Budget Car Rental ripoff - Left Me Stranded 1200 Miles from home AND charged me for a one way rental cause THEY took the car back. Latham New York

Hello,

It has taken me a while to update this because I have a lot of other things going on.

Budget WAS responsible and THEY AGREED. They apologized profusely and gave me the money back for the Budget rental, the second car rental I had to get because of thier decision, and the plane ticket I had to buy to get home. In addition to offering me a free car rental.

I did use the tactics in the Rip Off Revenge book and did in deed get all my money back, plus some in the amount of time they said I would, without even having to picket.

The manager of the NYC Budget office was very upset to see my report on www.ripoffreport.com. He also could not understand why the Latham office made the decision they did with the minor damage to the car and the fact that the car was hit in the rear which made my guilt suspect. But hey, they did and it cost them.

By the way, I did get the ticket, took it to court and it was determined I was not at fault so yes budget did make a bad decision. But aside from just having a ticket, human beings have the ability to judge a situation for themselves and they can make any decision they want, but it does not come without consequences. Budget's decision cost them over $1300

I normally would go into another long explination about why Budget was wrong but life is short and if you can't see it yourself cause you ultimately don't care about consumers then I'd be wasting my time.

Peace

I work for a one of the 10 largest Rental car companies. I understand that Tressa is upset at being left stranded and I feel bad that she was abandoned. You have to think of the situation from the company's point of view.
1. Ultimately you were cited for the accident.
2. Budget's property was damaged and at the time
there was no resolution as to how the car
would be fixed.
3. You did not take LDW so the damages are your
responsibility, not Budget's.

Unless there is some type of coverage you can purchase from a rental company that mimicks AAA that I'm not aware of, I honestly don't believe that Budget should have done anything about you being stranded. Although it was an unfortunate situation, the company was not at fault.

FTC BRINGS CHARGES AGAINST BUDGET RENT-A CAR CORP.
FOR UNFAIR SAFETY RECALL PRACTICES;
CONSENT AGREEMENT SETTLES CHARGES


The Federal Trade Commission has charged Budget Rent-A-Car Corp. with failing to disclose to prospective renters that it did not inspect automobiles subject to recall notices within a
reasonable period of time and, if appropriate, make the necessary repairs. Under a consent agreement issued today for public comment, Budget agreed to inspect and repair affected vehicles
within a reasonable time.

According to the complaint, Budget rented to the general public automobiles that were subject to recall notices. The company allegedly did not inspect these vehicles within a reasonable period of time to determine whether they contained
safety-related defects, and, where appropriate, repair the vehicles. Budget then failed to disclose these material facts to prospective renters or purchasers of their vehicles, according to the complaint.

Under the consent agreement, Budget will inspect and repair the vehicles within 120 days after receiving a recall notice. Alternatively, the order would require Budget to generally dis-
close to prospective renters that the vehicles are subject to safety recall notices and may contain defects, if it chooses not to inspect.

Budget is a subsidiary of Budget Rent A Car Systems, Inc., a Delaware corporation involved primarily in the business of car and truck rental services.

The consent agreement is scheduled to appear in the Federal Register January 3. It will be subject to public comment for 60 days, until March 1, after which the Commission will decide
whether to make it final.

A consent agreement is for settlement purposes only and does not constitute admission of a law violation. When the Commission issues a consent order on a final basis, it carries the force of
law with respect to future actions. Each violation of such an order may result in a civil penalty of up to $10,000.

Comments should be addressed to the Office of the Secretary, FTC, 6th St. & Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

Copies of the agreement, the complaint and an analysis of the agreement are available from the FTC's Public Reference Branch, Room 130, 6th St. and Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580; 202-326-2222; TTY 202-326-2502.

# # #

MEDIA CONTACT: Brenda A. Mack, Office of Public Affairs, 202-326-2180

STAFF CONTACT: Lydia B. Parnes, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-326-3126

This company even has an unsatisfactory rating with the BBB!

Cendant Car Rental Group
Various Locations
New York, NY 10001

Original Business Start Date: 1/1/1958

Principal: Robert Salerno, President & CEO

Phone Number: (800) 467-9337

Additional Phone Numbers:
(386) 238-7035 (386) 238-7461 (212) 794-3102

Fax Number: (386) 238-7461

Website: www.budget.com

Type of Business: AUTOMOBILE RENTING & LEASING

The information in this report has either been provided by the company, or has been compiled by the Bureau from other sources.

Customer Experience

Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the Bureau.

Cendant Corporation
9 West 57th Street
New York, NY 10019

This company owns Budget Rent A Car Systems, Inc. along with the following other companies:

Real Estate Franchises
CENTURY 21
Coldwell Banker
Coldwell Banker Commercial
ERA

Real Estate Brokerage
NRT

Relocation
Cendant MobilitySM

Mortgage
Cendant MortgageSM

Title and Settlement Services
Cendant Settlement Services Group

Lodging Franchises
Amerihost Inn
Days Inn
Howard Johnson
Knights Inn
Ramada Inn
Super 8
Travelodge
Villager
Wingate Inn

Vacation Ownership
Fairfield Resorts
RCI
Trendwest

Vacation Rental
Cuendet
Holiday Cottages Group
Novasol
RCI Holiday Network
Welcome Holidays, Ltd.

Car Rental
Avis
Budget

Fleet Management and Fuel Card Services
PHH Arval
Wright Express

Tax Preparation
Jackson Hewitt Tax Services

Insurance/ Wholesale and Loyalty Solutions Businesses
CIMS

Cendant Marketing Group
Progeny Marketing Innovations
Trilegiant

Travel Agency Services
Galileo International
THOR

International Markets
Galileo International
Travel 2 and Travel 4
Travelport
Travelwire
RatesToGo.com
HotelClub.com

Corporate Travel Solutions
Travelport

Retail Travel Services
CheapTickets.com
Cendant Travel

Hospitality and Leisure Services
Lodging.com
Neat Group

Supplier Services
Shepherd Systems
TRUST International
WizCom