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EDITOR OF REDSTATE

Maybe Hertz Rental Car Will Pay Attention to This

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 21st, 2012 at 03:54 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

It is rare I get to take my wife with me on a trip, but with business in her favorite city, Austin, TX, a broken rib, and a need for a break, I lined up her parents to keep our kids and off we went so she could have some fun and rest.

We only had a day – Saturday – to do anything. Friday I had meetings, radio, and went to see The Dark Knight Rises with friends while she rested from the flight. Saturday morning after some work at the hotel, then my wife and I set out to go have breakfast with friends. That is when the sheer mind numbing idiocy of Hertz collided with our one day of vacation.At 9:45 a.m. the hotel valet told me our rental was dead after I had called down to retrieve it. Not only was it dead, but it was a keyless entry system with a key fob. The key fob had a key in it that slides out for situations like this, but the key turned out to not actually be to the car. The fob was and key wasn’t.

In addition to not being able to open the trunk to get out my laptop bag, we were stuck.

I called Hertz and they transferred me to roadside assistance. Roadside assistance asked for the height of the parking garage and summoned AAA.

Two hours later AAA had not arrived so I called Hertz back.

The one competent person of the day who I spoke to gave me a claim number, her agent number, and said she would send a lock smith, once the car was open and I could get out my computer she’d send a taxi, get me to the airport for a new car, and Hertz would deal with towing the old rental separately.

The locksmith showed up 15 minutes later. He unlocked the car, but because it was a dead battery he couldn’t get the trunk open.

I called Hertz back, gave my claim number and the agent number of the competent agent and the new agent wouldn’t transfer me, but presumed to help me herself. I told her about the last conversation and she decided to send out AAA again instead of sending me to the airport.

An hour later AAA showed up.

In a van the same size as the locksmith’s van, but convinced he couldn’t fit in the garage, he did not have a remote battery with him. So he left.

Again I called Hertz and supposedly sometime in the next hour someone else from AAA may or may not show up.

Maybe we will get an hour or so out and about on our one vacation day.

Thanks Hertz for being so customer unfriendly.

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COMMENTS

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  • http://stevemaley.com Steve Maley

    ‘

  • reggie1

    .

  • From ME to You

    Kinda mirrors the Obama administration doesn’t it?

  • jaykali

    .

  • acat

    After hearing this story, Erick, I have to suggest changing your brand.

    I’ve never had a problem, even the time the agent and I communicated pantomime because I was on the phone while picking up the car… that turned out to be a free upgrade into an SUV because the minivan I’d ordered was unavailable.

    Further, if there *is* a problem, it’s Enterprise. They’ll pick you up.

    Mew

  • GOP Politix

    Sorry to hear…that’s the way it happens sometimes though…

  • emptybucket

    and remember Philippians 4:4. All of us find it hard to do sometimes, and also hard to find the good in this Hertz situation. But it is there!

  • Brian Simpson

    By the way, if anyone is going to hit the Tweet button up at the top of the page, their Twitter handle is @Hertz. I would suggest changing the title to include that so that their customer service people see that.

  • AndrewHyman

    Wow, sounds like you could use a drink, Erick. But don’t go from AAA to AA.

  • timchgo9

    I preach this every day at work.
    I have lived customer service for most of the last 20 years. I have been a 9-1-1 Operator (yes, it’s “extreme customer service”) Tech Support, Order support, and currenly, Level II tech support.

    I get after our Level I agents if I detect that they aren’t attempting to fix the customer’s problem. Customers are frustrating, rude, obscene, and sometimes, downright mean…. BUT… they paid for the product or service,and therefore are entitled to good, no, excellent service that resolves their problem, or, sets up a resolution.

    It would appear, Erick, that communication was seriously lacking at one or more levels at Hertz. In my job, I stress documentation that tells the story, so the next agent to handle the customer’s isssue knows exactly what transpired. . In the case of the AAA guy, my guess is, he was lazy, and really didn’t feel like helping anyone that day. I would have taken his name, and when he drove away, called his manager, and laid into them. That kind of behavior is simply unacceptable on any level.

    Sorry to hear your vacation was ruined, Now I know who not to use when I need to rent a car……

    When I have rented, both times I used Enterprise….. No problems.

  • citizenkh

    back when I flew a lot and had a constant Gold then Platinum, on both Continental and American, frequent flyer status and was ALWAYS upgraded to 1st Class.

    Too expensive when so many good alternatives were available

  • Wubbies World

    .. I used them on a business trip once and I will never do it again. Your experience mirrors the nightmare I had too.

  • Viet71

    Always have been pleased.

  • acat

    USS Enterprise

    Enterprise has a long-standing policy of supporting the armed services without bragging about it.

    Mew

  • Thomas Crown

    .

  • quill67

    Some Keyless cars have a key hidden in the remote that slides out for just such a circumstance. (Father-in-law’s Cadillac has this)

  • Viet71

    Are the names connected?

    Avis used to brag they were Number 2. I suspect Enterprise’s management is trying hard to grow market share. It’s a well-run company in my experience. Not bloated like Hertz. Not sure I’d trust Avis today. Enterprise always has struck me as willing to do what it takes to please the customer.

  • Tbone

    I bet it straightened your wife up, didn’t it?

  • Deskpilot

    it’s a shame I couldn’t have gotten you straight.
    I ALWAYS put the totality of the Customer first. I fixed some of their problems by doing lots of extras by the sheer force of will. The Customers ALWAYS called the Home Office (OKC, OK) and I received a few Thank You letters.
    The problem was my local management team. They routinely condemned my caring for the Customers, even when it didn’t cost the company anything. I could never figure that one out. That’s why i’m a former Hertz employee. Not even a Gold Member anymore.

  • ashland_avenue

    440 Air(four windows down, 40 mph), Mexican steering (by Manuel) Mogen David transmission (a little whine in it) all standard? so who needs keyless entry?

  • bk

    If you spend more than X number of seconds helping a customer to do things right, you end up blowing your average number of calls per day number and get dinged by your boss.

    Of course what they don’t realize is that spending two minutes to solve a problem should beat having them call five times at 30 seconds each.

  • theBlur

    I have tried them all, Hertz, Alamo/National, Budget, Thrifty (God help me if I ever rent from them again, even if forced by the company). My best experiences have always been with Enterprise. Not only will they make things right, one time when a group of us was in Kentucky on travel, one of the vans busted a tire. Enterprise not only came out to help in a half-hour, they brought another van with them, and we left the busted up one behind.

  • http://www4.webng.com/rickbull/lostlucky/ rickbull

    Just kidding. I certainly hope your next outing goes better. I’m with acat, though: use Enterprise.

  • poorwilber

    Even if I have to pay extra for a tradition key system, I will never own another car with a keyless key fob. The battery dies, you’re so screwed.

  • Luis_M

    I own a Dodge with this feature. The owners manual says: to open the trunk manually, you have to get inside the car with the manual key, then pull down the rear seat back to gain access to the trunk. Then crawl into the trunk and there is a manual pull string that one latch and pull. It will open the trunk.

    Hope this helps!
    Luis

  • http://www4.webng.com/rickbull/lostlucky/ rickbull

    At 9:45 a.m. the hotel valet told me our rental was dead after I had called down to retrieve it. Not only was it dead, but it was a keyless entry system with a key fob. The key fob had a key in it that slides out for situations like this, but the key turned out to not actually be to the car. The fob was and key wasn?t.

  • bk

     

  • perfectlyaged

    Brian Simpson…..BRILLIANT!!

  • sbm1

    If your time is valuable, then waiting around for Hertz at the hotel seems mindless. Give the valet the info, and get in a cab and go where you need to go. Or go online and rent a different car, enterprise will usually deliver the car to the hotel.

  • acat

    Erick’s golf clubs, laptop, and possibly other items of luggage were locked in the trunk of the Hertz ride….

    While it’s possible to play a round of golf or go sightseeing, both would involve trusting a company that’s already proven itself non-trustworthy …

    Mew

  • teaforme2012

    You learned how to open a trunk from the inside from a manual!

  • sbm1

    but he wanted time with his wife.

    I clock about 250k airmiles a year, and have to deal with lost luggage, improperly booked reservations and the like a lot. If your time is precious you make do and prioritize.

    If I’m with my wife, and I get locked out of my car, we do everything we can without my luggage, and take care of the car situation later…which is why I don’t understand why he would spend more than 2 hours at the hotel waiting for the Hertz clown cavalcade to get the situation settled.

  • acat

    Erick was promised fast service by Hertz .. not a 2-hour no-show.

    Erick had left valuables in the car and no longer trusted them to Hertz.

    I would have handled it a bit differently, but .. I would not have used Hertz in the first place.

    Mew

  • acat

    the SWATtings …

    Mew

  • tlhanger

    Always used Hertz, but since I often go to LA and their rates went up to ridiculous out there, I have switched to others, never have had a problem.. www.flyertalk.com go to the Hertz page. You would be surprised at how close the company watches the pages. I use to work for the airlines.

  • Deskpilot

    I was at a Hertz Local Edition (HLE) where the volume of inbound calls was countable on both hands per day. Customers were either retail or insurance replacement while their cars were in local body shops.

    I took personal responsibility for resolving problems, especially serious ones. i.e. An elderly couple had rented @ Amtrak Philadelphia and were driving to D.C. when they were hit bay another motorist in DE. I was the closest office when the phone rang from Hertz Roadside Assistance @ 4:30. Their replacement vehicle and contract was ready when they arrived. They were brought by police to my office around 5:30. I noticed that they were rather frazzled. By the time I completed the necessary accident reports, they both indicated that they were indeed a bit sore from their accident , in addition to growing more tired.

    Knowing quiet route to DC from where we were, it included both a mid-grade hotel and a nearby walk-in urgent care clinic with evening hours. I made the necessary reservation with the hotel, which was a business associate of another HLE near them.

    They called me the next day from DC After their presentation to a medical panel to heap thanks on me for my actions. They were cared for @ the care center, ate dinner and slept immediately at the hotel. They woke and drove in time to get to their meeting and were grateful for the sleep. In hindsight, they admitted that they would not have made it to DC that night..

    They wrote a lengthy letter of thanks to OKC and my entire management chain congratulated me through gritted teeth.

  • tnfriendofcoal101368

    The moral of which is Mrs. Tnfriend has revoked my right to choose rental companies.

    Mrs. Tnfriend and I arrived at our destination and moseyed on over to the rental counter to pick up our rental. Now to be honest, tnfriendofcoal is a cheapskate so he selected Hertz over Enterprise because it is cheaper. Back to the story, we arrive at the Hertz counter to two irate ladies (note: no one else is in line). It turns out these ladies had been standing at the counter for 15 minutes and all they needed to do was to return the keys to the car so they could catch their plane. Thirty-five minutes later, someone finally arrives at the desk, takes another 10 minutes to take the ladies keys. Forty-five minutes after arriving, we finally get service. After fumbling around for another 5-10 minutes (the guy had obviously never heard of “AAA discount”), he throws our keys at us without telling us the lot where the car is located.

    I realized this outside – went back in and of course he had disappered again. Mrs Tnfriend and I walked the parking lot and hit the door lock until we found the car – I don’t know how long this took but in the Florida heat – it seemed like an hour (no it wasn’t an hour).

    Mrs Tnfriend looks at me in the car and says “never again”. I thought she meant never again for Hertz which I thought was obvious but alas I was to learn that tnfriendofcoal would not be doing anymore vacation planning. Thanks Hertz, vacations are going to cost me more money and it’s your fault.

  • gouchrcouch

    your first problem is going to hertz. Had a simular sisuation with them several years ago in LA, LAX. A Frod Tarus was rented and was waiting at the gate for the wife and I. Got in and it would not start. with the design to these new cars (JUNK MOBILS), the electronics was fried because the exhaust crosses under the starter. Hertz dispatched AAA and wanted 150.00 to tow bwack to the Hertz place in Torance. So standing there looking over the top of this (junkmobil) I spyed the other rental that was compitition for hertz, Wife & I walked over to the agency, and told them what the problem was, and got a rental for have the price, unlimited milage. As for the other car as we were leaving saw the driver of the tow truck hooking up the rental to take back to the shop. Got a letter from hertz wanting Several hundred dollars from me for the tow, not returning it to the place where we rented from, I turned everything over to my leagle council to make it go away.

  • gmhunt

    I hope Hertz gave you your money back, next time use Enterprise…..I was in the Army 28 years and in every state I was stationed I used Enterprise and never had a problem. I always got the car I requested, usually an upgrade, great service……

  • wumingren

    I hate remote door locks. They’re convenient when they work, but when they don’t, chances are your car only has a driver’s side door with a keylock. I hate it when I have to go to the driver’s side to open the car with the key, when I want to open the passenger’s side door. I remember a dealer once trying to sell me on the idea one door lock by saying, “One less door lock is one less thing to break, and it also saves you a few hundred dollars.” He’d be the same guy saying, “One-sided mattresses save you the trouble of flipping the mattress, and they’re cheaper, too.” Let’s hear it for one-fingered gloves.

  • acat

    Same with a non-flippable mattress. Yes, it’s fewer things to break, but .. if the single point of failure *does* give out … game over.

    Mew

  • SoFiMil

    ..

  • whit3

    I’ve rented from other companies, but Enterprise has had my business for the last four years. I’ll only rent from them now.

    From personal experience, they’ve got the best customer service and most helpful employees.

  • 2warabnvet

    doing business with Hertz over a decade ago.

  • wayneinnh

    Good spokesmen are so hard to find.

  • eheassler

    I gave up using Herz years ago. I thought they charged top dollar for their product but provided no better service than their less expensive competitors. They are a large company with many corporate accounts and if you are a private customer, you may be left feeling that your business doesn’t count because you are just small potatoes as far as they are concerned. They look after the larger accounts first and foremost.

  • ihateliberals

    maybe a sledge hammer would work better or a torch.

  • From ME to You

    .

  • ihateliberals

    n/t

  • Bill S

    I just spent 4 days in Manhattan at the Andaz 5th Ave. Hands-down, the best customer service I’ve ever had at…pretty much anywhere. While this trip was a freebie, I would EASILY return there on my own nickel…even though it’s probably at least 50% more expensive than most major hotels in NYC. I saw customers giving the desk clerks hugs when they left, because of the great service they got during their stay. It was an amazing hotel in an amazing location, with unbelievably great service.

    THAT is how you build customer loyalty and make money.

  • myron_j_poltroonian

    @ithurts is more like it.

  • myron_j_poltroonian

    is a fact of the human condition. (Consider it “Tribalism”.) However, there is a difference between the kind that kills, maims or denies opportunity and the kind that finds humor in what are commonly known as “Stereotypes”. the kind that allows us all to “Get Along” with each other. Unfortunately, we, as a society, have been led down the idiotic, politely correct path of: “If the one is offended, the many shall forever shut up”.

    For the sad results, just look around you at all the far too easily offended, clamoring for more and more restrictions on what speech is allowed and, more sadly, what is not, aided, encouraged and abetted by all those who benefit from societies thin skinned angst. Look in the mirror and see if you can’t laugh at yourself. If not, who else can you legitimately laugh at?

  • myron_j_poltroonian

    “Racism”is a fact of the human condition. (Consider it “Tribalism”.) However, there is a difference between the kind that kills, maims or denies opportunity and the kind that finds humor in what are commonly known as “Stereotypes”. the kind that allows us all to “Get Along” with each other. Unfortunately, we, as a society, have been led down the idiotic, politely correct path of: “If the one is offended, the many shall forever shut up”.

    For the sad results, just look around you at all the far too easily offended, clamoring for more and more restrictions on what speech is allowed and, more sadly, what is not, aided, encouraged and abetted by all those who benefit from societies thin skinned angst. Look in the mirror and see if you can’t laugh at yourself. If not, who else can you legitimately laugh at?

  • myron_j_poltroonian

    O.k., two minor corrections: The first entry was when I accidentally “double tapped” the mouse and Mr. “You’ve already said that” looked like it dropped the comment. So, clever me, I simply added a word or so and re posted it. “Voila!”, as the French say, a double entry (if not a double entendr?.)

    Secondly: ” … led down the idiotic, politely correct path … ” was a concoction by the ever helpful, always ready to “Slip One In” to us,”Mr. Corrector” of your intent” application. It should read: ” … led down the idiotic, politically correct path … “.

  • myron_j_poltroonian

    nt

  • unclefred

    None are perfect and many franchises are simply horrible. I’ve left a dozen cars on the side of the road for the agency to deal with. I’ve hitch hiked back to the dealership gotten a second car and driven back to the dead one grabbed my stuff and gone on my way.

    Erick. I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but I have a hunch that you could have gotten into that trunk despite the battery.

    Yes sh*t happens. Hertz on average is no better or worse than Avis, Enterprise, or a couple of others. Generally I use Hertz, Avis, or Enterprise solely based on which has a contract with my client.

    Every time I had a problem, I contacted the parent agency to get things made right. I did not post my experience on a blog. Oddly in every case, eventually the parent agency made things right.

    Vent your angst where it can get you some compensation, with Hertz, not here.