I’m sharing my family’s recent rental…
I’m sharing my family’s recent rental experience to help others, not to attack Hertz as a whole. We reserved and prepaid for a full-size gasoline vehicle for a one-way trip of over 1,000 miles from Tallahassee, Florida, to Michigan. We arrived at the rental location about an hour before our reservation time. When it became clear I would need a credit card to complete the rental—even though it had already been prepaid—we both specifically told the employee that we were keeping our reservation while we made arrangements. A coworker also arrived within our reserved pickup window. Despite that, we were later told our vehicle had been given to someone else because, as the employee explained, “we don’t hold cars.” We were then provided with a Tesla instead. The issue wasn’t simply receiving an electric vehicle. It was a series of communication issues, inaccurate information, repeated charging stops, significant delays, and the overall impact those things had on my family during a trip of more than 1,000 miles. Because of this experience, I personally cannot recommend the Hertz location at Tallahassee International Airport. My concerns are primarily with what occurred at that location and how the situation was handled, not with every Hertz location or every employee. Throughout this process, I also encountered employees who genuinely tried to help, and I appreciate their efforts. My complaint is currently being reviewed by Hertz Executive Customer Care, and I’m allowing that process to run its course. My goal is simply to share what happened and hopefully prevent another family from experiencing something similar. To be completely transparent, we are using Hertz again for our trip home because they were still the most affordable option for a one-way rental over this distance. I’m genuinely hoping our return trip is smooth, uneventful, and doesn’t turn into another 30+ hour journey. I truly hope our first experience was the exception and not the norm.