One-Dollar FreezeHow can one person rent a car in the US for so long and not feel broke all the time? This was my first question in my head. I did not want to push my credit card to the limit in one day. When I booked on QEEQ I saw this plan called One-Dollar Freeze. It said I only pay 1 dollar first and they will charge the rest before the pickup time. I thought this felt much easier for me.
I was in the UK when I made the booking. There were still some weeks before my pickup in Portland in the middle of April. I kept doing math in my head and checked my budget again and again. I even thought I might need to raise my card limit. Then I remembered I already locked the car with just 1 dollar. I was going to keep the car until around the middle of June so it was a long contract. That made me feel safe because at least the car was mine and I could prepare the rest of the money slowly.
One day during self study at school I suddenly thought about the booking again. I opened the order page and checked the details. It said the rest would be charged automatically later. I got a bit nervous and my first fear was that my card might get hit in some random way. Then I read the explanation more carefully and saw that there was no interest for this plan. My mind relaxed a lot at that moment and I felt it was pretty friendly for a student like me.
When it was close to the middle of April I started to move money to my credit card bit by bit. I was thinking that it was really lucky I only needed 1 dollar to hold this BMW X5 at the start. With such a long rental up to around mid June I would feel a huge shock if I had to pay everything in one go. Near my pickup time in Portland on April fifteenth at ten in the morning I got the charge notice. The amount was just what I expected and there were no strange extra fees. That was the point when I really felt this payment plan helped me a lot.
From booking to pickup I did not stress about payment again. I just remembered I paid 1 dollar first and then they charged the rest at a proper time. A few times I thought about how I might not even book this rental if there was no One-Dollar Freeze because I would be scared of the big bill on my card. Now when I look back this way of paying a little first and the rest later made the whole thing much lighter for me. My credit card did not feel crushed and my mind also stayed much more calm.
Dedicated customer serviceI have to say this first. The day I saw the extra 279.2 dollars on my credit card, I was really speechless. I used QEEQ to book a Toyota Camry from AVIS in Newark. I drove alone to Albany. The trip was fine. I returned the car normally. Then a few days later I checked my bill and this charge was just sitting there with no clear note. My first thought was that they charged me for nothing and I felt really upset.
When I started to contact them I was pretty mad. I could not even say what exact fee it was and the rental counter people did not explain well. I did not really want to send a lot of screenshots because it felt annoying. I still told customer service all the info I could. One thing that surprised me was that the same person kept following my case. It felt like dedicated customer service just for me. I did not need to repeat my story again and again.
At the start I kept saying that I never agreed to extra charges and I was really unhappy with the rental company. They did not ask me to go fight with AVIS by myself. They said they would help me ask and then they gave me updates from time to time. They told me they had contacted the rental side and were still waiting for answers. I know the work in the background can be complex but what I felt was that someone was really watching my case and I was not left alone.
Some days later customer service told me the rental company said it was a damage fee and it was about the mirror. They also sent me the invoice from the rental company. When I saw the actual invoice my anger dropped a lot. At least I finally knew what the 279.2 dollars were for. It was not this random charge that made no sense anymore.
During this whole thing the biggest feeling for me was that someone stood between me and the rental company and helped me ask questions and explain their words. I travel alone and I really do not want to spend all my time fighting with big companies. They helped me find the reason and explained it in simple words so I felt much more at ease.
Dedicated customer serviceI first要说的是我的心情 我看到信用卡账单的时候真的有点烦 我是在美国出差 用QEEQ订的车 结果还车几天以后 账单上多了一些奇怪的燃油费和保险费 我心里一直在问自己 这些钱为什么会出现 我有没有哪一步弄错
我就联系了他们的客服 一开始我自己也讲不清楚 每一行英文都要对着看 所以我就一点一点说 自己看到什么就说什么 客服没有急着给我答案 只是先听我把情况讲完 然后问我 有没有取车时候的纸 有没有上面写油量 那时候我才又想起 在美国新奥尔良取车的时候 是五月初的一个上午 车行的人在合同上用笔写了油量 大概是五分之五 不是满油 我当时还多拍了一张照片 现在终于用上了
我脑子里问题很多 这些燃油费怎么算 我是不是被算成没加满油 还是真的自己记错了 这些我都直接问客服 他也一问一答地跟我确认 比如问我还车的时候大概是什么时候 我说是在五月中旬的一个傍晚 在美国纳什维尔还车 那天我要赶着去见客户 说实话根本没想到要再拍一张油表的照片 只记得油箱肯定不是空的 中间我也有去加油
我其实最不认可的就是那几项额外的燃油费和保险费 我一直在想 会不会是柜台讲的时候太快了 我又急着走 结果合同签了才发现有别的东西 这些想法我都跟客服联系过 他没有指责我没有拍照 也没有说都是车行的规定之类 他只是告诉我 先把我有的合同照片和账单给他 然后他会帮我去和车行沟通
对我来说等结果的那几天心里挺不安的 一边要忙工作 一边又怕最后这些钱都要我自己出 每次我再去问一下进度 回复都还挺快 语气也很平稳 不会让我觉得被敷衍 我能感觉到有人在看着我的这个案子 而不是叫我自己去找车行吵架 对一个商务出差的人来说 这个差别很大 我的时间和精力都不太够
后来车行那边因为没有还车油量的照片之类的证据 有一些费用他们就是不肯退 这个我也能理解 因为确实是我自己没有留好记录 但让我觉得好一点的是 客服又联系我 说可以根据我提供的信用卡账单 给我做一部分赔付 把那一小块多出来的费用补给我 那一刻我心里那个 我会不会只能吃亏 的感觉就没那么重了
现在回头看 从我发现问题到他们给我方案 其实时间没有我想象中那么长 只是我那时候太焦虑 所以觉得每一天都很久 整个过程让我印象最深的 是有一个人一直跟我对接 把复杂的收费一点一点讲清楚 告诉我哪一项是燃油 哪一项是保险 哪些是车行坚持的 哪些是他们可以帮我承担的 对我这种出来谈业务的人来说 这种被认真照顾到的感觉 真的是挺重要的
Dedicated customer serviceWhat would you do if you are driving in another country with your kids and then you see more than one thousand dollars extra on your bill? I booked my car with QEEQ and this happened to me in Anchorage. I had already returned the car one or two days before and was back at my place. When I checked my credit card I just froze. The amount was much higher than I expected. My English is not good and I thought they charged me twice. I was worried about our family budget and also taking care of the kids at the same time. I felt really stressed. I contacted their customer service right away. At the start I spoke in a messy way and kept saying things like “too much money” and “I dont understand”. The staff there stayed calm and told me to relax and that they would help me understand the bill step by step. I sent photos of the contract and the payment receipt. The person went through each line with me and said that the items near my signature were the things I had agreed to at the counter. They repeated everything again in simple English so I could follow. I asked “Why so high I thought upgrade is free with insurance” and they explained that the upgrade is not free. They broke down the upgrade fee the extra insurance and the roadside assistance and showed me which parts I had accepted at the desk. I still felt bad about the money but at least I knew where it all came from and I did not feel it was random or double charging anymore. What really stood out was that they kept following my case. They did not just send one short reply. They checked if I had new documents and told me how they would talk with the rental company next. For a parent traveling with kids and not speaking good English it really helped to have someone staying on my side and explaining everything so I did not feel alone with the problem.
Price Drop ProtectorLet me complain first. I really thought this car booking was just full price and done. When I later saw the final cost was lower than when I booked, my first thought was that they charged me some extra fee. Then I checked the details and realized it was Price Drop Protector working there.
I booked the car on QEEQ because I was traveling alone and needed a car in Houston. I planned to pick it up around nine in the morning on June twenty first and I made my budget based on the price I saw that day. I did not think the price would drop later. I just told myself to lock the car first since it was a Ford Bronco from Budget and I really wanted to drive it.
After some days I suddenly got a notice that some money would be sent back to me. I laughed a bit and said to myself that even car bookings now can become cheaper after I book. Then I read it again and saw that the same car became cheaper later and they booked a cheaper deal for me and sent the difference back. I did not do anything on my side. I just kept my plan to pick up the car on June twenty first and return it in Houston around seven in the evening in early July.
It felt like someone quietly put money back into my pocket. I had already accepted the first price and moved on. Then I got back a few dozen pounds and for a solo traveler that really helps. I just kept thinking that it was good I chose this service at the start. Otherwise I would pay more money for the same car and the same time without even knowing it.
Dedicated customer serviceIf I only talk about the final result, I am actually quite happy, mainly because of the dedicated customer service that followed my case. As a solo traveler, I did not feel left alone. So how did everything start? I booked the car on QEEQ and planned to pick it up in Grand Rapids in the US. It was around the afternoon of March 24 when I went to the airport to get a Toyota RAV4 from Enterprise and return it in mid April. That day was a bit cold. The wind at the airport was strong and I was pulling my suitcase to the rental counter. The pick up was smooth and the car looked fine. I did not expect any problem at all. The real trouble started in early April. One day I was driving and suddenly I smelled strong engine oil. I stopped the car by the side of the road and saw oil all over the ground. I was standing there alone, the streets around me were all new to me and I felt a bit scared. I called the rental company first. The towing and car change were not going well and nothing was really fixed. So what should I do next? At that time I contacted their customer service. I was worried that maybe no one would really care about my problem. The answer was different from what I feared. The person on the phone listened to my story carefully and did not rush me. They asked simple questions and checked my details. I could feel it was the same person following my case because every time I contacted them again it was still that person and I did not need to repeat the whole story from the beginning. So what happened after that? They kept pushing the rental company about the towing. The staff there went back and forth with Enterprise. The process was not very fast but every time there was some progress the customer service would update me. They told me on which day the tow truck might come and when I could get a new car so my mind was not totally blank. During these days I had to take taxis to the branch a few times because the car was not usable. Sometimes the map location was off and I rode much longer and paid more. I kept all the taxi receipts. I was not sure if I could get any money back but I decided to save everything. Later the customer service reached out to me and asked me to explain each taxi receipt in simple words. For example which ones were to the rental branch and if there were other routes. They also asked if I had any photos from that time. The way they talked was patient. They did not push me hard. They just reminded me that these things could help to handle the case. I sent all I could find. After that there was a period of time where they were fighting with the rental company in the background. I could feel that it was not short because I got the next update after quite a while. So what was the result? One day they told me that the rental company agreed to give me some money back as a kind of compensation. My feeling was a bit mixed. Those days were really tiring. I went to the branch again and again and paid many taxi rides all by myself. But I also felt that at least someone was on my side when they talked to the rental company. This feeling that someone was always watching over my case was very important to me as a person traveling alone. After we confirmed the amount they helped arrange the refund and later I saw the money show up on my statement. The whole story from the car problem to the refund took quite a long time. Still during all of this their close follow up made me feel I was not just waiting in a dark hole. I always knew someone was pushing things forward for me and this dedicated customer service meant more to me than just the money I got back.
