I have to post this review - I had a great experience using Payless and saved over $150 for a 6 day rental, over the car rental reservation I made through Costco at a larger Car rental company. The agent at the desk sits right next to Budget at the EWR rental car area so you can use the Tram to get there. They are definitely not as automated as the larger agencies, the agent was actually running out to the lot to make sure his car inventory was there. He gave me a brand new spotlessly clean Chevy Cruze which is a surprisingly nice smallish intermediate car. When I returned the car, I went to the Budget return area where I was checked in by a person who wrote in my paperwork (not a printed receipt) so I had to stop at the rental desk on the way to the Tram. I wanted to share my experience so that you would not be afraid to try them. I had made a backup reservation at a larger rental agency just in case something shady happened when I went to pick up my car. I had verified that both my regular car insurance and my credit card would cover my rental - I added no extra services. And I filled the gas tank before I returned it. I'll update again if anything unexpected happens with the charges to my card, etc, but so far so good. read more

I booked a car rental for a trip to Canada in December of 2022. First the people at the desk don't add the right insurance and I have to drive back 30 mins to add it in person because they don't take cards over the phone... fine my mistake. The car is also dirty. scuffs on the ceiling, dirt in between the seat... but its a cheap company so I roll with it. The most annoying part is when I get back from the trip and see I was double charged for highway tolls when I specifically put my EZ-Pass up and made put their EZ pass in the correct, unable position. It took 2 months to get my money back and the only reason why (I belive) I got it back is because I threatened to sue; they did not answer my emails/calls previously to that message. I UNDERSTAND PAYLESS IS CHEAP, BUT IT IS A SCAM. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR I GUESS. read more

Terrible service when I picked up the car at Newark airport. Agent spoke to us like she was doing us a huge favor. Didn't give us any details on the car she was giving us, and wanted to just get it over with. The car (GMC SUV) had already done about 35K miles but made a really loud sound at speeds higher than 40mph. We had to blast the music in the car to drown out the sound. Agent at return (Richmond airport) was courteous but of course he turned out to be a crook. He was all smiles and handed the receipt saying I would not be charged anything additional. When I got home I realized he charged an additional $3.99 for fuel even though I had filled up to full just before i returned the car at the airport (the gas station is at the airport). The fuel charge was calculated on the basis of a difference between 15.6 - 15.2!!! It is quite unbelievable the lengths this company will go to make an extra buck. Since it's $4 I will not be fighting this out. But rest assured I will never rent a car from you again and will make sure I spread the word about your terrible service. read more

If there was a way to give negative stars I would. I rented this through Hotwire and have never had any issues with Hotwire rental cars until now. Got to Newark Airport and had to wait 20 minutes for them to get my car, then they came back and said they would have to upgrade me, then 2 minutes later they found a car for me. They overcharged me originally by almost $100 and when I questioned it the woman said that Hotwire is an estimate. I have rented a half dozen times and never had them be more than a dollar off on the quote. So I told her to check again...it was a miracle, she found out that a discount wasn't entered right.....yeah sure lady. They pulled up the car after they "cleaned" it and we opened it up to the very strong stench of cigarettes (we don't smoke) the woman said she didn't smell anything and if I wanted another car I would have to wait. Oh...then there was the damage to the car that I had to bring up....OMG....I just wanted out of there and almost an hour later we left the lot. We brought it back and dropped it off, another 20 minutes sucked away from my life. Don't rent directly from them or through Hotwire....spend a couple of bucks extra to a well known rental company. read more

Words cannot describe. We made our reservation through Orbitz weeks in advance. Our flight the night before was delayed by four hours, and got to our hotel in Newark at 3am. We attempted all possible ways to contact Payless and let them know we needed to delay our 9am car pick up. No one was available anywhere - local, national, anywhere. I tried to leave a voicemail at the local branch but it said the mailbox was full. I went online and saw that their policy was to hold the reservation for the full day. I was heartened by this, but decided to open a service ticket and send a message to their national office anyway. I got an email back saying they had informed the branch. When we arrived at the branch, we were three deep in the line, and I could hear the rude, dismissive remarks of the woman behind the counter to the folks in front of us. We got to the front and she told me that since we were four hours late for our pick up time the reservation was invalid and she couldn't get me the car we had booked. She could get me a larger car at a higher price, however. I insisted that she give us the larger car at the same price, and she refused. She got angry. She was rude and seriously disrepectful. I mentioned the email from the national office. She said she didn't know about it. I mentioned the policy, she said that wasn't true. I mentioned trying to leave a voicemail and she said it wasn't her job to clear the voicemail. I asked to speak to her manager. She said she didn't need a manager because she was in charge (later turned out the manager was on break.) I asked her to call the national office. She told me to do it myself. I told her that the national office would just tell her to give me the larger car at the same price. She said she knew, but she wanted me to do it anyway. I tried talking to the national office and it was one phone tree after another, and one useless operator after another. While I was on this call my partner went over and checked with Budget. They had agreed to give us a car at the price we had been quoted by Payless. I hung up and walked over there. That rental turned out great. DO NOT USE PAYLESS. THEY ARE EVIL. read more

Not only the worst car rental company, but one of the worst companies period I've ever dealt with. Stay away. These people don't even deserve 1 star. Long lines? Check. Bad customer service? Check. But that wasn't even the beginning of it. Not only did they give us an "Upgrade" to a car that was crazy to drive, but we had a pretty serious issue with the vehicle. After trying to reach their "customer service" line multiple times and leaving messages, we got zero call backs, and oh so many unfulfilled promises. I'll spare you all the details because it simply makes my blood boil, and just urge you to find another car rental company. If you want to read more horrible reviews from other customers, check out the Better Business Bureau listings on this company. Just horrible. I'm suprised they're still in business. This is what modern day organized crime looks like. read more

On 9-23-21 at 7:30 pm I entered the Payless car rental office at San Diego airport. My midsized rental was for a 6:30 pick up, my plane was an hour late. Julio, the Payless agent, pulled up my reservation and said that they were out of midsize cars, but that he could rent me a size up. I asked if there was additional charges, he said $80. I said no, I want the car I reserved, or an upgrade for free. He refused, said he could only give me a compact car for the original reservation price, no discount. I said that the lack of the midsize car was the problem of Payless, not mine. He said that they had no midsize car because my plane was late. I should demand reimbursement of the upgrade charge from the airline. He also said that if I did not want to pay the upgrade, I should "shop around" at the other car rental offices next door. I said that it is industry practice to provide a necessary upgrade at no cost to the customer. Julio refused and said I had to pay. I negotiated a lower upcharge, and told him I would publish this lousy customer treatment on the web. J. Larson read more

Hands down the worst car rental company in the area, perhaps the worst in the NYC/Jersey area. A bunch of inappropriate hidden fees that quickly turns a $61.00 car rental into a $180.00 rental. The fees are ridiculous! Staff are rude and impatient. Two of them were arguing in front of us and we had a 40minute wait in line. I would never return and will be sure to tell everyone I know to avoid this spot. I contacted customer service to rectify and some jerk sent me an email after two weeks--he wrote "sorry you didn't receive a receipt" and resent me my receipt from transaction. I don't know if he was being passive aggressive or he was not very bright. read more

NEVER rent a car from this place. I made a reservation on Expedia and it was with Payless rental. When I arrived at the location it turned out to be Payless Rental, Avis and Budget- All 3 at one location with 1 employee. This place looks like a pop up, fly by night location in poor condition. The same person at the desk was same person that washed the car and brought it around front while customers waited. I had a 4-day rental for almost. $200 which is already very high for an intermediate car. Ultimately I was told that there were no cars to choose from, just one car (Please note there was someone behind me there to get a vehicle). I could not get a FastTrack because Payless doesn't offer it and if I drove outside of a range it was .49 a mile. After waiting approx. 10 minutes for the car outside I was presented with a dripping wet car. It was brought to me by the associate from the front desk which was left unattended. As I inspected the car I noticed that it had filthy seats (see picture). I was told by the attendant "This is what you get when you rent from Payless." He went on to say that you get what you pay for and that I should have upgraded to budget or avis. Since they are both at this location I asked if I could transfer my contract and receive me another car. He said no; therefore, I refused the car and asked to cancel the contract. I went on to ask for the number to corporate. I called while sitting there and was told this was a "franchise location" where all 3 companies are serviced at one location like the airport with several airlines and that they would not transfer my rental contract to budget or avis. I pointed out the fact that every airline has their own employees and this location had 1 employee for all 3 car rental companies meaning that they are all working together. Overall I was basically told that Payless is the bottom of the barrel and they get the vehicles that Avis and Budget do not want and cars with over 60k miles. My final question and most astonishing was- if I rented the dirty wet car, what was the man behind me in line going to get. I was told that it would have been explained to him that reservations made on expedia and other sites are not guaranteed and he would have to go elsewhere or pay for a car from budget or avis. THE WORST SERVICE I HAVE EVER SEEN. I ubered myself to Hertz located at 92 State Rte 17 in Paramus, NJ 07652 where I received excellent service and for the same price got a clean car, with 12k miles. read more

Payless Car Rental - Car Rental Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

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I do appreciate the lower cost, although I haven't reached the counter yet. This has to be the worst service. Been here 45 minutes and only two people have gone through. You guys have to do something. read more

Payless Car Rental - This is the line. I've been behind 5 customers for an hour. I feel bad for all the people in the back. - Car Rental Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

Awful. The girl who works this desk talks fast and tries to confuse you into accepting extra charges for things like insurance, an upgrade, and GPS. I had to slow her down to clarify that I would be using my own comprehensive insurance and do not need a GPS. Also, they charge a fee for an additional driver even if it is a spouse. I have never been charged for this at other rental companies. After 12 hours of air travel, the last thing I wanted to do was negotiate with someone over $60. In the end, I walked away paying much more than I would have if I had just gone with a more expensive company in the first place. Also, the car we got was a piece of crap, how on earth can the alignment on a brand new car (9,000 miles on it) be so screwed up?! Never again. Just spend the extra few bucks and go with Avis or Hertz. read more

This rental place is worse than a Banana Republic, and it seems as though it's being run by thugs. I explain: 1) We rented an "economy" sized car on Expedia for a 8-day trip to Connecticut. The price was steep (over $700), and we had to pre-pay 2) Upon arrival, we were told that the car we had booked was no longer available, even though we had pre-paid. They instead offered a gas-guzzler with no trunk (Toyota Tacoma). When I said that I wanted a car that was equivalent to the one I had booked and paid for, they just laughed at me, and said it was the truck or nothing. So we reluctantly took it. When I mentioned that we will surely spend much more on gas than with the original car, they said that I should mention it to them upon return, and that they would give me a "gas credit" 3) Upon return, we did request this "gas credit", but the person at the counter (Walter, who could perhaps benefit from an anger management class) became irate, told me that he couldn't do it, and asked me to leave. He even said that he felt "threatened" by me. Fortunately, the lady who spoke to me upon check-in (Devaney) was there, and remembered our conversation. She then proceeded to do some paperwork, and handed me a piece of paper that showed a $55 gas credit, to the other guy's dismay. 4) I then realized that instead of charging me for my 8 days, they had actually charged me for 9 days !! Again, they said that since it was prepaid, there was nothing they could do. They told me to call customer service upon my return home. 5) A few days later, my Visa card company called me and asked me to authorize a large payment to Payless, thinking it was fraudulent. When I called Payless to inquire, they told me that I had never returned the car, and that they would charge me for all additional days until I do so. Also the $55 "gas credit" was never paid to my CC. 6) In the end, it took me probably 3 weeks and a dozen phone calls to costumer service and various other offices at Payless, Avis, and Budget (same company), and also Expedia, to sort this through. They eventually reimbursed me for the $133 extra day of rental, as well as the $55 "gas credit". All this left me bruised, with a feeling of having been taken advantage of. I will think twice before renting at Payless again, for sure. read more

I found this place through a price comparison on Travelocity. It was the cheapest one compared to the other well known brands, but it was a pain getting to the actual rental place. Located at an off-airport site at the Ramada Inn Hotel, you have to wait a good minute or 30 for the hotel shuttle to pick you up. The shuttle driver was cute. Once I got to the Ramada Inn, the rental kiosk was very small--only enough room for 3-4 people max. The rental guy was cute too. Since he's the only one helping customers, it took a good while before I was able to start the process of renting my car. They checked to see if I have collision coverage with my credit card first because what they offer is not as "cheap" and the driver would be responsible for the first $1000 deductible.... something. Sales Tax is only 7.00% here (Cool)! There is a $450 pre-authorization hold they place on your card...I don't know... *clawdad action* I am sleepy and I need a car. I got a gold Ford Focus to drive and a small OG area map to help me navigate. Canyubilibinit? I only got lost once and was able to drive to Passaic without Google Maps?! I also turned on the radio station and guess what song started playing? "I Wanna Be Your Lover" by Prince. This trip is starting out well after all. That's gangsta. read more

Payless Car Rental - Car Rental Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

Do not rent from them. After booking the cheapest car rental choice, it ended up costing me more than a company located at the airport. First off, you have to figure out on your own to take the Wyndham courtesy shuttle to their location. The car I picked up had half a tank and I notified them of this after leaving. I used the airport drop off option and as a result was charged $215 for a rental that was supposed to be $85 total. Rip off, do not use this shady company. read more

Bait and switch. Horrible boss. Worst day ever. These were the occurrences happening on the other side of the desk at Payless Car Rental which contributed to a poor rental car experience. Ultimately, we were rented a Jeep Compass for 4 days for $200. I don't know who should be more ashamed/embarrassed - Jeep/Dodge/Chrysler/Fiat for making a shoddy bargain basement piece of automotive junk, or Payless Car Rental for renting them. Maybe it's me for accepting the rental - but this was after our reservation was cancelled and the Jeep was presented as our ONLY option (rent this or nothing). The Jeep had four doors, power windows and locks, standard AM/FM radio with CD, cruise control and air conditioning. No GPS, no satellite radio, no Bluetooth, and hardly any room (I'm over 6ft tall). The car has no style whatsoever. How is Jeep/Payless able to call/charge this an SUV. It's interior reminds me of old Chrysler Sebrings - remember those? They had some style on the outside but none on the inside. Well it has more exterior styling than this Jeep. This car screams 'rental'. The experience with the agent matched the blandness of the car rented. From entering the rental location till we received keys, a whole hour went by. Whoah, a whole hour? Who does that these days? Especially in the age of Internet and automation. And our agent had to make sure we knew that she had a horrible boss (the worst) and that today was the worst day of her life. I'm definitely sorry to hear that but how is that my fault and how will it impact getting the rental we reserved. Oh, and our quoted price for the rental was about $100 (which is one of the reasons we selected them). Of course after we get there and deal with no cars and expensive bland SUVs (cars masquerading as SUVs) our price paid was over $200. So for the cost/value deficit, the long and lackluster (and unprofessional) customer service, and the poor excuse for a rental car, I give one star. Once I complete this rental, Payless can purge my name and info from their database (they probably already sold it to other companies) as I will not return. I'd rather pay twice as much for better service closer to home. read more

I had a perfectly fine experience with my rental car. I may be a bit strange though... I'm willing to go through a bit of inconvenience to save some dough. Payless rented me a full-size car for HALF the price of the other companies. Yes, getting to them is a bit difficult. But, anytime you travel, you need to do a little research and figure out where you're going. Payless is at the Wyndham Hotel (formerly Ramada), so you take the hotel shuttle from the P4 Airtrain stop. One you get there, their office is not luxurious. But, you are getting a car on the cheap! I for one didn't care what their office looked like. The car was a new Hyundai Sonata... very clean, only 5,000 miles on it and a perfect size for me. I paid with a debit card and they were supposed to charge me for the cost of the rental plus $300. But, the rental was estimated to be $390 and they charged me $450 including the deposit. So, they did charge me for the deposit at the time of the rental, but they credited it back to me the day after I returned the car... no 14 day wait! I was able to find the place with no problem when I returned the car. The Newark area is CONFUSING, but just follow the directions and there's no problem. You can rent for the "big guys" with more convenient on-airport locations, but you're gonna pay for that convenience. I'd rent from Payless again with out hesitation. read more

This company engages in nefarious business practices and should be avoided at all costs. It's a surprise to learn that Payless is owned by the same corporation that owns both Avis and Budget car rental. This company is a distant mutant cousin. I should have known I'd have problems when I couldn't even see the rental office because it is way back behind everything else on the Budget lot at LaGuardia Airport. I acknowledge my mistake here. I prepaid a car rental and did not see the deposit requirement that is buried down near the bottom of the terms and conditions. So, when I went to pick up my vehicle, I did not take an extra credit card with me. Payless made no accommodation to allow me to make the deposit in any other way or to receive a credit towards a future rental. Further, the customer service people are incredibly rude. They took my money, treated me shabbily and apparently are sitting somewhere having a laugh. I will NEVER do business with this company and am considering cancelling all future business with both Avis and Budget as a result of my experience with Payless. read more

Rented out of the Newark Aiport. If there's ever a moment in which you need to carefully read all reviews on here, this is it. I did not read these reviews, rented from Payless Car Rental, and would have now gladly paid the difference to go with a reputable car rental company instead of them. I was cursed at, yelled at, publicly disrespected and humiliated, ignored, and all... because I had a reservation, and asked why they couldn't honor it. In the end, I ended up having to take the car anyway, when I brought it back found out that the employee (her name was Avadawn) completely screwed up my contract, added on charges I did not sign for, and billed me without my consent. Then I was cursed at, yelled at, publicly disrespected, and humiliated all over again. You would think that exposing all of this to customer service would do something, right? You would think that having a signed contract for a different amount than what was charged would be sufficient to get your money back? You would think that letting them know that an employee treated you this way, especially after the customer service department tells you they have inumerous complaints about that same employee, would drive the company to reconcile with you as a customer? Well, you are very wrong and have not yet experience the HELL that is Payless Car Rental. STAY AWAY AT ALL COSTS!!! Seriousy - pay more to go with another company. It will actually be cheaper and a much better experience in the end. read more

When I had already made my reservation on Priceline and saw the reviews here, I was pretty terrified. This was gonna suck. Well, I got there, waited in line while they (somewhat slowly, but what car rental companies don't go slow) tended to the people in front of me. I DID overhear the person in front of me get quoted at a "1-2 hour wait" for their car to be ready. My terror was renewed. But, when I got up there, everything was ready to go. I was upgraded to an SUV (and wasn't charged extra), it was clean, worked fine, overall pleased. Return was a relative sinch, just needed to report back the mileage and fuel gauge. My experience was fine. But who knows if this was a one time occurance. read more

Absolute disgrace of a company! Not even sure how they are still allowed to trade. Absolutely avoid at all costs. Arrived at Newark after a long haul flight and went straight to pick up my car, however when I picked it up at the desk the person did not give me the full low down of details about my payments. And was adamant that what I was signing for was a deposit and that I would get it back on return of the car. I booked through Expedia and was sceptical about the reviews but I honestly wish I had never bothered. 600 dollars I'm owed and cannot get any sense out of anyone at their customer callcentre, I just keep being told 'oh we'll ring you tomorrow'. A month down the line and more than 3 phone calls later, a phone bill which has taken a beating from ring in America, the amount I am out of pocket is hideous! Complete disaster and with all honesty, DEFINITELY AVOID AT ALL COSTS! read more

Technically deserves NEGATIVE stars, but 1 is the best I can do to express my experience. I booked a minivan using a prepaid rate for a weekend, but when I arrived, the counter was staffed by only 1 attendant and one runner while the rest of the Budget / Avis desk were full of staff with no customers, observing but were helpless to do anything. Being under the same company, I suspect a Payless assignment is punishment for them. The class of car I reserved even though it was PREPAID and CONFIRMED. They gave me a car with less capacity which I returned the next day and replaced with another rental from Enterprise. Payless refused to refund the difference, and my credit card company cannot help as service was technically received. A classic Bait-And-Switch. I'm sympathetic to the staff but not the company. I would avoid using Avis / Budget / Payless when I can as they are the SAME COMPANY. I cannot say enough good things about Enterprise - you may pay a bit more, but they treat you right! read more

I went to the Payless in Piscataway that wont show up yelp. DO NOT RENT FROM. DO NOT RENT FROM. DO NOT RENT FROM. I came in an hour early on the day I rented it and came back 20 minutes late the day I returned....Just saw today (4 days later) I had another $50 fee. The lady on the phone said she would call me back but I had to call back four hours later. The new lady was RUDE. I said that NO ONE said in person that coming an hour early (which I only drove away like 20 mins early) and coming back 30 mins later would mean a $50 charge. This place should go bankrupt and out of business. I will never ever rent a car again because of them. read more

DO NOT RENT FROM PAYLESS! I've experienced an ABSOLUTE SCAMMMMMMMMMM and THIEVERY with them!! We rented through Expedia. Upon arrival at a location in Cancun, I was working with an agent and declined the extra insurance. All was well until his manager - LUIS ALBERTO (herein referred to as THIEF) - cancelled the agreement, ripped the contract and said - it was mandatory!!! MANDATORY!!!!!! He said check the policy, blah, blah, blah - after 20 minutes of argument, I decided to check the policy. Surprise Surprise --- IT WAS NOTTTTTT MANDATORY as THIEF said it was. The insurance is optional! After being called out, THIEF decides that I need to put a $14k deposit on my credit card for the vehicle. According to the policy, they can ask for whatever they want. These people are thieves and its a shame. They are not allowed in the airport and I now know why. They need to fire LUIS ALBERTO and close the location down. It's disgusting. read more

Both the customer care representatives that I dealt with, were super awesome. Very helpful. Yes it took them some time, but there was only one person doing everything. Car was absolutely crap though. Though, it's such a big disappointment that i had to take Hyundai Sonata as a full sized car. I have my car, but wanted something with 4WD or more sturdy, to take on snowy mountains for the adventure we had planned. New looking sonata was worse then my Honda Accord. And I had no other option to upgrade. Yes, I had an option of free downgrade! Payless management needs to work harder I think. Thanks to the desk rep - who atleast did a nice job of consoling us! read more

I waited over an hour in to rent a car at 4 pm Saturday afternoon at JFK. Don't rent here if your in a hurry. Only one person on staff. I waited an hour and 20 minutes collectively to get my car. The slow service made me late to an important concept that I flew to attend from LAX. Payless rent a car gave also gave me a car that was not insured. Their car got ticked at the Central Islip train station. I called the police to determine responsibility and the car company is responsible for inspection. Upon returning the car to the airport, the staff attempted to convince ime it was a parking ticket and my problem. A second call to the local police proved them wrong. Don't rent from this company. No discount or compensation given from customer service over this infraction and the excessive wait infraction. Both infractions caused me to be late to concerts I flew from LA to attend. Renter be ware! read more

I keep noticing how the Negative reviews are hard to find. I see there are some good reviews of this place But be warned! There is NO customer service support. They will somehow not have your reserved car and you will "be able to upgrade to a larger car" at additional costs. I never did receive a final invoice. BAD PLACE, CRAP CUSTOMER SERVICE...They are affiliated with Budget, Avis but they can't even communicate with each other. This place needs to go out of business! read more

DO NOT USE PAYLESS Upon arrival on Thanksgiving day we were informed we MUST produce another form of ID like a utility bill besides our license and credit card because we live in NYC. Even their own FAQs online don't mention this. Hard to find an alternative on the holiday. SCAM FRAUD BOGUS. read more

Back in March 2020 my car was involved in a hit and run. After calling around, looking for different companies to rent from Payless Car Rental was the only helpful one. They are affordable, the cars are clean and the employees are the BEST. Thank You Payless Car Rental for making this horrible time a great one for my family and I. read more

Worst car rental experience while on business. The type of car I reserved was not the car available which forced me to pay an upgrade fee to a larger vehicle. The vehicle provided had a flat tire that left me stranded and caused me to miss a full day of work. I called roadside assistance and they sent someone to fix the flat tire after several hours, the guy shows up only to find the tools to replace the tire are not in the car. Once again I have to get on the phone with roadside assistance at which point they decide to send a tow truck to pick up the car and I'm forced to ride in the tow truck back to the agency to get a different car that wasn't even ready for pick up and staff was unaware of. Again I get on the phone while at the agency and finally I'm able to drive off in a different car after 10 hours of back and forth. Completely unacceptable, rude staff with no sense of urgency whatsoever. I will not use this company again let alone recommend to someone else. read more

Payless Car Rental - Car Rental Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

BEWARE - do not use. Have one person working and same person getting cars . Left the line and went to thrifty Much better and easy No stars really if I could read more

Really feel ripped off. I rented a car along with their GPS. I wasn't even 30 minutes from the airport and a GPS notification came up on the screen "Battery Low" and the GPS "count down" would begin shutting it down in 10 seconds. Once the GPS shut down I would have to go through the entire reprogramming process and after happening about 3 times I ended up unplugging the GPS and stored it into the glove compartment. When I returned the car after a week the women behind the counter told me her max credit authority was $40.00. Since I was catching a plane I decided not to argue and deal with it once I got home. Since I paid $16.99 per day for the GPS I requested a refund and as of now I've gotten no satisfaction from this company. Where is customer service? The responses I've received to date have been really lame. read more

I rented a car from Payless LGA location on September 1st, 2018 at 11:30am. I drove off towards Vermont at about 11:45am. Within less than an hour, the car front right tire had a severe blowout and put my life at risk. After the accident, I contacted the roadside emergency number listed on my contract, but all the representative told me was for me to return the car at the closet rental location, which was 50 miles away. A road assistance service by NY State Department of Transportation passed by and helped me changed the spare tire. However, there was low tire pressure warning on the car so I didn't feel safe driving the rental for 50 miles back to the rental location. Therefore I called the roadside assistance at Payless to request a tow truck. The truck driver ended up dropping me off at EWR airport, which is dozens of miles away from LGA airport where I originally got my car. I went to the rental counter at EWR and asked for proper solution and compensation for my accident. The counter manager dropped any charge from renting the car itself, but refused to help me with anything else or any compensation. All I requested was a ride home to Queens, because I was not supposed to be dropped off at EWR. I then called the Payless customer service number and was connected to the call center. I wanted to make sure that I won't be charged for the towing fee because the accident was entirely due to lack of inspection of my rental car, and that I will be reimbursed for my cost to get home. The call receiver said all he could do was to open a service ticket for me and there was nothing else he could do. I asked him to transfer me or to give me a number to management who can help me with my questions but he kept responding me with "there's nothing I can do". I called the customer service line again today, and was connected to the same call center. The person who answered my call was extremely rude and refused to explain why I need to wait for my response or why I have received an email notification saying I have a response yet there has been none on his side. He gave me the number of Payless LGA, but it ended up connecting me to the same call center again. My experience with Payless is extremely disappointing and the accident put my life to severe danger. I do not think a integrated business should treat customers in this way. It's been more than 48 hours since the accident and I still have not heard back from anyone. read more

If I could give zero stars, I would. Very questionable business practices and poor customer service. If you don't mind getting ripped off and tricked, then by all means, go to Payless. We booked with Payless (through Southwest Airlines website) because they were the least were expensive rental car company for our dates in Newark. Also, they are a partner of Southwest Airlines, with whom we are Rapid Rewards Members. When we got to the Payless counter, with our confirmation, the Payless employee said there was no such reservation. My husband had the confirmation email on his phone and showed it to her. She continued to say we had no reservation, even though we clearly had the confirmation email. She said, "Because we do not have the kind of car you reserved, the reservation is void." She did not offer us an upgrade at no additional charge, as EVERY OTHER RENTAL CAR COMPANY DOES for us when the car we reserve is unavailable. I told my husband to call Payless corporate customer service while I called Southwest Airlines. When I said this, the Payless employee said, "You shouldn't bother. There is nothing they can do for you. We DON'T HAVE THE CAR YOU RESERVED." I called Southwest Airlines customer service and the rep I talked to was appalled and talked to a Southwest supervisor, who then contacted Payless corporate (while my husband was on hold with Payless corporate). Southwest Airlines told me to go ahead and see if I could rent another car from another company or see if I could rent another car from Payless and that they would help me later, to make it right. My husband went to another company and found a car. Then, he also checked at Payless, to see what a larger car would cost. We decided to go with Payless because of the price. However, the Payless employee NEVER OFFERED US ANOTHER CAR - EVEN AT A HIGHER PRICE. SHE JUST SAID WE HAD NO RESERVATION. PERIOD. When we came back to return the car, there was a different Payless employee there who recognized our name and apologized for her co-worker, telling us the co-worker's name and that Payless has had a lot of complaints about her. Also, while I was at the counter, ANOTHER CUSTOMER came in and had the EXACT same scenario with his car reservation. The other customer was so upset that he planned on filing a formal complaint. I, too, will be filing a formal complaint with Southwest Airlines (they did no wrong, but we made the reservation through them), Payless Rental Car, and likely the New Jersey attorney general. This place is just a terrible place to do business. They have questionable and unethical business practices at the most and employee incompetence at the least. read more

Don't ever rent a Payless car. I had the most horrific experience with this company in Nicaragua. Brakes failed, the electrical system failed, the windshield wipers did not work properly, etc. And when my windows got stuck half open in the middle of Managua, the Payless representative just asked me: "Sir. do you need to use your windows?". read more

I was over charged for insurance & roadside assistance fee. Unlike the reservation I've made online, the final bill included insurance fee. Do not fall for cheap rate they advertise online, They trick you to come to them, then never explain all the fees and insurance they will charge. No matter how much you make sure you don't want the insurance, it's too late to find your bill to be overcharged and you have no way to contact them. Customer service was prompt but they had no control over the paperwork done in the branch. When I was returning the car, they told me to drop off the paperwork in basket. I was in hurry to get on a plane, however they should have given me the final bill. this is by far worst rental car experience I've ever had. I wasn't even able to get a hold of the branch -no one is answering my call. Shame that this happens in NJ. this country. read more

Do not rent from Payless anywhere. Booked it through Travelocity, but the price guaranteed was misleading. They did indeed keep the "daily rate" as advertised but then they added all kinds of hidden fees. DO NOT RENT from them--a shady company as someone said. read more

They are hidden in the corner of Budget panel. A young black lady with glasses was the only one here when we arrived at 12.45pm. She was on the phone for over 10 minutes. It is understandable if you are talking about business operations but the least you can do while being the only one on duty and customers waiting in line is to acknowledge them briefly and tell them that you will be with them SHORTLY. And maybe, just maybe, you have the capacity to comprehend that your job is about customer service and tell whoever is on the phone that you would call them back. If it is an emergency, I guess you should hang up and dial 911, but it doesn't seem that way from you enjoying this conversation for 10+ mins calmly. The drama did not end there. As she checks us out finally, she gave us a speech about how she is entitled to serve us the way she did and raised her voice so that the hall of other rental agencies' staff can hear what a great example she just made. Let me finish by saying that she gave us the dirtiest smallest car and the sunglasses holder was broken. The end, Payless. Alas, never again read more

Contrary to all the negative reviews, I had a very positive experience at Payless at EWR. Every other rental car company was charging around $95 for a car and Payless charged $25. What a huge difference! There were no hidden fees - they try to sell you gas and insurance, but every rental car company does that. Nice customer service. Easy to pick up and return at the Budget counter - right off of the AirTrain station along with other more name brand rental companies. The car had several scrapes and dings, but it drove fine. read more

I rented a car, and by accident my threw away receipt.. I have been corresponding for the last 15 days to get a copy, and all the responses have been that they cannot locate my reservation, to please send reservation #. How can I send a number when I don't have a receipt. They can't seem to find it by my name and when and where it was picked up and returned...Funny, they had no problem charging my credit card.. Looking into getting a lawyer read more

This was he worse car rental experience I've ever had. I had made the reservation nearly a month prior through Expedia. I was supposed to pick up the vehicle at 3:30. The woman who waited on me reluctantly, was eating her lunch and seemed annoyed that I was disturbing her. She kept rolling her eyes. She said that there as no car available for me because a car had not ben returned. I had to wait nearly an hour and a half to get a car that was dented and scratched and had and had a door ajar light as well as a requires maintenance light on throughout the time I had the car. In addition there was no booklet in the car. With the hour and a half delay, I was stuck in horrific rush hour traffic, which I had wanted to avoid!!! When I checked my visa card for the charges, they had overcharged me by $87. The Newark Payless should not be in business. They lie and they cheat their customers.. If I could give them a minus 5, I would. read more