Hertz Rent A Car

So once again, someone hit my vehicle and my awesome insurance company sent me to Hertz. I was very hesitant to return to this Hertz, as I used them over a year ago, through my insurance for another accident, and my experience with Hertz was terrible to say the least.
However, from the time I was picked up from my auto body shop, to being greeted by both of the women representatives, to the professional customer service. I’m very very pleased. Maricella was extremely professional and friendly; even during the inspection of the assigned vehicle she clearly communicated and noted the cars defaults and guaranteed if I had any issues with vehicle I would not have a problem swapping.
I am writing this review before the complete experience (driving and returning the car) but definitely wanted to praise with appreciation the Major difference in customer service and professionalism.

I had reserved a car as a Gold Member well in advance. There really is no Gold Service at this location. I waited a long time in line like everyone else. The one clerk (who was polite) attempted to help the customers, answer the phones and make calls looking for cars. It was a very busy time. Then I was disappointed that they did not have they size of car I had requested. They offered me an economy car which was tiny and could not comfortably fit three people. Economy cars were all that they had available at that time. Next time I will go to the Airport where they have a wider selection of cars, more people working and a separate Gold Member counter that is streamlined and efficient. Sure, you pay a little more in airport fees, but I expect that I will avoid experiencing delay and disappointment.

Do not get the car rental from here. Customers service are really suck. I called in and asked credit back to my account for wrong charged and they told me credit back be back in 7 – 10 business days. Its been 3 weeks, i haven’t seen anything yet, so I called them again and asked for it. They put me on hold for 30mins and nobody answer me. I hung off and called back again, they picked up right away and hang off really fast and wouldn’t let me say anything. All they I said that I will you right back. What the hell is the business is this?
Even that, they gave me the Toyota Camry 2014 with tires threads almost worn out. Now I know why they had low rating on this. Managers or supervisors should investigate your employees or shut down that car rental branch. Pissed me off. If I can give negative stars, i will give all the way. NOT RECOMMENDED FOR CAR RENTAL HERE.

I thought Hertz local offices in Oakland couldn’t be worse until I came to Oakland Marriott location. Dismissive, rude, always under staffed. Cars are always dirty and not only are they unapologetic they throw in sarcasm to sweeten the deal.

If I could give 0 stars, I would… the only shining light here is the gentleman who helped me unload my car and drive it back up to the lot for me.
Where to begin…
When reserving a car for a business trip from Oakland Hertz locations, I booked for the 2^nd street address, whose rates were lower than the airport and convention center. This car rental was for a business trip that I was taking in the North Bay of San Francisco the following day, it was imperative that I pick up the car that day in order to make my business meetings.
Upon receipt of my reservation, the pick up location was stated as second street. My flight into Oakland was delayed half an hour, making my pick up time right before Hertz closing hours. I called upon arrival to confirm that my rental would still be available that day and the staff informed me it was. What the staff neglected to inform me was of the change of location, that though the reservation states for a pick up on 2^nd street near Jack London Square, the pick up was actually on 11^th street near the Oakland convention center. I took the BART as close as I could to the first location (2^nd street), only to discover that there was NO HERTZ location! The closest one was on 11^th street, NINE blocks up from my current location, and only one BART stop away from where I got off.
I dragged my luggage SEVEN block west through unpaved sidewalks through the streets of Oakland, only to discover that the location stated on my e-​mailed rental receipt was nowhere to be found, but that the locations was NINE blocks from where I was.
When I finally arrived at the pick up location at the Oakland convention center, the staff stated that the 2^nd street location never existed that though they’ve called multiple times, HERTZ won’t disable that location and remove it entirely… how thoughtful. It appears that HERTZ has no actual regard for their customers if they are still willing to send them to the wrong location NINE blocks away from the location given on rental receipts, regardless of how those people get there.
Upon picking up my car, I was told where to find it. I needed to go through the hotel lobby, find an elevator that led to the fourth floor garage, and push the button until my car beeped at me.
Renting with other companies, the staff either brought the car to me and walked me through where basic things were, like oh the gas tank… which of course isn’t on the driver’s side (standard), but on the passenger’s side. They told me what the tank level was, without actually confirming it, nor did they even check the car out to see that it was in the right condition. I don’t know if this is a standard practice for Northern California, but it does not leave a great taste in my mouth… and I will be sure to let others know.
Return process was similar. Having not given any instruction on how to return the car, I parked it in the front… only to be told, I needed to drive it up into the garage, then haul my stuff downstairs and check out. Thanks for the heads up, Hertz! Thankfully a gentleman, who worked with Hertz and was heading up there anyways, drove it up there for me and help me unload my luggage from the car… thank you sir, you were the bright moment in this whole experience.
I dropped the car off and went on my way to the BART station I should have gotten off of when coming to pick up the car… across the street.
I’ve had pleasant experiences with HERTZ in the past, my last trip to SF the car was broken into, and HERTZ replaced the car entirely (there was LDW involved), so I thought to go with them again. However, this experience will not only make me think twice, but search for other car rental services who care about their customers more. I’m also telling people to beware of Hertz… they’re not all that great.

The reviews are all over the board here. I needed a last minute car and it ran me about $ 150 with tax included and a coupon code. Yikes! However, located in the Oakland City Center Marriott, I get it, it was also a SUV.
Customer service was fine. Got the job done, maybe not with the biggest smile, but no real complaints here. The one minor problem was that they didn’t tell us how to get out of the garage. So we sat there for a bit trying to figure it out since we didn’t have a ticket and finally we had to get out of the car to walk and find someone. Kind of a hassle. Make sure to ask!
Overall, the car worked fine and the transaction was pretty quick and painless. I would rent again from this location if the price was right.

Need customer service training!
The people here seem nice. They greet you as you walk in but many calls were answered before we were given our car.
There were 4 people in the office and the employee helping the in person customers is the only one answering the phone! The other 3 people were in the back room not — not sure what was going on. You would think since there are customers waiting (IN PERSON) they would be attended to first. Anyway, after studying the office structure it seems that management and customer service training is in order. If a customer is going to wait at least say «we’ll be right with you» or «we apologize for the delay but we are very busy today.»
Just say something to let us know that you know we are here.
The prices are pretty cheap though for a rental car. Enterprise is a bit more expensive but they have awesome customer service!!! You get what you pay for.

This is about the 3^rd bad experience in a period of about 5 years so I’m done with Hertz. Maybe they’re better in other parts of the state and US? Didn’t really want to rent from them while my own car was being repaired since I had negative experiences in the past, but this was the #1 rental car AAA suggested, so went with them. Previous bad experiences included getting a dirty car, having mechanical problems with car — requiring a return, having to wait a long time for someone to help me, waiting a long time to be given a replacement car, being put on hold each time I would call their office — and more that I have mercifully forgotten.
This morning when I called them to give them my claim number and talk to them about my needs, I was almost immediately put on hold — for about 10 minutes. I hung up and called back and asked to speak to the manager and they told me his name was Ben. He was the same person who put me on hold in the first place. I made that call to 510−451−3807 at 10:15am CA time and up till now (2:00PM) I haven’t even received a all back — yikes! By the time I got to the — body shop — I decided to change rental car companies and they were able to set that up for me. Enterprise is my rental car company from now on!
I have to wonder if Hertz ever reads their reviews.

Terrible experience. Was mislead to believe this location was in Jack London Square. Arrived and unable to find office, I eventually got through, was picked up. After missing my meeting I was denied a rental based on my credit (I don’t have bad credit and have never had a problem renting a car before). As I was leaving I was informed another location would honor my reservation.
There are a lot of rental companies out there. Many of them new, and there is always a risk in that. I’ll never be a Hertz customer again though, I prefer untested waters.
Laura, I was. I got a car at the Zipcar near my house. I’ll be using that Zipcar location again next time I need a car.

Someone accidentally backed up into my car, and their insurance offered to cover my rental through Hertz while it was in the shop. Hertz picked me up from the shop and provided me with a *cleanish* car to use, and even let me leave the car at the shop when returning. A little bit of annoyance as they tried to upsell me on their insurance, but after saying «no» about three times, it was over.
Why only 1 star? Just yesterday, a couple of months later, I have ~$ 40 left in my bank account to last me the remainder of the week, and I receive an unexpected charge from Hertz for nearly $ 100. When I call, they tell me that someone in their billing office (who knows if it was local or corporate) mistook my name and claim number for someone else’s who has a similar name, and botched the billing.
They’re offering to reimburse me (as they should), and cover any overdraft fees I might incur, but meanwhile, I have no money for gas or food for the rest of the week. All they can do is repeatedly tell me that they’ll certainly reimburse me for the overdraft fee if/​when it happens. Thanks, Hertz, for making sure that this car accident was an imposition every step of the way.
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Update: Thank you for working to refund the misplaced charges (after I resorted to public complaint), but I was also assessed an overdraft fee of $ 30 that wasn’t included… maybe someone over there remembers repeatedly telling me I’d get it?

I came in here to get a rental while my car was in the shop. The guy with whom I was speaking was extremely friendly and gave me the options of a Chevy Cruze and another car. He said he likes the Cruze better so I said I’d take that one. He wasn’t wrong! I loved driving it for a week. When I came back, a lady helped me and she was so nice. Both times I had great customer service and everything went smoothly.

Part of the problem was that we reserved via hotwire. When you do a third party, it kind of keeps the main company from changing things. I still stand by my original review, because it was a NIGHTMARE to rent/​return the car and ate up most of the 2 days on the front & back end of the vacation.

I’ve worked in customer service before, so I understand that sometimes, stuff happens that you can’t control. I try to stay positive and give people the benefit of the doubt, but the service (or lack thereof) from Hertz was too much.
I got into a hit and run accident a week or so ago, and needed a rental while my car was in the shop. My car insurance covers rentals, so they recommended Hertz. Despite the bad reviews, I agreed. I waited in the shop and was picked up within half an hour or so. Once we got to the office, they went through the contract, drove a car down to the front of the hotel, and off I went.
Simple, right? You would think so.
A week later, I was driving in a parking lot when some lady backed out from her spot. There was some damage done to driver side door, and I thought it would be best to call Hertz to see what my next steps were. I grabbed my phone, did a quick check to make sure they were open, and called.
I called and called and each time, the phone rang on and on. I called at least 10 times and got so tired of waiting that I started to make panna cotta WHILE WAITING, and was able to start and finish 30 servings. I wish I was kidding, but I’m really not. 30 servings of vanilla coconut panna cotta, while waiting for someone to pick up the phone.
On call #11, I FINALLY reached someone. I explained what happened and asked what I was supposed to do. The guy I spoke to just said, «We close at 12.» Keep in mind that I had started calling at 10:30am and it was close to 11:30am at the time. I asked for clarification on what to do, and was told to drive the car in so they could take a look.
So I drove the car in, dropped it off and went into the office at 11:45am. I waited… and waited… and waited… while other customers were helped. Finally, when it was my turn, I was asked if I could wait since rentals were quicker to «manage» and my «issue» would take some time. I agreed, thinking for some reason that SURELY it wouldn’t take too long. Big mistake. I waited some more and was then given an incident report to fill out. I’m not sure why they couldn’t have given this to me to fill out in the hour or so I had spent waiting, but whatever. I filled everything out and was told they’d take care of the insurance (since the other driver was at fault). Then they told me they would get me another rental.
I asked if it would take a long time, because by this time it was 1:30pm and I had an appointment at 2:30. Remember, I had stepped foot into the office at 11:45am. I was assured it wouldn’t take long, and Gerald stepped out to get my car. 15 minutes later, he came back, stepped up to the computer to check the car out, and said, «Oops.» With no explanation, he ran out again, came back with a different car, and the same thing happened. You would think twice would be enough, but nope, it happened again. I asked again how long it would take, stating again that I needed to be somewhere by 2:30 and would rather take a cab if it was going to take a long time. I was told it would take just another minute, and for some reason, I believed him. The fourth time, he grabbed the keys and drove me up to the 4^th floor to get the car, only to find it wasn’t there. By then it was 2:15pm and I stressed again that I was late for an appointment and had spent two and half hours waiting for this issue to be resolved.
Eventually Gerald dropped me off where I needed to be, speeding and swerving in and out of traffic. He said he would have a car for me at the end of the appointment, which was the only promise that Hertz actually followed through on. Gerald handed me my keys at the end of the appointment, let me know that i could just leave it at the shop where my car was being repaired, and left. I walked to the car and got in, only to find that it STUNK of cigarette smoke. It was absolutely disgusting, and Gerald had left by then so there was nothing I could do. I thought of calling again, but was EXHAUSTED at that point and sick of Hertz. I eventually kept the car, and have been trying everything to get rid of the smell – air freshener, dryer sheets, windows rolled down, etc.
Again, I understand that stuff happens that is beyond our control sometimes. I typically side with customer service and try to be empathetic, but this was too much. I’ll never use Hertz again. Do yourself a favor, and use another service!

Why such low reviews? I rented a car here with very short notice, as I was informed that I had to be at an 8 AM training in Sacramento. I actually had to rent the car the night before since the office wouldn’t be open when I needed to leave.
The staff was super nice and accommodating. I didn’t have any customer service issues at all and even distinctly remembering that it was above average. The rep who helped me wrote a note on my paperwork so that I wouldn’t have any issue getting out the next morning (when no one is in the kiosk). He explained all the charges to me clearly, and if I made it in before the office closed the next day, I would only be charged a day. My car was clean, small/​fuel-​efficient, and just what I needed for the work trip.

To bad I can’t give them a no star… this place has the worst customer service ever. I suggest you go to another if you want real customer service.
I needed a ride from the shop where my car was getting fixed to their location. The driver picked me up in a mini van that was cover in animal hair.
When I got to the Hertz location the employees there were rude. Instead of them bringing the rental down from their garage they make you walk down the street, go inside the hotel, take the elevator to the 4^th floor to receive your rental.
When I finally returned my rental a young lady helpede who was very nice and respectful, but as for her manager BEN!
I honestly don’t know how he became a manager. When I told them I’ll need a ride to my house instead of the shop, he asked me for my address so I gave it to him. He then said «it’s to far, do you have someone that can pick you up?»
(ummm, if I had someone that could pick me up I wouldn’t be asking for a ride)
I told him «no I don’t have anyone that can pick me up.» He then said «oh okay well can you take the bus?»
(What the *%x_​…) are you serious? «No I can’t take the bus and I surprised you would even suggest your customers do that!!!»
After the bad experience I had with this Hertz location I will not return. I’m going to make sure my family and friends don’t go there either, to go to another location even if that means for me to drop them off myself!!!

It’s tough for me to give 2 stars, as I dealt with the manager and he could not have been nicer or more helpful.
The reason for the low star count is very simple, this Hertz suffers from those stereotypical, but nonetheless super frustrating, problems that are expected of rental car locations.
First of all, I reserved a full-​size sedan and received some kind of crossover SUV thing. I hate driving. I especially hate driving cars that are far too large for humans and have no reason to exist. This really irked me.
Secondly, the rental car lot requires a map, a torch, and a bull whip to find. Okay, not really, but you have to walk through the hotel and ascend to the 4^th floor and find the parking lot and walk to the back of the parking lot and JUST PULL THE CAR AROUND when you know someone will be by to pick up their reservation!!! Even when you do find the portion of the lot allocated to Hertz, you have to search for your car using the remote locking function on the keys. It’s like playing the most expensive game of Marco Polo ever.
Finally, dropping the car off is very confusing. You can’t just drive it up to the office, and there are no signs telling you where to take the car. I got lucky, took the car back to its original parking spot and just so happened to find the manager there preparing another car. I asked him what the deal was, and he took care of it.
So, when picking up, do not expect to get what you reserved. When dropping off, just take the car back to the area of the parking structure you got it from (don’t forget to give the ticket for the parking to the Hertz rep when you take your contract back to them).
I’d rent from here again just because it’s super close to my office and the manager is awesome, but you really have to go through the gauntlet to understand their protocol.

Our entire experience with them was terrible. We called an hour ahead as instructed for the shuttle pickup service. Cary showed up 20 minutes late, despite the location only being 8 minutes from our house. When we finally get to the rental location, there are 2 people in front of me, and the ‘customer service’ representative kept answering the phone instead of helping people actually *in* the store. She took 4 phone calls just while I was standing there. I finally asked her if she could call a manager to help since clearly she wasn’t interested in *serving* the people actually waiting. We left an hour late on vacation because of Hertz. On the road we discovered there was no CD player as promised in the reservation and Sirius was sporadic. Had the same problems on returning… almost non existent service to check car in and get shuttle home. I’ll use Enterprise next time.

I normally Zip my way around the Bay Area, but this Hertz is near my place and was slightly cheaper, so I thought I would give it a go, but it I should have known better.
My primary complaint is that even though I prepaid for the vehicle, Hertz released my car to another customer when I didn’t pick it up within the first hour of my reservation (flight was delayed). They did not call me to confirm my reservation or that they were giving my car to someone else, so I had to wait 45+ minutes for them to drive a vehicle from Emeryville.
Hertz should either put a disclaimer on their reservation site to inform customers they will release the vehicle after one hour or provide better service by calling customers with prepaid reservations before giving the reservation away.

Called them to make sure the car is ready. The first car was not ready cause it need maintenance. Second only had ¾ tank and is Chevy Cruise. Third was a Toyota Corolla that is 2012 with over 55k miles. Not ready either.
Shitty service. Avoid.

3.5 stars.
The guys here could not have been nicer. We rented two large SUVs here with no issue. Perhaps they read the previous reviews and got it together. The SUVs were rented and ready to go in less than 30 minutes.