We just started renting car for our Las Vegas trips. The first company we found that didn't charge an arm and leg was Thrifty. Our first experience was a little less than desirable. We ended up with a car that shook when we took it out on the highway and one blinker was out. Since we were only really be-bopping around town we kept the car and reported when we returned it. The last time we went out there we used Thrifty again determined to find a good car...I checked the miles on all of them to ensured the had low miles and made sure the cars were clean. We had a great experience this time. Although we are not Dodge fans the Charger we had only has 12,000 miles on it. Drove great and was very clean. We are already planning our next trip and plan to use Thrifty again.

Should be called Shifty Car Rental not Thrifty!!
On a recent trip to San Fransisco in October of 2009 we rented a car from Thrifty Car Rental at the SFO Airport. The man who rented us the car told us that if we prepaid for the gas that if it was not empty when we brought it back that we would be refunded the difference for what gas was left in the car. As we had done the same with other car companies and it had worked out well and was honored, we went ahead and took his advice and prepaid for the gas.

When we received the car it had a bad odor. As if it had been sprayed with something to cover up something even worse. We use the car as we had no choice and continued on with our trip.

When we returned the car the invoice was wrong so we went to the desk to ask about the refund for the gas not used - mind you there was a half a tank of gas left in the car. We were told that the man who rented us the car lied to us. I couldn't believe that they just stood there and told us that their own people lied to us!! The attendant said that he would have to get the manager. There were two other people in the office already waiting for the manager as they had a problem as well. When the manager arrived he said the same that his own people had lied to us and that he always reads everything that he signs and that it was in the paperwork that they would not pay for any unused gas. He was extremely rude and very difficult to even understand.

They ended up charging us over $100 more than the original amount and will never recieve our business or anyone that we knows business ever again. Shifty Car Rental lies to customers and then brags about doing so.

I travel approximately 10-12 times per year, and usually book my rental cars through Priceline, which generally places customers with one of the larger rental companies (Hertz, Avis, Budget, Alamo, and National). In every case, I've never had a problem, ending up with clean, well-maintained, low-mileage vehicles (in September, I ended up with a loaded, 2010 Pontiac G6 with 250 miles at the Alamo location in Baltimore) at very attractive prices. Yesterday, I found myself stranded at the Fort Lauderdale airport without a reservation, and Thrifty was the only agency that offered a decent rate to walk-ins ($46 per day for a compact). I was given a dirty 2008 Dodge Caliber with 41,000 miles on the odometer, but as I was in a hurry to make a meeting, I decided to bear with it. My first surprise came when I tried to open the window and hand my rental contract to the security guard--I couldn't find the power window button. Turns out that the vehicle had manual, crank windows and no power options whatsoever, which I've never seen in the last ten years of renting vehicles. When I finally got the car on the road, it begin to shimmy at 45 mph, and by 60 mph I could barely hold the wheel steady. Thrifty's road service representative advised me to return the vehicle immediately for a replacement, which turned out to be a 2008 Ford Focus with 43,000 (!) miles. Although the ride was much better, the tires were clearly unbalanced, and the interior had a strange odor. Sadly, another unpleasant surprise was yet to come--when I took my bags out of the trunk, I noticed that the entire trunk liner was soaking wet and smelled of mildew.

Bottom line: avoid Thrifty at all costs. If you can't get a car from one of the larger companies at a good price through Priceline, Hotwire, or some other discount service, you'd be better off eating the extra cost and renting from them anyway.

Thrifty lied about what they were offering. The girl at the desk said it was an extra $2 a day for the basic insurance, great way to confuse the consumer. It was $21 a day and since I signed the contract I was liable for it, which I knew they would say. They need to be honest upfront so when you are in a hurry, you can trust the company you are doing business with. Will never use Thrifty again.

3/23/2008 I was given a PT Cruiser at the Thrifty Car Rental in the SLC airport instead of the car I requested and paid for. I was hurried out the door because they were understaffed and had a huge line. About 10 minutes after I left I noticed a small crack in the windshield. I immediately called Thrifty and they told me I would be ok, but needed to report it when I returned the car.

When I returned the car I was told it was my fault for not finding it when I left and that I would have to pay for it. I was very upset but since I have MasterCard and used it for my purchase I was relieved that my insurance with MC would pay for the cracked windshield. I faxed over all info and thought I was taken care of. Thrifty actually charged a different credit card than I authorized and was charged $34 in overdraft fees from Washington Mutual. To make things worse, they sent me to collections!

Now I have 2 collection agencies trying to recover more that 4 times the original cost they told me I would have to pay. My credit report shows I have a claim against me and they won't fix the problem.

I recommend using another company. I have spent over 12 hours trying to solve this problem and am very frustrated. Whenever I call Thrifty in Salt Lake airport I am told it is a franchise and the managers I need to speak with (cindy I think) is not available and won't call me back.

You are better off staying away from this company. I travel on a regular basis and refuse to use this company. I pay more if I have to in order to avoid supporting such a business.

I was quoted $175.60 by Thrifty car hire in San Diego to rent a car for ten days - not bad at all. I knew that there would be insurance costs and tax to go on top, and when I went to collect the vehicle I found that insurance and taxes brought this up to $335.72. Quite a leap.
When I returned the car my total, deducted instantly from my bank, was $395.81, including $5.93 for delivereing the car two minutes after the deadline - 12.07 instead of 12.05.
On the bill was SLI at $142.89, CFI of $10, tourist surcharge of $6.35(dont they want tourists in California??) APCONRGFEE of $36.01 and state tax of $19.03... oh yes, and the $5.93 chagrge for being two minutes late.
Surely the car rental companies can get together to give customers an idea of the real cost of renting so punters can compare like for like. I will not rent thrifty again, and I will demand a full estimate of costs when I do rent - no matter how long the line behind me.

Please do not rent from Thrifty. While I was on vacation this past August (2009); my nephew and I rented a minivan from their Guadalajara, Mexico location. When we returned it, the employees stole my brand new laptop from my backpack. I noticed as soon as they try to dropped us off the airport. An item fell from my backpack and when I went to put it back, I noticed that my laptop was gone. We immediately returned to their office; but they denied it. The person in charge was Edgar Ortega.

Please be careful when renting from Thrifty; do not trust them.

CarRentals.com never mentioned the mandatory insurance fee Costa Rica charges, even when you have your own insurance. All it said was 'Total with Taxes & Fees". Thrifty chose to charge $20+ for this insurance bringing our reservation from $12.99/day to almost $35/day. Not very Thrifty. You can pay as little as $7.99 for this. Thrifty had no options for us & by the time you get to Thrifty from the airport, you're stuck and have no real options. Find a different rental company & do your research to avoid the bait & switch. They were horrible to deal with and I saw 3 other people while I was there upset as well... 2 left. They were unwilling to do anything to help satisfy the customer... nothing. I will never rent from Thrifty again.

I rented a car at DFW on September 26. I reserved the wild card special which was a mistake. These cars are basic and do not have cruise control. I informed the agent that I would be returning the car back one day earlier, and was informed that would cost me a one time fee of $15.00. I had a copy of my reservation and a copy of where I looked up (the previous night) if I made a new reservation the daily cost would be the same. The agent said it did not matter, I still had to pay the fee.
The agent said I was getting a Chyrsler Journey. She said it was new and did not have a scratch on it. When I went to the car it had 34 major scratches and a chipped windshield. I went back in and had the manager sign off on all those. I headed out on Interstate and the car was fine. When I reached my destination and slowed to exit the interstate the car began shaking. I called road side assistance (since I did purchase the plan) and the agent said they would replace the car. She said that when I reached my destination call back with an address to deliver the replacement. I noticed that the car only shook when driving between 50-60 miles per hour. Upon arriving at my destination, I called road side assistance again. This time the agent said she could not get the replacement approved. That management felt the car was safe. While driving to dinner, I was pulled over by a police office because the car was so hard to control. I again called Thrifty and was told that the police officer was not a mechanic that he should stay out of it. I asked for roadside assistance because I felt the car was unsafe. The car was now beginning to shake at different speeds but all lower than 60 mph. I was told the car was probably not aligned. The agent said that I should take it to the shop and have it checked out. I informed the agent that I flew from Colorado to DFW, then rented the car to attend a family reunion and did not want to take time away from my visit. He said there was nothing he could do, even though there was a Thrifty rental about 50 miles away. I ended driving 35 miles to the closest shop that was opened on a Sunday. The car was in the shop from Sunday 9AM to Monday 9AM, while Firestone waited on approval to check the car. Firestone found that none of the tires were balanced. I had to pay the repair fees and turn them in when returning the car. The manager at DFW Thrifty could not credit the fees at the time and said she would have to send it to corporate the following day. I did receive confirmation that corporate did credit the $73.00 back to my card. I felt like this was the rental car from hell and so was dealing with Thrifty.

Thrifty Is SHIFTY. or replace the F with a T, because this is the worst car rental company I have ever dealt with. I became a blue chip member excited to see expedited service. I booked a wild car in which you are supposed to receive a mid size or better. So get to the airport, to find the blue chip kiosk closed. In Las Vegas, the city that never sleeps, apparently they close early. I arrived there at 10:30 pm. So I had to wait in line with the 30 other customers who also got the run around. With three people asleep at the counters, the line moved like a snail. Customers waited for over an hour. One customer was so upset, because even though he finally got his contract there was no one there to get him his car! There was so much cursing going on! Finally I get to the counter, and find that they don't have any more cars left, except for a compact. However, the wild car is supposed to guarantee you a mid size or better. The better was a 15 passenger van! Like I'm driving that around Vegas. I probably should have taken it and done a shuttle service. They refused to discount the rate down to a compact price. If that would have happened I would have taken it after such a long wait, but since their service sucked, I cancelled the contract and got a cab instead. By the way, you really don't need a vehicle in Las Vegas anymore, all the hotels are connected nowadays and you can walk indoors. Save the money, grief, and lousy service and grab a cab instead.

I am trying to arrange flights and a car rental for my family vacation from FL to DC then to MA back to FL in Nov. I ALWAYS rent vehicles through BUDGET. So in searching for cheaper flights I ran across Thrifty Car Rentals claiming "Cheapest prices GUARANTEED". So I went to the site and put in my rental dates etc... and yes I got a much cheaper cost for a one day rental. (86$- thrifty compared to 136$-budget) In the process it did warn me that I may get a drop off fee for one way different location drop off...ok no problem. UH WRONG! BIG PROBLEM! a $280.50 problem! Almost 300 for dropping it off in a different location!?!?! I can't believe it! What a rip off!
Needless to say I am sticking with Budget. Never stray from a good thing.

Before we booked I repeatedly asked the company who booked this car hire, Net Flights, to ensure that EVERYTHING was included in the cost. We did not want to arrive after a long flight to find we needed to pay additional amounts. This was assured to me. Hmmm

On arrival we proceeded to Thrifty on the outskirts of the airport. We were greeted by a less than customer service oriented person and when we presented our voucher we were shown a small notice that said what was included in our hire. This was not the same as our voucher. When I pointed out our voucher included, for instance 24 hour recovery, we were told repeatedly that "the card shows what you have", you do not have that cover. All vouchers from the UK are always wrong ! Why are they always wrong.... Anyway, we were getting nowhere so we said we would follow this up on our return to the UK - BIG MISTAKE !

We were told to go out and choose our car. We had booked a specific 4x4 and had been told there would be plenty of these, even though it said "or similar", as it was a large major airport. Well, there was one and it smelt like an ashtray. So we were forced to choose something which we considered far inferior, and which indeed turned out to be far inferior, the major problem being a boot with no smoked windows or cover which meant we had to lug in and out of hotels every two days four large cases, and I have scoliosis and a am a disabled badge holder, so this was a nightmare. In addition on return to the UK we found an extra charge of £10.14 on our credit card described as tourism surcharge.

So, on our return I phoned NetFlights. They gave me an email address and we sent off our complaint. After various emails and about six weeks we eventually found on our credit card a refund of the £10.14. No letter, no email and no further information about the other aspects of our complaint.

Despite my emailing every week I cannot get a response. Nobody will reply. They are totally disinterested To not even send a response about the refund was bad enough, but I feel my emails are now being blocked.

Renting from Thrifty at the Frankfurt Germany airport has been the worst car renting experience I have ever had and it is still ongoing. I was instructed by e-mail from Thrifty to go to the Terminal 2 E8 exit and wait to be picked up. After 45 minutes and several phone calls I learned that they had moved their operation inside the airport (it used to be off of the airport). So it was back to their new counter in the airport.



At the counter I was informed that they no longer accepted credit card insurance unless the credit card company sent them a letter stating that they would provide the insurance. Now I have to pay an extra $21.42 dollars a day for insurance and make a deposit of $1,713 to cover the deductible. As it turned out, instead of placing a hold on the money with my credit card company like most other companies do they actually charged the amount and I had to pay an extra $70 for the foreign currency transaction fee.



4 days after turning the car in and still not have the deposit paid back on my credit card I called Thrifty to find out why. I was told by their customer service that they had 2 to 7 working days to refund my money. I called back after 8 days and was told that there was a claim for damages against the car I had rented. They said that there was a scratch on the side. Having rented cars in Germany before, I knew to give the car a thorough inspection prior to accepting it. I noted the scratch along with other problems, but the woman check me out said that she didn’t have any forms to write the problems down on, so I made her write them down on a blank piece of paper. She made a copy and I kept the original. I told the Thrifty representative this and she said that they would file a report, but that they had 21 business days to reply. In the mean time they get to keep my money.


If you want to save yourself some major problems pay a little more and rent from a reputable company. There’s a reason they have such a low rating.

i rented a car in las vegas in august 2009 and the air bag was not at all working it was showing off indicator.when i asked at the counter they said once you start the car the light goes off but never went.later my friend told me that their is a problem with airbag then i returned the car back and got a different car.when i lodged a complaint with thrifty they said we will send you vouchers for the problem.

she even said we would not discuss abt the action taken on complaint with customers.

Get ready to be scammed!!!! Seriously, be very careful... they're terrible to deal with. If you didn't prepay and you're expecting them to honor an internet quote/reservation, be prepared for a battle!!!! They're experts at scamming you out of an extra $100 here and $100 there... not the best deal around now, right?

I rented from Tampa, Florida on July 15, 2009. I had a 2008 Dodge Calibur. It worked ok until the last day when the battery died. I called Tampa airport and they were so far way and never picked up the phone. So I had to call Sarasota and they had to send someone to help jump start the battery. After they jumpstarted the battery I asked, "What if this happens again?". The gentlemen replied that I would just have to call them again. So about two hours later I am ready to go to the airport and the car would not start. I called Sarasota and they said they would call me right back with someone on their way and they never did. So then I called them and had to find someone else to come help me because the mechanic could not make it. Finally, someone shows up and jumps my car. I asked, "Why did they not give me another car?". And he said he didn't know why. So I had to drive straight from being jumped for 2 hours to the airport without stopping otherwise I would not have made it to the airport with a working car or would have been on time. I lost a day of plans because I was driving a car with a dead battery and no one at Tampa wanted to help me. I complained and they gave me 1 day off and that was it. I will NEVER rent from them again. I called their Customer Service and complained and they gave me voucher that does not even cover for one day. Like I would try them again. If you are alone or have family and want to be safe; DO NOT RENT FROM THRIFTY.

Terrible, horrible. I rent a car in Morocco at Casablanca. They had stolen my money, they over charge me. The service was horrible. they are very mean. Think 1000 times before rent from this company. It's real hustle be very careful specially about this company in Morocco. they opened a business to steal the money from people.

What the Thrifty sales staff won't tell you is that some St. Mateen's thieves check to see if some rental cars are unlocked by jimmying the passenger lock. You may not notice the lock is damaged till much later, or not at all if you never use the key to enter from the passenger side. When you return the car and the damaged lock is reported or discovered, you wind up paying up to $165 in added repair costs (unless you are prepared to pay initially additional insurance for a lower deductible). That's when you find out it is a frequent if not ordinary occurrence. Even though local Thrifty sales representatives state this vandalism "happens all the time", the rental agreement does not see this as "ordinary" and Thrifty refuses to refund this added cost. Even if you ask about the frequency of these incidents before you rent, you are still liable for it later.

Even if you are extra careful about where you park, as I was, you may not escape such vandalism.
Ask how other car rental companies handle such vandalism, and choose one that anticipates it by including it as "ordinary use".

THRIFTY/DOLLAR RENTAL CAR- ASBURY PARK, EATONTOWN NJ-NEVER AGAIN NOT IF IT WAS THE LAST AGENCY AROUND!!! I am so disgusted with this company and the experience that I have had with it. I rented through Thrifty through a very nice girl out of one of the other offices. When I rented I was told that I would have to go through Dollar Rental car in Asbury Park because it was closer. I called them because I rented with them in the past in Florida and had a great experience. I had an accident and my insurance was paying for it. I easily could have gone through Enterprise because that was who my insurance company suggested but chose Thrifty. Upon renting I found out that I would be charged $5 a day as well as tax on the amount because my insurance company wasn't covering that part. Needless to say Enterprise told me that they would not have done this as well I called the insurance company and they told me that most agencies waive this fee. I also rented in the past when I had an accident through Enterprise and was not charged these fees...anyhow this was the least of my problems so it seems. I got in the vehicle and it was disgustingly dirty, the window was hard to see through and when I tried to use the washer fluid it was empty. There were crumbs and hair all over the place it was obviously not cleaned. As well I checked the oil level and it said it was extremely low. When I called the office I was told that they were trying to give me a nicer car therefore they did not have time to clean it and put the fluid in and that they did not think it was that dirty. They stated to me that the oil level was fine but I personally know it was not. After driving the car for some time it seemed as though one of the tires was low and when I called about this they told me that was fine as well. Day 9 of my rental I was very sick leaving the store and had a friend drive me a half mile home. As soon as I got home I got a call from the "owner" being extremely rude telling me that he saw someone else driving "HIS CAR" and that I was in breech of contract and I explained the situation to him because I was ill and was vomiting. He told me that he will now be charging me an extra $150 on top of what they are already charging me and that was him "BEING NICE because he could charge me $400" I again explained that it was an emergency and I was not in the position to drive. I told him that this was also not explained to me when I signed the paperwork and that KEITH the person who did the paperwork with me didn't say that. He then proceeded to tell me that he was Keith and I told him that a few minutes earlier he told me he was the owner, Dave. He then told me that he wants his car back between 9 and 12 then next day or he will be calling the police to file a police report for a stolen vehicle if I do not return it. The whole experience has been horrible. I would NEVER rent from them again I would rather be without a car and walk. As now I am without a vehicle because my car is not yet done being fixed. I would like to say that you catch more bees with honey and had he been a little nicer and had a little more customer service skills I would not even be writing this review. I am disgusted with not only the vehicle but the treatment I recieved from this company.

June 2009. We went to pick up our 'Toyota Yaris, Chev Aveo or similar' from Thrifty LAX. Our rental was fully paid with all insurance, CDW etc - yet he still tried to sell us, pushed and cajouled us, to buy TRIPSAVER® 24-hour Roadside Assistance, which was included anyway, but didn't cove if you lost your keys ETCETERA - an extra $5.99 per day - I asked for a brochure as to what the ETCETERA was and he slid open a few drawers and 'can't find the brochure' - A COMPLETE RIP OFF an extra $84 plus tax for 2 weeks in case you lose your keys. (There was a spare key in the glove box anyway which we carried separately) The Yaris does 42mpg so is not so bad for the environment given we were to drive over 3000 miles in 2 weeks.
They ONLY have Chryslers, which was confirmed later by Thrifty staff. There are NO Yaris or Aveos available. The smallest available was the Dodge Caliber or, as we know it, the Dodgy Low Caliber - a truly dreadful car - that does less than 30mpg at best. Such uncomfortable hard rubbery seats for thousands of miles of piles! The front tyres were about 1mm from the fully worn line when we picked it up. The issuing guy didn't care and there were only much larger PT Cruisers and people movers as an alternative. The WORST aspect is that not one of the cars in the economy/ compact class has ANY way to hide your luggage no boot/trunk or cover - so if you are visiting a National Park or stopping for a meal YOU ARE VULNERABLE. The caliber thing screamed around every corner due to the tyre wear and bad handling charactistics, it also had out of balance tyres - things you don't notice till you have taken it. And yes, it was covered in scratches which you MUST REMEMBER TO NOTE on the condition report.
It was so bad we changed it for a PT Cruiser (slightly better) after a week.
As Chrysler is bankrupt, Thrifty staff told us that instead of the lease system they used to have, which I assume requires full maintainence of the cars - they dispose of them at auction - so maintaining condition may not be a priority!
If you INSIST on renting from Thrifty - Don't pay extra for a 'compact' over an 'economy' they are the same cars at LAX and Las Vegas at this time!
We are worried about our Credit Card bill - yet to come - given the horror stories we have heard about being blamed for other peoples damage to Thrifty cars .... awaiting outcome ...

There is a Thrifty rental located in Pensacola Florida off of 9th avenue and the service was just horrible. There was already a guy in front of me complaining about his service....that should have been my CLUE that it was possible that I would have the same experience. When I got the vehicle it was filthy!! I went back inside to inform the employee that it was dirty and he informed me that it was their last one....but he takes it somewhere to "supposedly" get it cleaned and returned it in the same condition. Because my trip was vital I had to take the car....when I get back they have no record of it!!! Why was my contract not in there system....They asked me if I was sure that I rented this car from this Thrifty counter!! I was already exhausted from a long trip...I returned it early so I would haven't to get up the next morning...He finally figured out what was wrong after 25 minutes and several phone calls later. It was the worst experience I have ever had and I will not return to them again. The name says it all and that goes for everything...the car..the service..EVERYTHING! Beware!

I WILL NEVER RENT FROM TRIFTY CAR RENTAL AGAIN. Like other reviews my experience was terrible. When my husband and I rented a car for nine days we were asked if we wanted insurance "for only $29.99." We both assumed from the way it was worded that it was for the whole nine days. Unfortunatly my husband did not read the break down before signing the credit card. When we returned the car we get the bill in huge print which was $369.62 more than what was quoted. They said there was nothing they could do about it because it was a service that they provided to us. After talking to several spanish bitches in customer service I gave up on trying to get my money back. I went through my credit card, and tried to dispute it. Again it was a huge failure. There is nothing they could do because we signed for it. I give them zero stars.

The worst rental car company I have ever dealt with. I am on holiday from England,will never use them again. to many faults to talk about

I booked the car for ORD (chicago Int'l Airport). The customer service person was very rude to begin with. He was added an Optional service of Roadside assistance of $5.95 /day. When I questioned it, he denied to remove it and told me that it is like Government Taxes and cannot be taken off. so I decided to NOT to rent the car then he said let me see what can I do and then he removed the charge but changed the time of return taking away hours. I said I am renting a car at 2:50 PM so technically, I should be able to return by 2:50 PM next day, but he kept denying it and said if you are not here by 10:00 AM, he will be charging us for additional day. I will think twice and carefully about renting the car again from Thrifty. I also requested to apply AAA discount and he denied very rudely.

The counter staff was surly when I was picking up my van. Just bad customer service, unpleasant and grouchy. I nearly walked away and went with another provided just because of their attitude.
I called the day before and asked if it would be a problem if I picked up a couple hours earlier than I had earlier reserved. The guy on the phone said no problem. He didn't ask for my name or my confirmation number. He just said show up... no big deal.

When I got there they acted like it was a major problem ... and said how I'd have to pay for an extra day. And since my husband wasn't with me I couldn't put him on as another driver. And if I wanted to I'd need to come back to the airport and it would cost me an additional $9.95 a day to have another driver added on the contract.

However, the vehicle I got was awesome!!! It was a seven passenger Dodge Caravan. It had satellite radio and ran on Flex Fuel. Flex fuel is also called E-85. It is made with ethanol and costs about 90 cents less a gallon than regular gasoline. Mostly cop cars and taxis use it-- I found out by chatting up people at the pump.
We drove 1970 miles so this feature saved us a ton of money. (But it sometimes hard to find places that sell it.)
The people at the counter when I returned were super friendly. I said it would have been nice to be informed about the flex fuel when I picked up. They said they didn't realize any of their vehicles operated on E-85, that it wasn't listed in the computer.
The price was good --- the vehicle was great. We used fuel that is made in America and reduced our carbon footprint. I would go back to Thrifty and recommend it to my friends.

I was misled into purchasing the insurance by the staff at Houston's Bush Intercontinental airport. When I pointed this out to them upon returning the car they said there was nothing they could do. I contacted their national customer service headquarters and was told the same thing. Both my husband and I are seasoned rental car customers and thought we were declining the coverage and did not notice this was not the case until we returned the car and noticed the additional charges. I will never rent another car from them and urge you to do the same. If you do rent from them, be very very careful and look over your contract with a fine tooth comb.

i had a terrible experience with this company. we arrived in san diego after traveling all day and had to wait in line for over an hour despite the fact that i reserved the car online prior to this. once we got the car the one key did not work and we ended up getting our passports stolen out of the car because we thought it was locked and it wasnt thanks to this faulty key! also the policy on running a credit check for use of a debit card should be posted clearly on the website prior to reserving the car. i was traveling without a credit card and did not appreciate having to jump through hoops in order to give the company business. i will never use this company again and would rather pay a few extra bucks for good service.

I received a call from my sister informing me that my father was in a comma and I needed to get to Johnstown, Pa as quick as possible. After booking my flight to Pittsburgh, Pa, I had to rent a car to travel the last 90 miles. Using thrifty car rental web site I rented a car and select after 10 pm that I would arrive. I had one stop during the flight and unfortunitly the plane was delayed. I notified my sister and wife what had occured and had to change gates and flights. As it turned out they both called the thrifty toll free number and talked to a customer service representative . They both explained that my flight was going to be late and need to ensure that I would still be able to get my car rental. They were both told that there was nothing they could do and hung up on both of them. My wife called again and insisted on speeking to a supervisor, she was told that the supervisor who was on duty did not take calls and hung up on her for the second time.
I arrived in Pittsburg roughtly 2 hours late and called my wife that I had arrived and she told me what had transpired.
I still proceeded to the thrifty's booth and discovered that indeed that the booth was closed. I then called the toll free number, I explained that my father was in a coma and I needed to get my rental so I could proceed the last 90 miles and see my father before he passed away. I was informed that there was nothing they could do and hung up on me. I called back and insisted on speeking to a supervisior, after pushing the point, I finally was able to speak to what I was told was the supervisor on duty. I was told that there was nothing he could do and hung up on me.
There were three other rental companies still opened and I asked if a rental agreement was left at there booth. They directed to me to avis that they were associated with thrifty. The gentleman who was working behind the counter was very very helpful and wrote a contract up for me and was able to finally get my rental after 1 1/2 hours of wasted time. I will say the respresentative at avis when out of his way to help me and get me on my way.
I found out that the contract could have been left at avis, why didn't thrifty's customer service tell any one of us and arrange it? This would mean they would have to take care of there customers and I guess thrifty doesn't know the meaning of customer service or even care.
To add insult to injury, the person who was working at avis took my cell phone number and stated that the manager for the site would call me. Guess what - he couldn't bother to call me. Isn't that a supprise.
When I got to the hospital my sister meet me and told me that I was an hour to late and he passed away. I want to thank thrifty, I missed seeing my father before his last breath.
How much time would it have take for their customer service to call the thrifty at the Pittsburgh airport and make the arrangements.
I would never rent a car from them ever again and I am letting anyone who will listen know what happened. I don't care if they were paying me to drive there cars or trucks.

DON'T EVER RENT A CAR FROM THRIFTY LAX!!!!

I after my experience today with Thrifty I am completely amazed this company is still in business. My husband and I had to fly to CA for a family emergency and decided to go through Thrifty because they had the cheapest price online. Unfortunately when we went to pick up the car we were informed that Thrifty's policy on insurance requires you to purchase theirs. We told them that we were not interested in their insurance because our personal insurance covers us on rental. The man checking us in said that if we wanted to rent their car we didn't have a choice and that the insurance was $27 a day. My husband said that it was an outrageous price and that we would have to go somewhere else because this was adding $150 to our rental. We were then told that we could get the basic coverage for $15 a day. We finally agreed because it was 9pm, we were traveling with our 6 month old and still had a 2 hour drive to the hospital.
The night before we returned our rental we looked into the policy, everything we could find completely contradicted what we were told. We didn't think it was necessary to contact Thrifty because we would be returning the car at 6:30 the next morning. When we told Laurie the lady that checked us in what happened and asked for a refund we were told that even if were told the insurance was required we agreed so they would not do a refund. We once again tried to explain that we didn't have a choice unless we wanted to find a new company and the lady said "we will not be giving a refund." I asked to speak to the manager and was told that there wasn't one available. At this point I'm getting frustrated (not rude, just frustrated) I said there has to be some kind of manager available and asked them to call someone. I was told that it was 6:30 in the morning and that they wouldn't be calling anyone. At this point Laurie started talking to my husband about how it wasn't possible to get us in contact with any kind of manager. I said you are open for business you have to have some sort of supervisor. Laurie then proceeded to say "Lady, I'm not taking to you and you’re not getting a refund. If you don't like it calls cooperate." I think my head actually spun. We decided to try corporate because we had a plane to catch. I got on the phone with cooperate as soon as we got on the tram and was told that because we didn't speak to the manager there was nothing they could do. Luckily this person did have a manager. They said they would look into it and get back to us in 2 weeks. I'm sure they'll come back and say Sorry, there's nothing we can do about it.
The extra expense is not the point of my rants, the point is the customer service was awful and I have never had someone be so rude to me.

I AM NEVER, EVER, EVER RENTING FROM THRIFTY AGAIN. I don't think too many of my rentals with you ever went quickly and smoothly like, for example, with Budget and other rental companies when I sign up for something like your Blue Chip and get to go right to the car, or at least go through the check-in process faster. This rental experience, however, is and continues to be an abomination and a nightmare. I returned the car at DFW on time or a little early yesterday and the boy outside could not or would not print my receipt. I asked for the receipt and he said that his little device was broken. So I had to go downstairs, wait my turn at the counter, nearly missed the flight, and then finally they printed a WRONG RECEIPT after all that hassle. That receipt has my name on it and was billed to my credit card (that part is OK) but it is it clearly not mine as it lists Chrysler 300 instead of Dodge Caravan (which is what I had and what is in my rental agreement) and also a price of $151.77 instead of $221 or so. I spent hours trying to straighten this out with your customer service yesterday, 2/23/09. The manager on duty - "Jason" as the board at DFW said, was impossible to reach. Also, it was impossible to dial the DFW office directly. I only got transferred there after calling 877-283-0898 and insisting to talk to the manager. They transferred me to lost and found but not the desk or the manager. I don’t know how Mr. Jason got the word that I spent all afternoon yesterday trying to reach him, the “manager on duty” as the board said, but he did give me a call and left me a voice mail today giving me a one-hour window to call him. So I called him back and got his voice mail. The phone greeting says "Dollar" and not "Thrifty” so who knows whom I actually reached there.
And I just talked to your "customer service" where I was on hold for a long time, again, and then they told me that it would take up to ten days to resolve this issue. TEN DAYS for you to correct your mistake and give me the correct bill!!!!!! I will NEVER rent from Thrifty, and I will WARN EVERYONE I KNOW as well as everyone I possibly can against renting from Thrifty. People say "you get what you pay for." Well, in my car rental experience, Thrifty is a little cheaper but DEFINITELY not worth the headaches. One pays a little less but gets next-to-nothing. Cars are OK, but your customer service is extremely bad, the worst by far that I have experienced and not just in your industry. And you have the nerve to ask me to wait ten days to fix a problem that you created… AND SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS GETTING THE CORRECT BILL! THIS IS AWFUL! THRIFTY IS AWFUL, AWFUL, AWFUL!

DON'T EVER RENT A CAR FROM THRIFTY CAR RENTAL. THEY HAVE SOOOO MANY HIDDEN COSTS THAT APPEAR ON YOUR CREDIT CARD MONTHS LATER. THE CUSTOMER SERVICE PEOPLE ARE RUDE AND INSULTING. THE CUSTOMER IS HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR PREVIOUS CAR RENTERS PROBLEMS. AS I WORK IN THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND ANY OF MY CLIENTS USE THIS COMPANY.

I will never rent from Thrifty Rental again!!!

When I arrived to pick up my rental at 11PM, I was told that Thrifty had "overbooked" and was basically left to fend for myself getting to the hotel -- let alone my travel arrangements for the next day (I was on travel for business; not pleasure). At 0750 the next morning, I received a phone call from the manager saying that a car was ready for me. It just so happens, I had found transportation to my meeting requirements and would not be able to get the car until after 6PM. He told me that he would call at 6PM and make arrangements to pick me up at my hotel to retrieve the car. After three failed phone calls on my behalf, I finally got in touch with Thrifty representatives at 9PM. Even though I had been told they had a car for me that morning, they told me this time they did not have a car for me.

Believe me, I am NOT the only person that had reservations that was turned away from the counter. There were two people directly in front of me in line that were in the exact same situation. There was a major conference this week in this particular town -- a major tourist destination, to be fair, but the whole place is shut down because it is November and it's freezing! I'm not sure how you can run out of cars in November, but supply everyone in July when everyone is here on vacation.

Horrible service, and even worse customer care. Stay away!!!

I will never book with Thrify Car Rental again.

They would not accept to give me the car i have paid for with my international licence asking me for my local one.
The local one is an arabic licence which is no use for most companies because a non EU driving licence. International licence was made for this purpose in order to be able to drive anywhere in the world.
I have used many different companies and had no problems with it but Thrifty would refuse to do so and to refund my money back.

Make sure never to use this company.

Same go for EASY-CAR. (Thrifty being the agent of Easy-car).

Keep your money safe or book with any other companies, that would be the safest choice...

While we got an upgrade in Las Vegas here is the problem you will have in all locations except CA. Under the terms and conditions which you have to poke at to get to, they charge an extra $10 per day for an extra driver or in essence, charge you $10 per day more than the rental rate. If a spouse drives, $10 bucks. What a rip off. The gal at the "Blue Chip" station could not show us the policy in writing but when you call corporate, they say it is there. Never again in any state but CA will we rent from Thrifty. What a rip off plus rude attendant to boot.

As a Travel Consultant I decided to try out Thrifty. I normally book the big guns for my clients. Never again will I rent a Thrifty vehicle or book one for any of my clients.
I rented one at the LAX location. Since I just returned the vehicle I am not sure what my card will be charged until I see our statement. After reading everyones complaints I am getting scared because I used a debit. They also hold 400.00 in order for you to rent their vehicles. Much more than Hertz 200.00
My main complaint is not only was the car manual everything(windows, locks, etc..) but there was something wrong with the tires and when we rolled down the window the noise was so loud it was horrid. My children screamed due to the pain in our ears. But who had the time to drive back to LAX to change the car? We don't!
Plus it was so dirty outside but we were in a rush to get to a wedding so we did not have the time to change it. Now I'm scared to see how much the gas is they will be charging us because we did not have the time to fill up. Either miss the flight or fill up! Guess what we chose to do...so we will see what the real charges were.
Also, not to mention the lousy customer service! At least say Thank You....and treat me like a queen like Hertz always does.
From now on I will only sell Hertz and book it for myself. I don't care about the higher rates...you get what you pay for!

The only positive thing for me to say is at least it was the cheapest car rental around at the time.

Don't rent from this THRFTY CAR RENTAL !!!!!!!! The C & J Thrifty Car Rental at 4174 Cypress Rd, St. Ann Mo (next to Lambert's airfield in St. Louis) picked my wife and I up from Lambert's Field (they run a pickup service every 15 minutes and add an $11.09 fee to your rental car bill without your knowledge). The car check-in was OK, the staff weren't helpful in that they are reluctant to explain anything. I declined insurance coverage, but bought the "refill the gas tank for $3.85 per gallon on turn in. The counter person indicated that was a really good deal as gas was runing about $4.00 at the time. What they DIDN'T tell us is that even if you turn in the car with 3/4 tank of fuel, you get charged for the entire capacity of the gas tank. The Camry we rented has an 18.5 gallon gas tank. We turned the car in with about 1/3 of a tank. I expected to be charged for 2/3's of 18.5 gallons (about 12.2 gallons), instead, we were charged for 18.5 gallons of gas. Upon reading the fine print a couple of days after turning the car in, I found it plainly states that even if the car needs only one gallon gas, you will be charged for the fully capacity of the gas tank, and THERE ARE NO REFUNDS. I have rented from many other rental car companies and this is the ONLY ONE to steal from you like this. Don't fall in this trap!

Thoroughly Dissatisfied! Wondering whether Thrifty is incompetent ... or worse

I rented a car from Thrifty in Seattle for ten days, returning the car in the same condition as received. As far as I could tell, the car was undamaged when I returned it, but Thrifty had no one available to inspect the car when I returned it (during the work day). I had a plane to catch, so I left the keys at their counter. Several months later, Thrifty billed me for replacement of a chipped or cracked windshield, including loss of use of the vehicle. Their paperwork showed an estimate for windshield replacement dated a week after I returned the car, which is the only clear evidence they provided to me regarding when the damage was noticed. Thrifty in Seattle will not provide any other information and referred me to a collection agency that offered a choice between payment and legal action. My best guess is that the car was damaged at some point during the seven days between the day when I returned the car and the date of the repair estimate, probably late in that period. Since I was the most recent person to have rented the car, they charged me for the damage and for an extended rental until the damage was repaired.

I'm shocked and disappointed. The one time I had a broken car window, I called a repair shop the day the damage occurred, and the shop both provided an estimate and repaired the damage that day. I can't imagine that in a business that makes money from having cars available they would wait a week after observing damage to even get an estimate. I also cannot imagine that a reputable car rental company would charge a customer for damage without a clear indication that the damage occurred during the rental period.

Thrifty's corporate office provided no help, since they say they have no authority over disputes with franchises. The main reason for dealing with a franchise is that the corporate office will enforce standards of honesty and professionalism. Since they failed to do so in the face of a valid customer complaint, I will never rent from Thrifty again. There are plenty of honest and professional car rental companies, and next time I will choose one of them - anyone but Thrifty.

DO NOT GO THERE!!!! I had a terrible experience with Thrifty, had my signature forged to charge almost twice the amount I agreed to pay for rental. My credit card company investigated and credited me with the difference, but I am upset that the whole situation required so much time and energy to get sorted out. When I tried to get assistance through Thrifty corporate, I was first told that they could not do anything until the credit card dispute was complete. Afterwards, when I asked how they intended to address the situation, I received no response at all. In Puerto Vallarta, I strongly recommend going with local- Gecko or Amigo. I have also heard some good things about Budget, though you will get the timeshare treatment there.

For our family vacation, on 8/12/07 we arrived at Manzanillo airport in Mexico, at the Thrifty counter I was told that the Orbitz rate of $71.98, under which I have reserved the car through Orbitz was a mistake, it should have been $201. Left with no real choice at that airport, I had to agree to the new higher rate and signed the rental contract - the difference had since been refunded to me
after my complaint to Thrifty upon my return home but that was only the tip of the iceberg of my problems.

I picked up a Dodge Stratus with 54,000 Km (about 34,000 miles), it had a loud, clearly audible rumbling noise emanating from the front ends, and it felt excessively spongy and lethargic when bouncing over the numerous speed bumps on the streets of Manzanillo; a clear indication that the shocks and struts were not in normal operating condition. Also the back seats were broken and sunk in when sat on. Nevertheless, given that it was Mexico, I assumed that it was nothing out of the ordinary to have a rental car in poor condition and high mileage. Besides, the 45 minutes drive between the airport and my hotel made me decided to just stick with it.

During the 7 days, from time to time, the car's lower right front bumper panel would come unattached and just hanging off in front of the car, I would have to push it back to the mounting clips on the upper bumper panel, and I'd repeat that again and again..

At the end of my trip on 8/20/07, on the road while driving it back to the airport, the AC stopped working, and a black rubber/plastic flap about a foot by half foot came loose hanging out of the right front wheel well, flapping in the wind and rubbing against the right front tire. Praying that nothing else would go wrong, I managed to drive it back to the airport and returned the car.

After checking the car upon my report of the problems, the Thrifty manager told me that the oil pump was leaking oil and, she determined, that it was the cause of the AC not working. She told me that I will be responsible for the repair cost. I told her that since I was not offered to inspect the oil pump prior to renting, there was no way for me to know what was the condition of the oil pump, for all I know, the car could very well had an oil leak long before I picked up the car, therefore I would not pay for it.

She had since charged $1,425.23 on my credit card. I filed a dispute with my credit card company (Fidelity Investment Card), but the card company had since notified me that this is between me and Thrifty. On Thrifty's part, other than agreeing that the original Orbitz rate was correct and refunded to me the difference of $163, it told me that the alleged damage was between me and its franchise in Mexico.

So there you have it -- Thrifty at Manzanillo airport used deceptive, low rates at Orbitz to lure in foreign/US renters, then used a beat-up junk that had numerous pre-existing mechanical problems through years of traveling the bumpy streets of Manzanillo. And, as anticipated, once something goes wrong, charge the renter exorbitant costs. Sounds like one of those third world scam to rip off the tourists.

I have repeatedly requested documented proof from Thrifty, and from my credit card company, for an itemized list of the $1425.23 charge (BTW, Chrysler/Dodge parts website lists a new oil pump for a 2001 - 2006 Dodge Stratus at $88 to $107, for 2.7L or 2.4L engine.), also for the maintenance and repair history of the car; and record of previous damages claims by this outfit against other customers. I could not get even an acknowledgement of my request from Thrifty or FIA Card Services.

 I  will speak only about the Pearson Airport location in Toronto.  ALL the staff from there most likely arrive in short buses.   They are not responsive, extremely slow (>1 hour to find a car and do the paperwork even though I had a reservation), and give you any car they please unless you are willing to wait >2 hours for a car.  Simply Horrible.

The guy in Goleta first tried to guilt trip me into tipping the driver for pickup, which is advertised as being free, then proceeded to relentlessly bully me into getting their full insurance coverage, telling me that renting a car with just my credit card's rental insurance is *illegal*. After about 5 minutes of this, when I had finally gotten across that I wanted to use my credit card's coverage, he finally said, "you know what? I don't want to rent to you." He gave me back my cards and if I hadn't asked for a ride back to another rental agency, he probably would have left me outside. (Thrifty was not with the other car agencies at the airport - it was several blocks away, in a dirt lot.) I ended up booking with Enterprise, which has *much* better service, and the agent there told me that renting a car with a credit card's insurance was fine, so I'm not sure what the guy at Thrifty was talking about.

Last April I rented a compact car from Thrifty in San Juan, Puerto Rico. First of all they gave me a Toyota Tercel that was at least 5 yrs. old. An hour on my trip and the brakes started making an awful noise and the car was vibrating when brakes were hit. I called them, and they wanted me to drive back to their location so I could change the car. What? It took them 2 hrs. to bring someone with a replacement car. Because of their ineptitude I spent most of my first day in PR on the road.

VERY UNDERRATED! I have used thrifty for about 3 years now and I am quite pleased with their service. Their prices are almost half of Hertz or Avis , and having used Hertz I can tell you there is almost no difference in service or product. Be sure to sign up for their FREE service called Blue Chip. Last Spring in Vegas the line for regular customers looked over and hour long. Using blue chip I was in my car in less then 5 mins. Their cars are always brand new and sometimes they even upgrade me. If you are a buisness man and price is no object go with hertz because on the number one club gold. But if you are like the 95% of the rest of us and need to save here and there, sign up for blue chip and use Thifty.

Rented a car for 3 days in Puerto Rico. Not only did they take an upfront hold on our credit card for $550 for a $150 rental, they barely spoke English. At the actual car pick-up place they gave us a car with 2 practically flat tires and did not want to do anything about it. After almost an hour of discussion, we finally got a different car. Very unpleasant people to deal with. Would never rent from Thrifty again.

i think this company is terrible. they could care less about customer satisfaction. they charged my credit card twice....plus, everyone around us was unhappy. when i called with questions i was told to call later because their computers were down. use anybody but these circus acts.

I made a reservation with Thrifty online to rent a car in Las Vegas. On the website it said no credit card required to make this reservation. I got to Las Vegas and went to pick up the car and was told that I needed a credit card. My mother was with me so she said she would put it on her credit card, however since she is elderly and no longer able to drive safely she gave up her licence. Since she has no license they would not let me rent a car on her credit card. Now I am in Vegas on vacation and find out I cannot get a car! Worst yet the bastards at Thrify refused to call me a cab to get to my hotel!!! I recommend never doing buisness with Thrifty!!!

A good service and prices. The gas mileage is average, but the plans are good.

Used thrifty once, in Brooklyn, NY, and had a good experience. Price was competitive, service was fine, and despite renting their cheapest car, it turned out to be brand new, in good condition, and came with a CD player.