Payless Car Rental Reviews 410

About a week after returning the rental car I received a letter from Payless stating that my credit card would be charged $450.00 because of the presence of a smoke smell. I do not smoke! This is not legitimate and I wonder how many other people have been hit with this scam.

SCAM!!!! DO NOT SELECT PAYLESS!! We used them for a day and I should've taken pictures because it was absolutely spotless when we dropped it off and over a month later my account was charged over $900 for "damages" everything was super sketchy from the beginning and even when I called I was never given a clear answer. I asked for pictures of the supposed damages and they didn't have that. STAY AWAY!!!

i flew to philadelphia,11/23/23 i called them to let them know i was there, the shuttle came and picked me up, got to the counter to be told oh we don’t have no more cars! i said i made a reservation weeks ago, she said yeah i know, but nobody came back with our cars, this was so unprofessional no phone call to let me know what the situation was or nothing i had to book with another company and pay 100$ more, i will NEVER EVER book with them again! NEVER

Stay away! 6 months after renting, they are attempting to collect $ 600 for a bogus scratched fender claim! Pictures shown are not from the drop off point. I handed keys to attendant at drop off and no issues found. They hook you in with a low rate and try to scam you afterwards. They also tried to claim that the gas was not full at drop off when it really was. This company is bad news! Go with anyone else!

I actually paid $180 more than my contract through Priceline. I had rented a "medium" car as I was travelling solo & didn't need any more car. After a lengthy wait at the San Diego Airport counter, their agent told me that the car I rented would have crank windows & not have any charging ports, but I could "upgrade." I didn't care about the windows, but as an out-of-towner, I needed a data/charging port to use the navigation app in my cell phone. I really had no choice & was astonished that a car in 2023 would have neither power windows & no USB ports, even, say, if it was a 2018 model, for example. I should have called their bluff & really learned if such a car exists in 2023, but I had a 95-mile drive at the time and needed to get going, so I agreed to the upgrade - a larger than "medium" sedan with 95K miles. I did take a pass on their $25/day insurance & at check-out, a garage agent documented every imperfection on the car body. For a car with 95K miles, it wasn't all that bad, but they treated it as though the car just rolled off the assembly line in pristine condition. Also, the car wasn't allotted unlimited miles as Priceline stated - it was 150/day, but didn't affect me as I did not come close to total miles allowed. Ultimately it worked out other than the extra $180 I never anticipated, but I would not rent from them again, as the entire experience was a bait & switch situation. Priceline ought to cut ties with this company.

Our flight was delayed by 2hrs and when we arrived they didn’t have a car for us. They said it was company policy not to hold for more than 1hr. There was another group in line that got the same treatment. We booked through priceline and they booked through AA. Nothing like showing up for your vacation and finding out you don’t have a rental car.

San Diego Airport. Payless car rental. Scammers and rude. Tried to tell me I had to pay 34.00 per day insurance. It was required in California. Horrible customer service. I cancelled my reservation and went next door to dollar rental. I got a cheaper rate. Did not have any such thing as mandatory insurance and great customer service. Avoid Payless. Horrible company that will rip you off

In short: Run, not walk, away from this POS car rental company!

Long review: We had some American Airlines miles which were expiring and decided to use those towards an upcoming car rental. Payless was one of the choices we had and ended up choosing them.

Initially we had declined the car rental insurance, but when we got to the counter they would not rent out the car until I produced my car insurance. I was able to find an online copy of my auto insurance, but, given this agent's attitude, I got nervous that they may find some random scratch on return and blame it on me, so I relented and purchased the rental insurance.

That was quite unnecessary! The car they gave us was a 2018 Hyundai. A gutless wonder with numerous scratches and 89K+ miles on it.

We ended up overpaying for the rental too. We paid about $375, plus AA miles, for a 4-day rental. You can get a much better/newer car from a better agency for less. A part of it is our fault for not doing the due diligence earlier*. Much worse is the completely apathetic attitude of the desk agent who had no desire to help in any way! She was more interested in telling the co-worker about her previous weekend, and talking to us was a bother for her.

In the last 40+ years of driving, I have rented cars probably more than a hundred times and have never had a such a lousy car. (As a student without a credit card, I once had to rent from a company called Rent-a-Wreck! Even that car was in a better condition than what I got from Payless.) This was the first time I dealt with this company; and THE LAST.

For your own mental peace, stay away from this horrible car rental company! And if you have to go to them, avoid the indifferent desk agent whose name starts with Al... If my review can convince just one person from going to them, I feel I have done my job!

* Note: This review has been taken from my Yelp review soon after the rental experience. At that time Payless car rental at San Diego airport has 1704 Yelp reviews. From 5- to 1-stars they were: 179, 59, 35, 70, 1361. A whopping ~80% 1-star reviews. On Trustpilot they have 85% 1-star reviews. Enough said!

The check in was easy, the car was great! And best of all, when I returned the car, I had attached my car key to my house keys key chain and after I boarded the shuttle bus to the airport the Payless staff person found my keys and returned them to me before the shuttle bus left the car rental area. This is exceptional customer service! I’ll gladly rent from Payless again and again! Plus, they had the best price for my needs.

I would not recommend booking with Payless in Bratislava. Sat in a queue for almost half an hour when I had to pick up a car because it seemed like there was only one person working there. Then spent a long time filling out countless pieces of paper where you have no idea what you are signing. When we return the car, we have to wait for an employee again. After inspecting the car, he believes that we have made a scratch on the left wheel arch, a scratch neither of us have any idea how it happened. We had bought with full insurance and I ask if the insurance covers it, to which the employee replies yes. A few days after we get home, Payless charges 300 euros to my card. They send me a copy of the damage report and argue that a scratch should apparently cost 300 euros. I then write them an email asking for proof that they have charged my card so I can forward it to the insurance company. It takes a whole month before they reply to my email, saying that because the car hasn't been repaired yet, they can't send an invoice. I explain to them that I don't care if the car has been fixed or not, I still need a receipt that they have charged 300 euros to my card. Several weeks go by and I don't hear anything, which means I have to send daily emails to get them to respond. I also try to call the office, but they say they can't send invoices from where they are. After almost two months, they finally send a receipt confirming that they have withdrawn money from me. Over two months after I borrowed the car, I receive a speeding ticket from the Austrian authorities. The fine is 30 euros, but Payless decides to deduct double the amount from my card due to administration fees. So a relatively cheap fine suddenly becomes twice as expensive. Furthermore, they received the fI would not recommend booking with Payless in Bratislava. Sat in a queue for almost half an hour when I had to pick up a car because it seemed like there was only one person working there. Then spent a long time filling out countless pieces of paper where you have no idea what you are signing. When we return the car, we have to wait for an employee again. After inspecting the car, he believes that we have made a scratch on the left wheel arch, a scratch neither of us have any idea how it happened. We had bought with full insurance and I ask if the insurance covers it, to which the employee replies yes. A few days after we get home, Payless charges 300 euros to my card. They send me a copy of the damage report and argue that a scratch should apparently cost 300 euros. I then write them an email asking for proof that they have charged my card so I can forward it to the insurance company. It takes a whole month before they reply to my email, saying that because the car hasn't been repaired yet, they can't send an invoice. I explain to them that I don't care if the car has been fixed or not, I still need a receipt that they have charged 300 euros to my card. Several weeks go by and I don't hear anything, which means I have to send daily emails to get them to respond. I also try to call the office, but they say they can't send invoices from where they are. After almost two months, they finally send a receipt confirming that they have withdrawn money from me. Over two months after I borrowed the car, I receive a speeding ticket from the Austrian authorities. The fine is 30 euros, but Payless decides to deduct double the amount from my card due to administration fees. So a relatively cheap fine suddenly becomes twice as expensive. Furthermore, they received the fine a fortnight before they decided to send it to me. They also send the attached fine in Slovak, a language I don't understand. When I ask them if it is possible to send me a version in English or at least tell me what the problem is, I get a reply back that I can just read the attachment - which was the problem from the beginning. I would highly recommend not booking Payless in Bratislava as the staff are slow, uncomprehending, in no way accommodating or helpful. A great holiday has only gotten worse since we have returned home due to the incompetence of a few people. ine a fortnight before they decided to send it to me. They also send the attached fine in Slovak, a language I don't understand. When I ask them if it is possible to send me a version in English or at least tell me what the problem is, I get a reply back that I can just read the attachment - which was the problem from the beginning. I would highly recommend not booking Payless in Bratislava as the staff are slow, uncomprehending, in no way accommodating or helpful. A great holiday has only gotten worse since we have returned home due to the incompetence of a few people.

I rented a car to be picked up at the San Diego airport at a very reasonable rate. Unfortunately, my flight got canceled and I couldn't get another flight out until the next day. I immediately called Payless to let them know that I wouldn't be able to pick up my car until the next morning. I should have been picking up around 7pm but, because of the flight cancellation, it would be the next morning at 10am. The agent told me not to cancel since Payless will hold my reservation for 24 hours. When I arrived the next morning, I was told that the Payless location at the San Diego airport was an independently owned location vs. a corporate location and their policy didn't hold reservations for 24 hours. They didn't have any cars left that fit my original booking, but for an extra $250 they could probably find something for me. Unfortunately, I simply didn't have time to argue with them and just paid the additional money. At the end of the day, they saw an opportunity to take advantage of me and did.

Payless/Avis at Tivat airport.
Forced to purchase premium insurance when I already had insurance in place. I was told I was unable to have the car I paid for until this insurance was paid for. This is a scam, please read all other reviews online and stay away.

Staff are crooks and extremely slow at dealing with customers. Forced to sign rental contract under duress. I could see other customers were in distress with the situation also and unsure of what to do when it happened to them.

This was the worst car rental pick-up experience I've ever had. There was a LONG queue (about 20 people) and only 1 person at the desk to begin with. It took him 20 minutes JUST TO CHECK IN THE FIRST PERSON. Finally another guy came out to help, but then the first guy left. Everything was EXCEEDINGLY SLOW and their computers were having issues. Neither of them even acknowledged the many other people who had now been waiting in line for over half an hour. Neither of them were personable or gave ANY kind of customer service to us. They were rude and gave the impression that we were a big problem to them. All in all, it took me NEARLY AN HOUR after arriving at the rental car counter to complete my check-in and receive my car, which is ridiculous. To top it off, I wasn't even given the car I booked. I was given a huge pick-up truck, and I did NOT want a truck or a big vehicle. So, way too long getting the vehicle, extremely poor customer service, and I didn't even get any sort of vehicle that I wanted. Will never rent a car through Payless again.

Feel like Payless is running a scam. I reserved a midsize SUV, which wasn’t available at the airport when I picked up. I had no problem with this because things happen so they gave me a midsize sedan at a lesser rate but when I got the bell on my credit card statement they charged me for $215 for an upgrade. Mid sized suv to med sized sedan is not an upgrade!! No response from Payless to resolve

I definitely do not recommend this company. customer service and systems are very bad. They cannot fix the problem. They simply can't even send a lease agreement.
Very very bad company.
This is a company that has no responsibility towards the flies.
Because they didn't care, I was going to miss the plane.

I definitely do not recommend this company. customer service and systems are very bad. They cannot fix the problem. They simply can't even send a lease agreement. They cannot extend the rental period.
I rented a car for 12 days and paid about $2500 and had rental period modified. The day after I returned it, they mailed me and asked me to return the vehicle immediately. I'm in such a weird and funny spiral that it's hard to even describe. Don't spoil your days and schedule by choosing to be cheap.

Had a Transfer booked. The first one was lousy service but i arrived somehow.
The Second Transfer Back they didnt even show up and told me to call a taxi and kept my money.

I rented a car for 2 days and paid$ 50 in total which I thought was a great deal.

I Came to pick up the Car and had to pay an additional $60 (30$ for each day) for insurance because I don't use a Credit card. So in the end I paid more for insurance than rent. Not cool.

Not everyone wants to use Credit cards and we should not be discriminated for that. Find another way to get a security deposit. Or at least be more transparent, It's not so hard.

You should bring this up in the confirmation Email. Something like - PLEASE NOTE : "IF YOU USE A DEBIT CARD AND YOU DON'T HAVE A CREDIT CARD, YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY ADDITIONAL INSURANCE OF 30$ PER DAY AT THE PICK UP LOCATION"

I mean, In the end I could've just rented in Herz or any other company because this is simply not cheaper.

We report the theft of our spare tire from the 4x4 we just rented, and here's the rental agency's response: "It makes no sense to leave the 4x4 unattended. You left the 4x4 unattended, so it makes sense that someone took your spare tire."

Payless, will respond with false information, as usual :

- "You'll have to take out full coverage" Even if you have taken out the full insurance package with them the insurance won't cover you, as this is considered an accessory...

- After a call with Suzuki Costa-Rica, the replacement part is valued at 550 USD, not 900 USD. Yes, both parts.

Payless: "Our policies are clear (where the price list ?) and we are a company that acts correctly as you should do and accept us decisions..."

So basically, pay up and go away.

Not only do you pay, but we can tell you that you're an idiot for leaving your car unattended for more than 20 minutes in a public parking lot. Arrogant…

In future, attach a padlock to the spare wheel, and tell to all tourists NEVER to leave their car unattended, even for groceries.

My wife and I have been renting vehicles all around the world for over 30 years. In this time we have always tried to return the vehicles in an as clean state as possible. We are sure that many are returned in a shocking state, but this time, in Kona, in May we we're charged $125 cleaning fee for 'Excessive Sand' in the vehicle. We don't argue that there was some sand on the floor mats, but in NO way was this excessive in our opinion? (see attached pictures if available)
Do we now have to clean our rental cars inside and out before we return them? Is that not their task? We rang and emailed the company and protested our case politely, but they did not relent. Needless to say we will not be renting from either Avis (the parent company), Budget i believe too, or Payless again. Your Choice