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October 2023 by Samantha Ness
I should have read the reviews when booking this car. However, one doesn't think about having to do that at highly trafficked airports.I arrived at 10:38pm to pick up my rental car. The entire rental counter for all but Enterprise rentals were shut down, although they close at 11pm. When asking security where I could find someone to help me retrieve my vehicle they reported they all went home at 9pm because they ran out of vehicles.My reservation was made on July 31st and I was picking up my car on Oct 6th, it's completely unreasonable that a vehicle was not waiting for me.I was told that I could come back at 6am when the counter opened to possibly retrieve my car if my reservation was still valid the next day in their system. When I asked what I should do for the night I was now stranded in Burbank for, I was told to get a hotel, that would not be reimbursed (thanks to the Enterprise guy). All hotels Burbank, CA to West Hollywood, CA were completely booked unless I was willing to risk a 1 star motel alone. I was left to sit in the Burbank Marriott lobby for 6 hours (thankfully inside) at least until the Thrifty counter opened.The next morning I arrived at 5:45am to ensure I was first in line, and I was not. There were other several angry customers. The counter opened at 6:15, instead of 6. When I got to the counter and explained the situation I was told "That's hard" by the employee and was given a choice in red or blue vehicle because all he has was 2 compact cars. I booked an SUV.He told me to walk down and the key would be inside and head out. When I arrived at the vehicle it was covered in dings, scratches, and paint chips. When I asked for a vehicle inspection form I was asked why I had wanted one. (be sure to take pictures before you drive away. Even with the form filled out, they still tried to charge me till I showed them the photo evidence with the date and time-stamp).Running on 28 hours no sleep due to their lack of professionalism, and I was told nothing could be done to reimburse me for the difficulty, lack of service, or in general for the failings of their company.When I called customer service upon returning home I was told by the agent I was not allowed to know the name of the person I was speaking with and that I was ungrateful for only being given a $100 credit towards my next car with them within the next 6th months. The $100 doesn't even reimburse me for the headache or the vehicle I had.Stay far away from this company at the Burbank Airport if possible. Had they not had my reservation they "would make me a new one" for double my original, when they only had 2 vehicles on the lot, and 10 people in line.
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October 2023 by Trish Barsanti
Do not use this company! They are deceitful about charges, so you have to be careful, they tried to increase the cost of my reservation by almost $700, and acted like it was just the charges. Also, I needed to return the car to LAX instead, and they were going to charge me an extra $350, for something that is a zero charge on the website, so I had to return in Burbank and get an Uber all the way to LAX. I asked to speak to management, who was not available, even though I was assured they would contact me. A joke, go with a more professional company.
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October 2023 by Pat
DO NOT USE THRIFTY!!!Don’t be lured by the lower price!Had a reservation long in advance…months. Said we were arriving at 1230. At 1:15, after being in line for 30 minutes (for three customers in front of us and a clerk painfully slow), we’re told to wait another 30 minutes for our car!!This is a sham…walk away, go with someone else…don’t spend your vacation in the airport waiting for Thrifty to get the car ready.
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October 2023 by Samantha N.
I should have read the reviews when booking this car. However, one doesn't think about having to do that at highly trafficked airports. I arrived at 10:38pm to pick up my rental car. The entire rental counter for all but Enterprise rentals were shut down, although they close at 11pm. When asking security where I could find someone to help me retrieve my vehicle they reported they all went home at 9pm because they ran out of vehicles. My reservation was made on July 31st and I was picking up my car on Oct 6th, it's completely unreasonable that a vehicle was not waiting for me. I was told that I could come back at 6am when the counter opened to possibly retrieve my car if my reservation was still valid the next day in their system. When I asked what I should do for the night I was now stranded in Burbank for, I was told to get a hotel, that would not be reimbursed (thanks to the Enterprise guy). All hotels Burbank, CA to West Hollywood, CA were completely booked unless I was willing to risk a 1 star motel alone. I was left to sit in the Burbank Marriott lobby for 6 hours (thankfully inside) at least until the Thrifty counter opened. The next morning I arrived at 5:45am to ensure I was first in line, and I was not. There were other several angry customers. The counter opened at 6:15, instead of 6. When I got to the counter and explained the situation I was told "That's hard" by the employee and was given a choice in red or blue vehicle because all he has was 2 compact cars. I booked an SUV.He told me to walk down and the key would be inside and head out. When I arrived at the vehicle it was covered in dings, scratches, and paint chips. When I asked for a vehicle inspection form I was asked why I had wanted one. (be sure to take pictures before you drive away. Even with the form filled out, they still tried to charge me till I showed them the photo evidence with the date and time-stamp). Running on 28 hours no sleep due to their lack of professionalism, and I was told nothing could be done to reimburse me for the difficulty, lack of service, or in general for the failings of their company. When I called customer service upon returning home I was told by the agent I was not allowed to know the name of the person I was speaking with and that I was ungrateful for only being given a $100 credit towards my next car with them within the next 6th months. The $100 doesn't even reimburse me for the headache or the vehicle I had. Stay far away from this company at the Burbank Airport if possible. Had they not had my reservation they "would make me a new one" for double my original, when they only had 2 vehicles on the lot, and 10 people in line.
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September 2023 by Muyoka Mwarabu
DO NOT RENT FROM THIS LOCATION. Had car reserved for 10:30am on a Saturday. Arrived at 10:15, waited in line till 11:09. AJ one of the workers left the desk on purpose making the line wait even longer. Did not get car till after 1:00pm. Customer service rep claimed they were "washing cars". I called customer service, could not get any assistance. We missed our noon reservation - and I have asked hertz (owns thrifty) to pay me back for lost reservation ticket costs-pending. They could have sent us to another location, or told us to come back at 1 and paid for uber. The woman at counter says this happens every saturday so it's a standard business practice to reserve cars they don't actually have. DO NOT RENT FROM THIS LOCATION.
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September 2023 by John Billings
If they don't have your car ready and they advise you to grab a bite to eat around the corner and then they'll call you, don't actually do it. They won't call you and your car will take even longer.Here I sit, wishing I had never left the counter area.
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September 2023 by Carrie Williams
I wish I had read the reviews ahead of time but I booked through Priceline. Was charged $263 for insurance and assistance I did not agree to. At the time I was not given a copy of the agreement and they had me use a signing pad. I called the 877 number and they said they have a contract with my signature so I will have to call the Thrifty at Burbank directly. THERE IS NO WAY TO CALL THEM. Total scam. Always request paperwork when signing anything connected to your credit card.
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August 2023 by Zack S.
I am beyond happy with Thrifty. Pickup went fine (showed up a bit early in case there was waiting involved, no issues). Was able to pick from a few different cars in the class, and was on my way. Returning the vehicle went just as smoothly. The employees were friendly and helpful. I would rent from them again, and would recommend them to others. Not everybody has a bad experience.
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August 2023 by Polina Safarova
Booked a 10 am pick up. It’s 12:15 pm now, and I’m still in the queueSave yourself some time and book with Enterprise
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July 2023 by Sam N.
We had to wait 2.5 hours in line at Thrifty LAX - the agent said it's like that 24 hours a day, year round. The car they gave us had terrible mechanical problems & it took forever to reach someone on the phone only to be told it was a call center & I'd have to go in person to talk to them about ending my contract early or getting a different vehicle. I still had questions to ask the agent and she just ended the call even though I was saying please don't need this call, I have more questions to figure out a solution. Just atrocious customer service on every level. Moral of the story - don't use Thrifty - it's all in the name - they skimp on everything so you pay for everything with either money or your limited time when you're traveling -
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July 2023 by Abbie Hageman
Avoid if you don’t want to hassle for your money after the fact- they have all sorts of hidden extra fees and odd refueling charge practices that you just have to trust the word for by the customer service counter desk person. I had 3 charges on my credit card. I reserved for $65 on Expedia (which states includes all mandatory taxes and fees). At counter ended up with receipt for $136 then at the drive checkout station they gave me a new receipt now $145 and couldn’t explain why. Ultimately charge with deposit was told to me would be 336 I see 3 charges: 336, 105, 441. Now I get a final receipt $120 (from $65 advertised on Expedia). There were charges for facility and tourism and concession fees, late fee (wow 30mins after my stated return car time in LA! And incorrectly wrote the wrong return date as next day return even though I did only a same day rental), refuel $22 with a FULL tank (gauge beyond full) returned after 46 miles drive only. After 40 minutes on hold/phone I was able to recover some money but obviously this is not how a busy working person wants to spend their day disputing charges. I will NEVER use Thrify again. This is a disorganized and fraudulent company taking advantage of people who don’t look at receipts closely. Cars were fine but charges/billing are a mess!
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July 2023 by Joe B.
Made a reservation 2 weeks ago. Been waiting 90 minutes for my car to be ready. Same for the 5 or so customers ahead of me. People are upset - yelling - trying to cut lines etc.
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July 2023 by Raj D.
Lower than 1 if possible. On the last two visits they did not honor a confirmed reservation. They said I have to wait over an hour for a car. That didn't work for me...some people do have work obligations to get to. Apparently not the thrifty employees. And the agents on this last visit laughed. Very unprofessional. That's what happens when Thrifty hires morons and idiots to man their counters. What's the point of a reservation if it isn't honored? This is like the funny Seinfeld episode, except this isn't funny. Got charged both times even though I never picked up the vehicle as none were available. Took an hour on the phone to credit back the charge. Stay away.
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July 2023 by Carmelita G.
After checking in at the front counter, I waited 40 min to get the keys to the car! This was ridiculous and a huge inconvenience. I will never book a car from here again!
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July 2023 by Dorinthea Claxton
Worst rental experience ive ever had. Reserved a car 10 days in advance… i show up… guess what? They dont have any cars… guy says “if youll wait up to 3 hours”… uhhhh no. And he didnt even guarantee he would have one. So in essence these guys are frauds. They knowingly book cars they dont have. Complete joke. Pay more $ for a different company, or face hell with them.
