

We don't leave anything in the car when we return it. One time we got it washed when we were bombarded with love bugs. It was like something out of a movie...we could see them splatting all over the windshield.

 

[rastahomie]

They pay people to clean them. I applied for such a job in college.

Keep the economy strong! Don't clean your rental cars!

 

[aprilgail]

When we had the rental for 2 months on a long road trip I washed it a few times during the trip because the front looked like a crime scene with the bugs and blood from the bugs all over it and it grossed me out- but when I returned it we cleaned out the junk we had in it- didn't vacuum it or anything though and I didn't wash it before returning it. The only thing I did do was make a repair that we did to the van on our trip- a rock came up and hit one of those lights that are like under the headlight and broke the glass so I had my mechanic fix it before I brought it back and I had to deal with them charging me or dealing with the insurance- it was easier for me to just replace it and it only cost me 90.00.

 

[elaine amj]

I clean up all my garbage and by and large the car isn't too dirty when I return it.

One time I rented a car in the UK and when I returned it, discovered they are very different. I had a bit of dirt in the car as we had been in the countryside (nothing a light vacuum wouldn't take care of) and the agent tried to charge me some crazy amount to clean it. Heck no! Good thing I was super early before my flight. I kept the car and took it to the nearest gas station for a quick vacuum. Everything came right up and it took me maybe 5-10 mins. I am still in shock they wanted to charge me!

 

[DisneylandDarling]

I would probably run it by the self-serve car wash for a quick wash off, nothing major and maybe lightly vacuum the inside.

As an aside, people really don't pick up trash from inside their rental car? I would feel terrible dropping it back off with empty food wrappers/drinks/etc all over. I understand not taking it to the car wash, because that can be more of a liability (in case the car wash damaged it somehow). Not vacuuming? Fine. But to not pick up the trash?

I kinda equate it to hotel rooms. You wouldn't leave trash all over the room (on the night stand, desk, dresser, etc) for the maid to clean up. It all goes in the proper trashcans and sometimes even that trash gets taken out and put into the main hallway trashcan.

 

[LYSE]

I would probably run it by the self-serve car wash for a quick wash off, nothing major and maybe lightly vacuum the inside.

As an aside, people really don't pick up trash from inside their rental car? I would feel terrible dropping it back off with empty food wrappers/drinks/etc all over. I understand not taking it to the car wash, because that can be more of a liability (in case the car wash damaged it somehow). Not vacuuming? Fine. But to not pick up the trash?

I kinda equate it to hotel rooms. You wouldn't leave trash all over the room (on the night stand, desk, dresser, etc) for the maid to clean up. It all goes in the proper trashcans and sometimes even that trash gets taken out and put into the main hallway trashcan.

Interesting, no I don't pick up trash or anything..old cups, fast food bags wrappers etc...I leave it all the only reason I throw any of it out is because it bothers me while I have the car but I have never thrown it out to make things easier on the rental company...they don't care as long as you didn't actually soil the car.

As for hotel rooms, actually i will leave them quite dirty with trash all over the rooms...I also don't see a problem with it..however I will leave a daily tip.

I mean why would you pay someone to do something then do most of their job for them??

 

[ronandannette]

They pay people to clean them. I applied for such a job in college.

Keep the economy strong! Don't clean your rental cars!

I rarely even wash my own car, so that won't be an issue, but am I stealing jobs from honest Americans if I pick up my garbage?

 

[Pacolovestacos]

Interesting, no I don't pick up trash or anything..old cups, fast food bags wrappers etc...I leave it all the only reason I throw any of it out is because it bothers me while I have the car but I have never thrown it out to make things easier on the rental company...they don't care as long as you didn't actually soil the car.

As for hotel rooms, actually i will leave them quite dirty with trash all over the rooms...I also don't see a problem with it..however I will leave a daily tip.

I mean why would you pay someone to do something then do most of their job for them??

Within reason is okay. If you're leaving used condoms all over the floor, that's not cool.

 

[ronandannette]

Within reason is okay. If you're leaving used condoms all over the floor, that's not cool.

C'mon - she's on vacation...

 

[Pacolovestacos]

C'mon - she's on vacation...

Lol, YOLO

 

[DisneylandDarling]

Interesting, no I don't pick up trash or anything..old cups, fast food bags wrappers etc...I leave it all the only reason I throw any of it out is because it bothers me while I have the car but I have never thrown it out to make things easier on the rental company...they don't care as long as you didn't actually soil the car.

As for hotel rooms, actually i will leave them quite dirty with trash all over the rooms...I also don't see a problem with it..however I will leave a daily tip.

I mean why would you pay someone to do something then do most of their job for them??

They're not my personal servants, so why make a difficult job harder for them? I have no problem spending 10 extra minutes before I leave putting all the dirty towels in the bathtub, picking up any wrappers/garbage, maybe taking the trash out to the main hall trashcan, etc so they don't have to. The same would go for rental cars.

I also feel like it's a reflection on myself on how I leave the room (or car). Sure, housekeeping probably won't know who I am, but I would feel guilty leaving a room trashed. I don't want them to come in the room and think "Geez...what a slob!"

 

[NHdisneylover]

Like most here, I don't normally wash the car or vaccuum the inside, but would also never leave trash in it. Expecting the company to handle normal amounts of clenaing that is hard to do "in route" without taking extra time or spending extra money is reasonable. Exüectoing them to clean up your personal trash beucase you are too lazy to carry empty cups, etc to a trash can seems, well, rude to me.

Like a PP, I don't leave trash laying around hotel rooms either. I rarely take it out to a hallway trashcan (I rarely see large hallway trash cans) and there are occasionally times when we have to neatly stack pizza boxes near the small hotelroom bin, or add a plastic bag of our own next to it with more trash, but it is all still corralled in the one arare for the housekeeping staff to quickly colllect.

I guess it boils down to I feel it is reasonable to expect the rental car or housekeeper to CLEAN (remove dirt, grime, germs etc) but not to expect to tidy up after me.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

I would never leave trash in a rental car. I don't leave trash in my own car (DH and DS's cars are another story). I make it a habit to clean out my car as soon as I park in the garage at home. It takes like two seconds to grab cups, receipts, etc. and toss them in the garbage before I go into the house. We do the same thing when we use rental cars. I don't worry about the exterior or vacuum the car, but I would never think of leaving our trash.

 

[bcla]

I would probably run it by the self-serve car wash for a quick wash off, nothing major and maybe lightly vacuum the inside.

As an aside, people really don't pick up trash from inside their rental car? I would feel terrible dropping it back off with empty food wrappers/drinks/etc all over. I understand not taking it to the car wash, because that can be more of a liability (in case the car wash damaged it somehow). Not vacuuming? Fine. But to not pick up the trash?

I kinda equate it to hotel rooms. You wouldn't leave trash all over the room (on the night stand, desk, dresser, etc) for the maid to clean up. It all goes in the proper trashcans and sometimes even that trash gets taken out and put into the main hallway trashcan.

I don't throw things all over, but I've brought pizza or other takeout to my hotel room. The best thing I can do is just leave it on a table or on the floor next to the trash can. If there's a receptacle in the hallway, I don't think it's meant for for collecting stuff that was in a room. There's a reason why housekeeping carts have two large bags - one for the used towels and the other for all manner of waste including stuff that won't fit in those micro cans that are typical of a hotel room. Used towels are supposed to be left on the floor. Housekeeping doesn't have an easier task just because a guest tidied up. They always have to remove the sheets anyways, so trying to make the bed just adds extra work.

Besides that, I doubt that most car rental returns like having customers with their hands full of garbage as they're exiting the car and then having to empty trash cans. As long as it's easy enough to toss into a trash bag and give a quick vacuum, they really don't mind cleaning it up. Maybe I'll leave a throwaway map in the center console or a bag with wrappers and napkins. I will try to at least tidy things up so it's not all over the place, but I have no qualms about leaving it in the car as long as it doesn't stain anything.

This is expected. There are people paid to do this job, and as long as it's not a disaster area they really have no problem doing the job. Often attempts to help them out create more work. Here's an interesting discussion on Quora:

https://www.quora.com/Do-hotels-maids-prefer-that-I-leave-the-room-cleaned

Assuming we are talking about checkout day, the worst thing you can do is make the bed because the room attendant has to UN-make the bed. If you are staying over and it makes you feel better, make the bed and leave a note to not change the sheets. They will usually tidy it up the hotel standards. If you want to help the room attendant on the day of departure, do the following:

1. Strip the sheets off the bed and pillow cases and leave in a pile on the floor opposite the bathroom door.
2. Take all used towels, washcloth, and bath mat and place in one pile on the bathroom floor.
3. Take the trash can from under the desk and the trash can from the bathroom and place them together next to the sheets (by the bathroom door).
4. Replace the iron and ironing board (wrap or retract cord of iron)
5. Replace the tv remote to where it was on checkin day
6. Open the curtains.

You have just saved the attendant minutes and her energy by saving her the steps she has to take to walk to the other side of the room to grab the trash can and walk back to the other side of the room. Stripping the bed takes little time but again, energy. Finding the remote and walking it back to place...energy/time. Ironing board and iron...energy and time.

She would appreciate these steps probably more than a tip.​