Thrifty Car Rental Reviews 

THRIFTY LAX (Los Angeles)
Long wait at counter despite staff sitting there but not sorting customers
Huge additional charges that were not agreed to or obtained by false statements (return empty cheaper than return full as charge less than tank or petrol etc)and message that we need toll policy totally false as no toll roads. No reply to email to thrifty and the 2 humans we spoke 2 told us to ring.Ringing was answered by a non human. Car itself was fine. Only on drop off did we see the smart of additional charges as they were but in a folder with other paperwork when we picked car up and after along flight, pointless wait etc we did not check

FILLED CAR FULL TO CLICK OFF FOR PETROL AND THEY STILL CHARGED ME $54 PETROL. UNBELIEVABLE

If I could give this MINUS 100 stars I would. Technology failed and could not get a receipt. Several calls and waited hours. Consultants said they could not send receipt, then one did but it was an invoice. Eventually got a response via the claims department, then consultant put me on hold and cut me off. This happened several times. Eventually got on to a manager who doesn't know the difference between a Tax Invoice and Receipt. All I need is a receipt and they cannot provide this or escalate and log a complaint. So expect this utterly dreadful customer service from untrained and inept staff. I will NEVER USE THIS COMPANY AGAIN.

Most appalling ramp up of charges I have ever seen. Charging a location fee of nearly $200 even after the car was returned to the exact same spot . Plus other charges like vehicle rego. recovery [what is that!]. After accepting the quote we decided to pay the maximum insurance cover.... they then increased as a percentage all the other costs. Never go through this mob ever they are appalling!

Sick and tired of seeing "or similar" used as an excuse across the rental car industry.

I booked a Peugeot 5008, fully expecting the usual "or similar" conversation, but was disappointed to be given a Skoda Kodiaq despite there being a Peugeot 5008 clearly sitting in the ready rental area. When I queried it, I was told the vehicle was being held for maintenance, which didn't seem particularly convincing given its location and presentation.

What frustrates me most is the misleading advertising. If you have one Peugeot 5008 and ten Skoda Kodiaqs, stop using the Peugeot as the headline vehicle for the category. Customers are naturally drawn to the vehicle shown, only to be told later that it isn't actually available.

I understand that vehicle substitutions sometimes happen, but the industry relies far too heavily on "or similar" while continuing to market the most desirable vehicle in the class. Why aren't there more genuinely guaranteed-model options available for everyday vehicles, rather than only for premium cars that cost hundreds of dollars more per day?

The experience wasn't terrible, but the advertising feels misleading and leaves customers feeling like they're being sold one thing and given another.

I rented a vehicle for 7 days from the Melbourne airport depot - a Mazda 3, through Booking.com . When I called to extend the rental, Trifty did a shifty and started a new booking and despite verbally confirming that all conditions would continue, they changed everything and I ended up paying almost double my Booking.com rate for the next 16 days. Not only that, but the Mazda broke down and had to be towed and they eventually replaced it with a tiny Picanto.
They added charges like fuel charge even though I returned the vehicle 8/8, and other unexpected charges. I also had to open a case for the return of my $200 deposit which is still in progress more than a month after the rental. This will be the last time I rent from shifty Thrifty. Don't risk an experience like mine. Go to an ethical honest competitor.

Do not rent a car here! I strongly recommend against renting with Thrifty. The cheap initial prices may seem enticing but you end up paying a lot extra in the end. I would recommend going for more trusted competitors instead. We had a similar experience to one of the customers below. Our car came without car mats and hence upon returning the car, there was some sand on the floor and car seats. We were charged 113 aud cleaning fee + location fee of 107 aud + GST of 10% which is 260 extra fee for some sand in the car. And since the employees collect the keys from you and do not proceed to checkout with you, you do not have a chance to argue against it. These are clearly extortionate practices. Do not rent from Thrifty at Perth Airport!

The 3 companies work together. Booking with DoYouItaly, collecting the car from Hertz and returning the car to Thrifty. We booked and paid EURO 361.39 which was shown as the daily rate times 8 days. Upon collection, there was a dispute over the type gears. To our disappointment, we had to agree on a slight upgrade and we ended up renting the car for one extra day. To our shock, after returning the car full of petrol and with no scratches, we received on our credit card statement another charge for EURO 506.30!
After chasing and challenging this charge for two and a half months, we finally got an email, saying "Please note that the prepaid amount of €361.39 was applied as a voucher to your rental, covering the rental days cost only. The additional €506.30 billed by Thrifty relates to value-added services purchased during the rental period. As shown on the attached invoice, the charges have been split into two parts:
Prepaid booking charge (voucher applied)
Value-added services billed separately by Thrifty.
This means both amounts are linked to the same hire, but reflect different components of the overall cost."
Bottom line, believing we had a rented car for Approximately Australian $84 per day, we ended up paying Australian $178 per day.

Corporate fraud and proved.
Do not use
Charge for items / damage not incurred.
Disgusting firm

I rented a car with Thrifty Australia in Ayers Rock Airport, for two days. Firstly, there was a big line to pick up the car. Then, the cost of all concepts (except for the daily rent) were higher than what had been quoted in the reservation, increasing the total cost around 15% more than as per the reservation. Also, big surprise (not mentioned anywhere in the reservation), there was a 100 km limit per day. When I got in the car, the odometer read just 1 km higher than what appeared in my receipt, which seemed odd. At pickup, they said they would "take" $200 AUS" as deposit, and what they actually did was charge my credit card that amount together with the rental cost, and here is where they particularly mess around with you. When I returned the car, they asked me just to leave the keys in a box at the airport and assured me I would get my final invoice once they checked all was good with the car and they would return the deposit. because of the extra kilometers I used, I had a $162 AUS balance refund and they sent me the final invoice acknowledging this amount. This was my 4th day in my 15 day trip in Australia, so I did not keep track of the refund during the next 11 days. As an international traveller, I obviously used an international credit card (a Visa). When I returned home and reviewed all my charges, I noticed I was missing the refund from Thrifty. I emailed them three times and it was only the third email they finally responded to, saying that the refund had been rejected by my bank probably because my card was no longer valid. Of course, this was not the case so I wrote again. This time I got a response saying that my invoice was not in their files and they were looking for more details. On the next email exchange they now said that the refund would be for a different amount (less of course) because of a "difference in kilometers", which was false and I had photos of the odometer to prove it. They finally acknowledged the right refund amount but went back to say that my bank was rejecting the refund. I called my bank and spent 23 minutes on the call as my bank reviewed with detail my account and they confirmed that there was no evidence of any attempt from a third party, including Thrifty, to make a payment (the refund) to my card or of any payment attempt being refused. I told this to Thrifty and they simply stuck to their story: "It is your bank, not us, so we can't make the refund". This is outrageous. Worst rental experience I have ever had. In my 15 day trip in Australia I rented a car with three different companies (Budget in Melbourne, Thrifty in Ayers Rock, and No Birds in Sydney). Budget was fine but expensive, Thrifty was terrible, and No Birds was the best. Avoid Thrifty, they are not to trust.

We were assisted by Paul at the Thrifty hire desk Sydney Airport. Paul was extremely helpful, friendly and knowledgeable and made the process quick, efficient and enjoyable.

I had organised to rent a Toyota Prado online from Thrifty. When I arrived at Sydney Airport Thrifty Car rental desk they told me I was getting a Ford Explorer which is in the same category. I was not happy with that because I am considering buying a Toyota Prado. I went to the pick up location where I met another lovely Thrifty lady called Christine. I explained my disappointment with the car I had been given she sorted it all out with no problem. Christine is an awesome face for Thrifty and is so outgoing when it comes to customer satisfaction. Thanks Christine and I hope your company recognises the outstanding work that you do.

The queues were ridiculous.
Took me 2 hours to collect my car after a 13 hour flight.
Had to fight to get my deposit back.
Now (June 2025) I receive a letter stating my personal drivers licence and bank details were hacked and stolen in OCT 2024!!
Took them 8 months to tell me
utter disgrace.
I'll never use Thrifty or dollar again.

Awful. Pricing is very deceptive and the customer service reps at the pickup location deliberately mislead you.

Turns out they add fees as a percentage of your total bill. For instance a 33% 'location fee' for picking and dropping off the car at an airport, or an Admin Fee of 3.5%). So when they quote you the cost of an extra day, adding insurance or a second driver, the true price is actually the quoted price +36.5%.

They also apply these percentage fees to the already exorbitant refuelling fees. For about 40 litres of fuel used they charged us $225 - or $5.56 a litre. On top of this, they add the 36.5%. Meaning they charged us over $300 for 40 litres of fuel - or $7.60 a litre.

Avoid at all costs.

Customer service is not good at Melbourne airport thrifty/hertz. They are ignoring the feedback even. Car was full of strong smoke smell at pick up and feedback on drop off but no apology. Overall not good experience at all.

reserved a car in san diego. thrifty "ran out" of cars and left me stranded with 2 small children, only to get ripped off by another agency that had a car... and this was after waiting in the agency line for 90 minutes. this "pending availability" thing they do should be illegal. id love to see a class action lawsuit to this effect so people aren't stranded in a strange city without transpiration. will NEVER use hotwire or thrifty again.

Very bad. Rented a car in Alice Springs. Paid in advance at the tourist information center. When I picked up the car...surprise, surprise....I had to pay 202$ for a safety deposit which would be reimbursed ad soon as I dropped the car off. 2 days after I dropped it off ...surprise surprise... I was charged with that amount on my creditcard
Of course I had to complain at my bank and at thrifty before I got it back. When a corporation says they will do something and then they don't, they instantly loose my business for ever.

Horrible, horrible and horrible service! Never will I rent from this place again. For a flat tire and the company blamed me and refused to help me. Never again.

Arrived at check in counter and one person on desk to serve a long line of customers. No pre prepared documentation so it took over 45 minutes to get served. All other rental companies cleared very quickly an. Person was pleasant enough but limited keyboard skills and extremely slow. Wouldn't recommend if you are in a hurry

We rented a car in Miami, excellent car, and were told that everything was fine when we returned the car. Unfortunately we got a parking fine of $79,- but got a bill from Thirfty for $188,- which they deducted from my card. I contact them and ask for documentation on the bill but receive nothing, they say they can't see that they have deducted anything. After a month they make another withdrawal of $108 and still no response. Make sure they have your card details and can withdraw whatever they want without limit. They never get back when you contact them, I have now closed my card so they can no longer withdraw money.