Have you ever heard of the car rental upsell scam? Neither had Steve Sphar when he rented a compact car in Granada, Spain, recently.
His car rental company, Europcar, ran out of vehicles, so it offered him an SUV, which he could later exchange for the model he’d reserved. But when he swapped it out the next day, Europcar charged him a $423 “customer choice” fee.
“I have contacted Europcar, and it won’t reverse the charge,” said Sphar, a business consultant from Sacramento, California.
Can a car rental company charge you a “choice” fee? Yes, and experts say it’s becoming more of a problem. Car rental companies sometimes run out of vehicles, and when they do, they have a choice. They can either upgrade their customers into a larger car at no extra charge. Or they can give them a choice of waiting for another customer to return their vehicle or paying more for an upgrade.
The “customer choice” fee Sphar experienced appears to be a clever variation of an established upsell ploy.
I asked Europcar about Sphar’s rental. It reviewed his bill and reversed the $423 charge.
“Please rest assured, this is not the typical level of service we expect to provide,” a Europcar representative said. It also promised to share Sphar’s experience with its management team “with the aim to prevent situations such as this from happening again in the future.”
Is the Car Rental Upsell Scam Becoming More Common?
The upsell scam has been around ever since people have rented cars. But lately, it’s become more of a problem.
“This practice appears to be increasing, likely due to higher demand, fleet shortages, and inflation-driven cost pressures,” said Shawn Miller, Founder of Modified Rides, an automotive news site. “Companies may intentionally limit availability in lower classes to push customers toward more expensive options.”
Running out of cars and then charging extra for a bigger one is legal. But it’s not ethical.
“A last-minute upsell is shady, even if it is legal,” said Alex Villalobos, director of operations at Vamos Rent-A-Car, a Costa Rican car rental operator. “It’s not the type of practice that should be expected from a professional business.”
He said the temptation is too great during high season. That’s when demand is high and some of their most popular vehicles – usually compact cars – sell out. Legit rental agencies will carefully manage their inventory so that they don’t run out of cars. But on busy holidays like New Year’s Eve or the first day of spring break, there’s no way around it. The car rental lot will be empty by early afternoon.
The industry standard practice is to upgrade the customer at no charge. And the major car rental agencies normally do that. For example, when Enterprise Rent-A-Car runs out of vehicles in your class, its policy is to accommodate you with a car of a similar or higher class.
But some car rental companies see an opportunity when they’re oversold. They never force you to pay more for a car. Instead, they offer two bad choices: Either wait for a car in your class to be returned (which could be hours) or pay extra for a bigger vehicle. Most travelers are unwilling to delay the start of their vacation, so they fork over the ransom.
How Do You Avoid Falling for the Upsell Scam?
Fortunately, only about 1 percent of car rental customers end up without a vehicle, according to industry insiders – although that number can rise during the busy holiday travel season. But you don’t have to become a statistic.
- Book a car at a less busy time. Avoid arriving at the car rental counter at the busiest time (like 3 p.m. on July 3, when the inventory will be picked clean). The earlier, the better. And if you can avoid the busy days before a holiday, there will be plenty of cars.
- Pay in full before you arrive at the counter. That’s the advice of Mark Cipollina, a frequent car renter who runs a travel gear site. “If you pay in full, they have to give you what you already paid for or upgrade your reservation for free,” he said. At least that’s the general policy of the major car rental companies. You may also get a discount on your car by paying for the entire rental upfront.
- Call their bluff. If you refuse to accept the upsell, your car rental company will have to either give you an available car or pay for your rental with a competing car rental company. Yep, that’s the industry practice.
It helps to rent from a name-brand rental company like Avis, Enterprise, or Hertz, said car expert Lauren Fix. “Many brands have sister companies that can fill the rental,” she said. Fix, who has experienced the upsell scam herself, recommends bringing a printout (yes, a paper printout) of your confirmation. That can help speed up the process of finding you a car.
One more thing: Read your new contract carefully, especially if the car rental company gives you an upgrade. I’ve seen too many cases where customers accept the keys to a bigger vehicle and sign an agreement without reviewing it. Unfortunately, the contract may have a new, higher rate – something the car rental associate failed to mention.
Christopher Elliott is an author, consumer advocate, and journalist. He founded Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps solve consumer problems. He publishes Elliott Confidential, a travel newsletter, and the Elliott Report, a news site about customer service. If you need help with a consumer problem, you can reach him here or email him at [email protected].
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