I booked a mini van online on 29 April to be collected on 30th. I read through the small prints and noticed that the driver has to have the license for at least a year. Not being sure of what it means and whether I qualify for a rental, I decided to call Hertz at 11:45 on 29th April to clarify since I hold a British license which was issued less than a year ago. I spoke with a member of staff at Hertz reservation who referred me to another member in the branch. At 11:48 I spoke with a staff who called himself Boris. I explained to Boris that I have been driving for the last 12 years and I held an international license until august 2012. I have driven occasionally in the UK for the last six years and have had a car since 2011. Although my british license is less than a year old I have had other licenses before and asked to confirm if I could get a van. Boris confirmed that they should be fine with the license and I can come and collect the van tomorrow.
On the 30th when I came to collect the car I was told that they cannot give me the van. The manager insisted that the terms and condition clearly states at least a year of UK driving experience and my previous licenses were irrelevant. I tried to point out that the way contracting works is the most recent clause of agreement takes precedence over former clauses that may contradict the recent agreement. Another way to look at it was the 1 year diving license was ambiguous in my circumstances and the clarification of the 1 year experience was provided by Hertz staff member on the phone. It is the definition that is more important than the term. The manager refused to help or/and issue a refund and sent me to call the head office. I call Hertz reservation at 0958 and spoke with them for 35 minutes while outside Hertz office. The senior customer relation manager spoke with the branch manager but did not offer anything different. He refused to connect me to a more senior manager and he declined to get them to call me at a convenient time for them. The only thing He could do was to issue a refund and that was the final word.
I believe Hertz staff in charge of providing such clarification should be knowledgeable. Furthermore, an internal procedure should exist that aims to channel communication with the customer and ensures the staff at the branch offers what was agreed with the customer.
I lost half a day in the process of finding out why I can't receive the car and a damage of £200 incurred because without the van I could not attend a collection point that was shopping down and had to shift or dispose my cargo. read more
