Beware Hertz loyalty programmes. I was joined up to the Hertz Corporate Discount Programme by my employer. On a recent trip to Europe I inadvertently booked a car rental online through Hertz as a “guest” without realising I had not entered my CDP Membership details into the booking. Upon entering my Membership number and having the CDP “discount” applied I was shocked to learn that the quote had more than DOUBLED. I checked again with a few other quotes and the same result. For a high end ie luxury car rental the corporate rate was even higher again than that quoted for Joe Public.
Deceptive and disgraceful behaviour by Hertz.
I urge anyone with membership of Hertz and ? other car hire loyalty programmes to double check who is really benefiting from your membership.
Welcome to the forum @Jimmyr.
That happens with CDPs but before you come to any firm conclusion check to see what Hertz includes with the CDP.
Countries are different in how they and their rental companies require, include, or do not include insurance and liability cover.
Sometimes there are many extra features a lone traveller would not want but a corporation mandates for its staff such as roadside assist, 0 liability, car ready and waiting no further paperwork at the counter, automatic upgrades when available, and other features.
An example: Going to the USA? Book through a .au website and one usually gets a package w/insurances; book through the same company’s USA site and it is ala carte and the price can quickly double or worse. Why? American auto insurance usually covers rental cars as if they were one’s own; US premium credit cards usually include secondary collision cover; hence what is important to an American is different to what a foreign visitor needs and the profit motive informs their ‘menu’ of charges.
Sometimes the ‘CDP’ as a discount is a misnomer because it is a special inclusive package that is discounted, not a discount on the base rental. Rental company dependent what is added to the basic rental is not always displayed on their rental forms, and sometimes displayed but not so clearly.
It pays to pay attention and you have done well, and thanks for highlighting what can happen if one ‘blindly’ expects a discount to be a discount as a consumer might expect.
Hi @JimmyR. I’ve had a long history (decades) with car hire, mostly domestic corporate with some personal and OS hire.
As you note Hertz is just one of those offering special corporate plans. I noticed the same as you that the corporate plan quote was different to the direct personal base quote.
As @PhilT has already discussed there are reasons the two are different. Upgrades, service, insurance and optional inclusions. Eyes wide open, it is easy to compare.
Our approach for private use of hire cars is to obtain quotes from several different companies we are happy to use (anonymously). It’s a bit of a game avoiding tracking, however with several devices and at least three different source IP’s, and a VPN and the right browser it seems to work ok. It pays to try different vehicles and hire periods. There are often weekend specials.
We recently needed a hire for a couple of days. The quote was just over $200 for a larger vehicle. When I considered extending the hire over the following weekend for convenience, the total hire charge reduced by a few dollars despite the longer hire. Weekend special?
Thanks for your replies. However I was able to go back and compare the Rental Agreement from this rental with that of a near identical rental I made under the Hertz Loyalty/CDP about 6 months ago. Same vehicle Group, roughly the same rental period in the same country (Ireland). Same add ons ie CDW, Liability Excess, Baggage protection, Refuelling charges had all been included in the quoted price for each booking.
I accept that the Hertz Loyalty programme claims to offer prompt service and the chance of an upgrade but this should come as standard in return for my own (and my company’s) repeat business and not be funded through increased rental charges. I cannot think of any rational individual (or CFO) who would be prepared to pay double for the chance of an upgrade and/or to receive priority treatment for what is already a very quick and seamless pick up process.
So as far as I am concerned this remains at best a scam targeting the naive/unwary and at worst it is out and out fraud.
