Rental car companies and their gas policy.

by jam 5 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  jam

  I rented a car with a 1/2 tank of gas and I returned it with 3/4 tank

  of gas,no reimbursement that's their policy. Ok the next guy comes

  along and rent the same car with 3/4 tank of gas and he brings it back

  almost full, no reimbursement for him. But if you return a rental car

  with less gas you are charged a higher price then the market.

  How can that be legal??

  Now rental companies are using a new techology to measure fuel use.

  An article "Rental car companies gauge the benefits of a new techology

  to measure fuel use".

  If you occasionally rent a car read this article.

  Budget has changed it's policy, it's rare I rent a car with a full tank.
• 

  JeffT

  Make them fill it before you take it. I don't rent cars often but they always have full tanks. I think it might be the law here.
• 

  carla

  The times we have rented cars the tank was always full and if you didn't return it full they charged at least double per gallon. The gas stations around the airport benefited because they were higher than the rest of the state(s) too!
• 

  Bruja-del-Sol

  It's the same policy here in Spain. Rent a car around Málaga airport and you'll get a car filled with 1/8 tank of gas (IMO that's empty) and you're supposed to bring it back with an equal amount. Which is of course nearly impossible, so people will usually return their cars with more gas in it. And you'll have to pay extra if there's less gas in the tank...

  Years ago you used to get a full tank and had to return it full, but it's a lot more profitable for them to give you a nearly empty tank. It's a piece of cake to get the extra amount (paid by the customers) out of the tank and store it or put it in another car. $$$
• 

  Simon

  In calgary you normally get the car with a full tank and can either pay for the tank or return it full. There is a gas station as you pull into the airport so you fill it up there.

  The problem with the partial tanks is it would be so hard to judge accurately - but of course the policy is going to be most beneficial to them.
• 

  exwhyzee

  I've rented cars in the U.S and in other countires. In Austrailia last spring, they offered a deal where you could bring the car back needing Gas so long as you had taken advantage of their offer to let you pay for a tank of gas up front at less than the going rate per litre. The idea I'm guessing is that most people end up bringing the car back with at least some gas in it so the company would only have to fill it part way. It could be a good deal if you were able to time it right so that the car was running on fumes rather than return it with a partial tank.

  The thing I learned about renting cars is that you need to be absolutely sure (in writing) about your own insurance coverage when you opt not use the insurance the rental car offers. Be absolutely sure your insurance covers you in the State or Country you rent the car in. Same goes for the Insurance offered by your credit card. We had a fender bender with an old man who ran into us while in Austrailia and we had to pay the damages to our rental car upfront before leaving the country until the matter was settled. We were assured over the phone by our agent before we left the U.S that we were covered but found out when we got home that if it had been our fault, our insurance wound't have covered us. The fine print on our specific policy, revealed that Austrailia wasn't one of the coutries included in our coverage. That could have been a mess especially if there'd have been injuries.