I rent a LOT of cars due to my heavy travel schedule. There are 3 points I make when I approach the rental desk. I always tell the clerk: 1) I don't need any insurance since I already have coverage, 2) I will bring the car back with a full gas tank, and 3) I have my own GPS.
Stating those things up-front saves the clerk time that would be wasted while trying to upsell me, and I don't have to listen to the sales pitch for each of those items. Well, this afternoon when I returned my car to Alamo after a 3-day rental, the guy checking me in went through his motions, inspected the car, printed out a little receipt from his handheld PDA, and declared I was 'good to go'. I started to pocket the receipt, but first took a quick look at it as i walked away. That's when I noticed he charged me $28 for a refueling fee. I turned around and walked back to the guy and asked about the charge. I explained my contract says I would return it full and I had just topped off the tank. He sort of looked away and mumbled something about 'Oh, I must have made a mistake - walk over to the desk where you picked up the car and they can take care of a refund for you.'
Although I didn't have time to waste, I hustled over to the desk at the far end of the parking lot and told the woman there what happened. All I had time to say was 'I was charged for gas...' and then she interrupted and said "I can issue a refund in a second..." She knew what I was complaining about so quickly that it was immediately apparent to my wife and I that they've been caught in this scam before. Within a few minutes, I had my refund. As I left to catch my flight, I heard the next guy in line tell her he had been incorrectly charged for gas, and the saga continued...
I can't help but wonder how many customers just assume the Alamo clerks are honest and never bother to scrutinize the receipts they are handed at check-in.
