Car rental at San Francisco Airport

Incorrect information

Cons: My husband booked my car in advance online. When I arrived at the pickup at SFO, the agent took three times as long as the agents around her. In addition, she claimed the cost was going to be $170+ when we booked for a rate of $70. I brought this to her attention, but she claimed fees and taxes brought the cost up. She also said the car had to be returned that day by 6:00. We later discovered we could not return the car that day and that we would only be charged $90. Totally unnecessary worry thanks to an impatient and incorrect agent.

the car was fine, the rental experience was less t

Pros: the car was clean and the price was decent

Cons: the customer service, particularly at check in, was sadly lacking. I was in line for an agent when an employee told several of us to step out of line to use the kiosks. Since I had a reservation, I assumed this would be an automated process, so it made sense. But no, it was just a video conference line to other agents, who did not answer. So, we stood at the kiosks for 20 minutes, waiting while the people who had stayed in line got served. Not one of us at the kiosk even got a response. Finally, we went back into line- the back of the line- which by now was considerably longer. An agent spent a further 20 minutes fooling with the kiosks, instead of getting behind a desk to help the now stacked up customers. when we got to the desk- it took an inordinate amount of time, especially given that I had a reservation. I wanted to add a driver. The agent told us that the second driver would have to sign up at the exit gate (not true) - no one said anything about tolls, so when we crossed the bay bridge we were left wondering if we should pay cash, or the rental car would be charged.... directions to the car in the garage were abysmal- which I know sounds petty, but when your 71/2 months pregnant and schlepping luggage just makes a poor impression worse. returning it was easy enough, we'll see what happens with tolls. It was nothing catastrophic, but overall, it just left a bad enough taste that i'll try another agency for my next trip.

Pros: The car.

Cons: The staff of SFO hertz led by the leader of the worst, the supervisor (name tag not worn) Shirley. I can imagine why she wouldn't wear a name tag because it makes it easier to identify her. She was dismissive, rude, condescending and unhelpful. Which is why her staff was busier taking to themselves than helping people. And when they do help people, they're a lot like Shirley. Bad. Very bad.

Stranded at 1 a.m.

Pros: I didn't appreciate the Hertz company policy that allows you to reserve a car with a debit card only to be denied that car when you arrive with that card, a pre-paid credit card, and plenty of cash. The Hertz company should not allow you to reserve a vehicle with a formore of payment they won't accept. I am very displeased and will ensure that none of my family or friends will ever use this rental company. I will do everything in my power to vilify them to the fullest extent.

Cons: Customer service was laughable, how can you have an office full of people at 1 in the morning when your only job is to look up a name, accept payment and tell them "the keys are in it, just go pick one." Ridiculous.

too long on waiting times for pickup

Cons: Waiting in line at SFO for 5 minutes until on of the Hertz employees finally told us we were on the wrong floor. Waiting in lines 35 minutes to exit the garage [SFO].

Mediocre service at best

Pros: Our upgraded car was comfortable (Jetta) and go excellent gas millage. Dropoff was easy.

Cons: Customer services using the kiosk was HORRIBLE. It took at least 2-3 minutes to get a representative on the screen, when we were told it would be immediate. The card reader did not work properly due to chip in our card. The representative we were working with took all of our information 2x, even though all of the information was required when making the original reservation. Lastly, the kiosk representative HUNG UP on me when I did not answer a question she asked, i.e. "Is this a business or personal trip?". Keep in mind we picked up our car at 10pm after traveling all day. I was able to get my rental car after dealing with a rep on location and received an upgrade for our troubles; however, the upgrade wasn't even worth it because the gas agreement was not explained properly so we ended up losing money when we spent $40 for a tank of gas and we brought the car back with 3/4 tank remaining. Our car was also not inspected at pickup so when we returned it, we were accused of putting a large dent in one of the doors, which we did not, and had no proof we did not because it was not inspected prior to our leaving our pick-up location. Overall, I am very unsatisfied with out experience and will not be using Hertz again.

Tried to Jack Up the Price

Pros: In August I used a third-party, online service (Kayak) to book a car from Hertz at McDonnell Road near San Francisco International Airport. I printed out the receipt and brought it with me, and when I arrived to pick up the car I used the kiosk rather than wait in line for an in-person representative. At first the person I spoke to virtually charged a higher price than what I had booked so I quoted and showed the original printout price. After a while the rep on the screen lowered the price to what it was supposed to be, but I was not expecting to have to argue about it. I had never had that happen before. Also, I booked a compact car, which they call a "Ford Focus or similar" but I received a Ford Fiesta, which I think is in the sub-compact category, but I will admit that I'm not sure about that. In any case, I am not inclined to use Hertz again after this transaction.

Cons: When i went to pick up the car they had the wrong vehicle in my gold member spot, had to walk back in and ask the people to change it, it took them over 15 minutes to find me the car i reserved. The gas tank was only a quarter full and the woman at check out said would note it in the record but didn't, so when i returned the car they tried to charge me $75 refueling for returning with a half full tank (which was actually more full than i received it). The woman at check out made it seem like i was lying and eventually removed the charge but made it clear this was a "one time courtesy". Ridiculous treatment for someone with Hertz's Gold President Cirle Elite status. Very disappointing.

Mixed bag

Pros: The people we dealt with were friendly. Drop-off was easy and quick. The car was clean and in good shape.

Cons: Pick-up at SFO was bad. The first agent (a video representative) couldn't find the stall the car was supposed to be in. The second agent (after standing in a second line, of course) found the car's location. When we went to get it, the third agent informed us the car had already been given to someone else. This person then gave us a different kind of car, which magically had the same exact rate as what we had prepaid.

Cons: Outrageous SFO fees.

A bit of a hassle at drop off

Cons: There was a significant scrape on the car when we picked it up. They claimed it was our responsibility. We were in a rush to get to a flight but they made us fill out paperwork. I argued that if their records were correct to begin with, we wouldn't have to risk missing our flight.

Upselling and poor communication

Pros: Nice car, easy return

Cons: I prepaid for my car on the website ($230). When I went to pick up the car, I went through the standard up-sells and declined them (~10 minutes of saying no). When it came time to give me a car, the up-sells became less obvious and the sales person led me to believe that the cost I was reviewing was the price I paid online. She showed me cars that were way above what I had paid ($500) for about 20 minutes as I continually kept our conversation focused on the price I had already paid. She then offered me a car "30 dollars cheaper than I had paid" ($200 total) and I took it. Turns out that $200 was in addition to the $230 I had already paid. Even though I asked for confirmation that I was not paying more than I had prepaid, it retrospect, she never actually answered that question outright - she never lied, just dodged. I feel played and Hertz now feels like a sleazy company. I'll go with any of the other multiple car rental companies next time.