What’s the Deal With Car Reservations?
July 16, 2014Oscar Wilde once wrote “Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates life.” As though this statement needed any proof, my recent trip to a rental car agency proved to be a reenactment of a classic Seinfeld episode. Several months ago, I reserved a minivan in anticipation of a family trip to the West Coast. Upon arriving at the rental car agency, I was told that there were no minivans available. How could this be? They knew what I needed. They knew when I would be there. So why would they not have a car waiting for me?
In the Seinfeld episode, Jerry settles for a smaller vehicle but in my case, a smaller vehicle would not do. So what would you do if this happened to you? Here’s what I did—you may want to imitate it.
Tip #1 – Don’t get angry
It would be very easy and reasonable for me to get angry with the rental car agent but it’s not as though the agent thought, “I’m going to make sure there are no minivans here when Greg arrives.” The agent is not responsible for the car not being there. Sadly, this doesn’t stop some people who take a situation like this as a personal attack and lay into the unfortunate soul that happened to be working that day. I see it at the airport all the time but seldom does this do anything more than create an unhealthy rise in blood pressure.
Tip #2 – Ask for alternatives
I recognized that no matter how much I wanted the minivan to be there, it was not going to magically show up so I calmly asked the agent for my alternatives. The agent offered me other vehicles but unfortunately none of them was acceptable. The agent then directed me to another agency that according to the agent, was the parent company of the agency I was attempting to rent from. The agent told me that they may have minivans available and assured me that they would honor the rate I was quoted. So based on the agent’s suggestion, I proceeded to the other rental car agency but alas, they too did not have any minivans available. When I asked about alternatives, the agent suggested that I go back to the first agency and ask to speak with a supervisor but when I asked to speak with a supervisor, the supervisor wasn’t in.
Tip #3 – Be proactive
At this point, I had to remind myself of tip #1. Dejected, I sat down and contemplated my next move. How am I going to resolve this issue? Is there anyone I can call? Even if I could, what would they be able to do? If there are no minivans available then there are no minivans available.
I thought I was defeated but then it dawned on me. Maybe a competitor would be willing to match the rate in order to win my business. I see ads for retailers doing this all the time so why wouldn’t a rental car agency do it?
With renewed confidence, I walked up to the counter of the nearest competitor and asked them if they had minivans. They did! I asked them if they would match a competitor’s rate. They couldn’t give me the exact same rate but they did knock off $100 a week, which put them just $20 a week more than my current rate. Close enough! I signed the rental agreement with the agent at the counter and proceeded toward the parking lot to pick up my minivan.
Now you might be wondering why I’m telling you all of this in a financial blog. As I mentioned earlier, many people get frustrated when things don’t go according to their plans and as a result, they get angry.
For example, what if in disgust I walked up to the competitor to inquire about renting a minivan without asking for a price match? I might have paid anything out of sheer desperation but it would have unnecessarily cost me a few hundred dollars. What if I got in the car and drove recklessly out of the lot? I saw this happen once when a driver got frustrated waiting in a line and bolted into another lane, hitting the car next to them.
In the end, good things come to those who are patient. When I told the parking lot attendant I was there to pick up a minivan, he told me there were none available but asked if I would mind a free upgrade. I said as long as it could hold six people that would be fine. He proceeded to hand me the keys to a brand new 2015 Chevy Suburban—room for eight—and said his manager would kill him if he knew he was letting me take it off the lot.
If he only knew how much I was paying for it, he would know how right he was. And here’s the kicker: even though my weekly rate was higher, my total still came out less than my original reservation. Now how’s that for a fairytale ending?