Tampa transplant Valdy Dobrila rented a Fiat in Venice and drove to his hometown in Croatia. Avis charges around $40 a day for the rental that Valdy drove for about 2 weeks.
The Avis bill shows 245 Euros for the tiny Fiat or about $300. On the flight back to Tampa, American Express texted Dobrila that Avis attempted to charge his card $6,000. He thought it was a mistake until the Amex bill arrived two weeks later.
It turns out company charged this customer $6,000 for a one-way drop fee. Dobrila says he asked Avis if he could return the car in Croatia, not Venice where he rented it and was told it would be no problem.
This veteran traveler says no one warned him about the crazy one-way fee. Calls and emails to Avis got Dobrila nowhere. So we contacted the company’s corporate offices to ask about the $6,000 fee.
Within a week Avis apologized to their customer and refunded the entire fee back onto his credit card.
The next time you rent a car in the U.S. or anywhere, and aren't planning a round trip, try bidding on Priceline or go to AutoSlash to get the lowest rental rates. Or check out the website www.carhire3000.com. Their deal with the U.S. car rental sites may help you avoid the big one-way drop fee.
