Budget Car Rental Reviews 5,892

Fine, until have to talk to anyone on the phone. Extremely long wait times tht make government waits looks snappy.
realy puts you off using them again.

budget has overcharged me for gas on the last 5 trips - i have to call and argue with them even though i chose the bring it back and we will fill it at market price. I love the fast break option - but will be looking for another car rental agency at this point.

Hired from Dublin Airport. Budget have unnecessarily created TWO Check-in desks here - especially to duplicate everything and waste customers' time!! Well done!
Staff fairly rude, unhelpful, don't LISTEN , and some cannot actually speak any English...!!
Car itself (Renault CAPTUR) broke down, stranding us in the Irish countryside, and only thanks to help from friends were we rescued.
Despite 19 attempts to call Budget/AVIS the next morning, ZERO response. They simply don't bother with any staff to answer calls and provide assistance at all. Had to call AA and sort out the tow myself... Then Budget had the cheek to charge us for full hire despite us losing Day 3!! A Dreadful company with ZERO interest in their customers (Other than their credit cards). We will NEVER use them again...!

Having rented a car through Budget first reserving on line , I denied the insurance. At the airport I again denied the insurance only to find out once I received an email after I returned the car to see I was charged for insurance. 3 phone calls later , from Eddie, Angel and Thomas (supervisor) was I told initially I'd be refunded (Eddie), claim denied (Angel), 50% refund (Thomas). Asked for an email confirming refund told by Thomas that they couldn't send an email only the email department could. 2nd time I was told I'd receive an email. Waiting on email and to see if refund will actually be given. All in all PLEASE NEVER RENT FROM THIS COMPANY AS THEY ARE NORTORIOUS FOR FALSE ADVERTISING AND UPCHARGES!

scam. Please read reviews

Waited a half hour in line at Punta Gorda airport. I had reserved a mid sized car. Was told they didn’t have a mid sized car. Also was told they couldn’t accept my debit card!? What?! Literally guaranteed funds. Guaranteed by Mastercard. Also would not accept cash so we would have been stranded but luckily Enterprise got us a car. There was no urgency by staff. Actually seemed like they were deliberately moving as slow as possible. I overheard them telling several people that they did not have the vehicle they reserved. What is the point of reserving a certain vehicle if it’s not going to be reserved??? Wish I had read the reviews first. Will never use Budget or Avis again.

I would give 0 stars if I could. First, I rented a car for 30 days. When I tried to extend for another week, I had to make a new reservation, return the car to the original destination and start a new reservation. The system would not allow any other option. At the desk it took 5 minutes (but I had to drive more than 2 hours round trip). Why they wouldn’t do it over the phone I have no idea. They did not even ask to see the car. Then, on the new reservation I had to extend for another 2 days. My rate went from $49.98/day to almost $500/day. And I was in a bind so I had to accept it. I will never rent from Budget again. Ever.

Deceptive Fees and Negligent Service – Avoid Budget SRQ
I rented a vehicle from Budget Car Rental at the Sarasota airport (SRQ) for a trip to Port Charlotte, and it was a complete nightmare. While driving on Interstate 75, a tire failed. When I checked the trunk, I discovered Budget had rented me a car with absolutely no spare tire.
Because of their unequipped vehicle, we were left stranded on the side of a dangerous highway for two hours in the pouring rain waiting for a flatbed tow truck to take us and the car back. Nothing was mentioned about billing at vehicle return. Instead, several days after returning home, I received a letter stating they sneaked an outrageous charge of $343.43 onto my credit card.
Had Budget disclosed this fee upfront during the call, I would have simply used my own AAA membership to handle the tow for free. Hiding the fee prevented me from using my own coverage. Budget supplies unsafe vehicles, leaves you stranded, and uses underhanded billing tactics to trap you into forced fees. Avoid them at all costs.

Worst rental car company by far. A late flight had me rushing to the next destination. Car was less than a quarter tank full when I left the lot. I refilled twice. One, a day before the return. I was charged a refueling fee. When asked to remove it, I was told to provide receipts. After providing the receipts they denied them. On the first phone call I spoke with someone that told me to call back. The second phone call they hung up on me after putting me on hold.

I rented a car from Charleston South Carolina. I drove 46 miles in 2 days. That was it. I returned it to the same location and the amount of shifty charges and bad service I got was unreasonable and left me feeling like I was bamboozled. How do they stay in business? IT'S bogus!

Budget Spain, Barcelona.
I would give zero if I could. Really, classic liars. Because of a company, you really have a terrible name for car rental companies. Stay away. Pay more with another rental agency. Whatever you can, don't work with them.

If you have any issues it is impossible to phone them or email them.
Phone takes hours to answer. EMail address for post rental bounces.

I reserved and fully paid for a Budget rental car up front. When I arrived at the Hartford CT airport Budget counter at 1:00 AM, I was told they had no cars. I was told to go to Enterprise and I would be reimbursed. I got a car at Enterprise and filed for a reimbursement from Budget after I returned the car. I received an email from budget that said they would would pay the difference. Two days later Budget sent me an email indicating they decided not to pay it. I would steer clear of this company. They have proven to me twice they can't be trusted!

I am done with Budget. The car they originally rents to us had not been cleaned. The streaky film on the interior of the windshield was so bad, lights from oncoming cars became blinding. The car then registered a “Service soon” notice, followed shortly by a “Low oil level” warning. Instead of grieving my sister’s death with my family, I had to deal with exchanging cars back at the airport. The worst, however, was the horrible response of Budget’s customer service representatives. Not only was my phone call transferred hither and yon through multiple overseas departments, the prevailing attitude was “Not my fault, tell someone else.” As a final insult, when I received my statement, it did not include the compensation credit I was offered. I was told I had to call back in two days if I wanted to be compensated. This whole experience was a new low in already bottom-of-the-barrel corporate customer service.

I had a very disappointing experience with Budget Car Rental St. Barths. I made a booking for €275 but I was ultimately charged €1050 without a clear explanation or prior agreement.

I received no response from the company despite sending multiple emails.

Based on this experience, I do not recommend this company!

Very weak customer service! Not accurate at all. We asked to modify the pick up timing. Even though they confirmed it, the car was not ready wheb we arrived!

If I could leave zero stars I would. So I’ve been a regular renter. I rented a car and extended it. Was told by the man on the phone at their main number it was fine. He took my credit card info. Fast forward and I get a very foreign accent call and all I (or my voicemail) can understand is rental vehicle and urgent. I called to no avail so I email. These people reported it to loss prevention, and put me in a do not rent list. The guy never finalized the extension. But instead of calling or emailing me first, they automatically put it through to loss prevention and report it stolen. Then they tell me it’s fine, my rental is still in open/active status. I’m thinking okay thank God. I had surgery scheduled and needed the car. I’m at the hospital and come out late at night to find they towed the car. With our stuff in it. We were stranded at night in a bad area. I missed my surgery and it’s caused us all issues. I can’t get our things back. My bag with my wallet and things, my mom’s medications, my daughters maternity clothes, etc were all still in the car. I’ve called the number they gave me and those people keep saying no one is available to speak to. I’m a week no one is available ??! On top of this they billed me like $2400 which is almost triple my quote (the guy also said I’d get a discount and better rate) and they over drew my credit card and maxed it out. So I have fees there and it will affect my credit. And no one will respond or call me back. I’ve filed a complaint with the better business and next is the attorney general. I just don’t understand why no one reached out first. Not once before they escalated things. And once I’d explained, they told me confusing and differing things. I have that thankfully in email. But even then, they still did what they did. I’m horrified and so stressed out by this. When an employee tells you it’s fine, you trust them to be correct. They’re a representative of the company. If they make a mistake, that’s not the customers fault. This is very bad business practice.

Waited in line for 2 hours for a car I had reserved ahead of time. Once it was finally my turn, they tried to upsell me twice to cars costing $50/day more than the car I reserved. They were forceful regarding the other upsells (GPS, insurance, etc) threatening me that Seattle is the 3rd highest crime rate (nice!). Then I was offered a truck which was available "immediately" suggesting that the car I reserved was not available immediately. When I declined (too hard to park in a busy city), finally the car I reserved was available. This was the worst experience I have ever had at a rental car place!

Terrible Service at Airport Barcelona. Took us 2 hrs to get the car. First, I went to the counter outside where I was told to queue up at the counter inside. There I waited for 45 mins and then the counter closed because the guy was told by his manager to close even through there were still many people in the line. Then I had to queue up again outside where I was before, What a joke!! Had to wait there again for almost 1hr.

Car was Good. Returning the car was drama. Drop off point was very hard to find in Stockholm, when calling the number we received from them no one answered.