Wost company ever. I booked a trip to West Palm Beach Florida October 2020 to visit in December 2020. I used Orbitz to book flight, hotel and car. I thought it was all done. Then I needed to extend my trip by 2 days so I called each company to make the arrangements. Sixt told me that I would have to cancel my reservation, forfeit my payment, re book and repay. I should have known then how terrible they at that point, but continued on…. I initiated a dispute with Citi. However, I was able to talk to someone that transferred my existing reservation and add the additional days needed, so all was right in my world again, and I canceled the dispute.
December comes, I pack, fly and arrive to West Palm Beach to visit my elderly parents – woohoo! I arrive at Sixt to pick up the car, and they told me that the reservation had been canceled since I didn’t pay my credit card bill. The manager shouted this across the room and would not come to the station where we were. The customer service woman, I believe her name began with a D, (sweet woman with a really nice smile) was trying her best to help me, but their policy states that she can do nothing. The manager kept insisting, loudly and from across the room, that I didn’t pay my credit card bill and I would have to rebook my reservation paying the current charges right now. I pulled up my Citi Visa app on my phone and showed them that they had been paid $260.49 on October 4. You would think that could have been the end of the issue. He stated that I could call the Sixt billing department and they would be able to help me or call my credit card company to dispute the charge. I assured him that I would do just that.
The gal booked my reservation. I told her that the original reservation had an addition driver and was $260 for a RAV4. She informed me that they could not do that and I would have to pay $618.79 for the same rental…. $200 is a security deposit and would be returned to me if the car came back in the same shape as when I drove off the lot. She also said she would credit the additional driver, as a credit, but that never happened. Furious, frustrated, and more importantly, stranded, I took the vehicle and tried to enjoy my vacation and my family.
When it was time to return the car, I called Sixt customer service to verify the location of the drop off. I did not trust the company, as I am sure you can imagine, and wanted to make sure I was going to be able to get to the airport. I was told that the drop off location was the airport, and if no one was at the desk, to just park the car somewhere in the lot and leave the keys on the desk. WHAT? Where do I park the car? What if someone takes the keys or tows the car? Convinced that this individual is new and doesn’t know what he is talking about, I called back. The second individual, Steven, told me that I would have to return it to the location where I picked the car up, on Bristol Street, and unfortunately there was no shuttle to the airport. WHAT? I rented from the airport to return to the airport because how else would I get to the airport? I asked Steven how I was supposed to get from the drop off location to the airport, he said he didn’t know, maybe call a cab. This is not a very safe area at 5am for a woman to be standing around outside waiting for a cab. Shocked, I had my elderly father drive me to the location that afternoon so I could return the car, and I arranged for an Uber driver to take me to the airport at 5am the next morning. Furious at this company for the lack of professionalism, serious lack of customer service, deceit and insane policies, I just wanted to be done with them.
The same gal was working when I checked the car in. She informed me that there was a shuttle that gets to the location about 6 am, so it may have been there at 5. Well, I was so over this company by this point. I certainly was not leaving, hoping there was shuttle the next day, after bothering my father to drive the 90 minute round trip highway adventure on I95 at rush hour. Can you imagine if I had waited to drop the car off at 5am and HOPED that they had a shuttle? How would I get to the airport if they didn’t? and if no one was there, since they don’t open till 6, how would I have returned the car? This is the most discombobulated, unprofessional company I have ever seen. She informed me again that the charge would most likely be $418 since the $200 was their protection, and as long as I returned the car in perfect condition with a full tank of gas, I would only be charged $418. I reminded her that I had already paid $260. back in October and would be disputing this full charge. She apologized for the entire event, said she would do the same thing, and wished me luck. I should probably also ask for my Uber driver amount too but don't want to have any more dealings with this company.