Foreign car rental horrors
Used Expedia to book a rental car in Romania because the booking confirmation stated I would owe $61.83 at the rental counter and that a credit card was required. When I arrived, I discovered a material condition had never been disclosed during booking: the rental company would not accept the credit card networks I had (Discover and American Express). My only choices were to be stranded in a small Romanian town late at night or purchase expensive additional insurance and fees that increased the cost to 1,530.30 RON—roughly four times what I reasonably expected to pay at pickup. My issue is not simply with the rental company. Expedia's platform failed to disclose a material booking condition that directly affected the final price. Had I known this before booking, I would have chosen another rental company. To make matters worse, customer service was nearly impossible to reach when I actually needed help. I also attempted to cancel the insurance purchased through Expedia, but the app malfunctioned during the cancellation process, and I received little practical assistance afterward. If you use Expedia for car rentals, carefully verify every payment requirement directly with the rental company before you travel. I relied on the booking information presented by Expedia, and it resulted in a very expensive surprise when I had no realistic alternative.