Budget Car & Truck Rental

In general I had a good experience with them. We got upgraded, which I didn't really want but as it was we left an hour late because they couldn't give us the car we requested. After that all was well. Excellent, clean vehicle and no problems on drop off. Staff was courteous.
8 years ago (31-10-2017)

The skills of the staff here vary by a lot. Some don't even know how to use their own system. A car from Budget hit my car a drove off. I called Budget after it happened and the person who I spoke to was able to look up the car with the description and partial plates I provided. She wasn't able to give out any information, due to privacy of the customer (understandable). She said made a note on the file and they will contact ICBC when the driver returns the car. I went on and filed my claim with ICBC. A week later, I didn't hear back so I gave them a call. The person I spoke to tried to look up car but ended up giving me a number to call their claims department. The person at the claims department (who was difficult to get a hold of) told me he couldn't look up the car and wouldn't do anything until ICBC sent them a letter (ICBC told me they wouldn't be able to do that unless they had a full license plate). I asked if he was able to even do a search for a car of the make and colour in Victoria that had those similar plates. He refused to and said it was too many to go through. I called Budget again a few more times (their general line and the downtown one). All of them claiming they couldn't look this car up because it would be too many to go through. The manager I spoke to at the downtown branch was extremely rude and aggressive about it and kept telling me that he can't give me any information. I told him many times that I understand that but he kept interrupting. I only wanted him to report the claim or investigate why there wasn't a call to ICBC about it. When asked to look up the car, he said he couldn't and didn't know how and even asked me how I knew to look for him (he's a manager, isn't it his job to handle things that get escalated to him?). He told me to call claims but, as mentioned above, I've already done that and they refused to help me. I'm not convinced that they can't look up the car because the first person I spoke to was able to find the car. I regret not asking her for her name so I can speak with her again. I also regret not calling the police about it and putting my trust in Budget. The damage wasn't big, so I didn't want to go through the police since I thought Budget would do their part. I guess this is a $300 (deductible) lesson learned to never use Budget again. I understand these people not tech workers, but at the very least, they should be trained to use their own system. Some of the regular staff seem pretty nice and pleasant to talk to though. Definitely not the manager at the downtown branch.
8 years ago (23-11-2017)

I rent from budget every time I travel to victoria, b.c. The service is overall good, staff is pleasant and friendly. Unfortunately I don't always get the vehicle I want but its been ok. My recent rental experience was a 2 week rental . The main problem was the smell of the car and the cleaning agent that was used in the vents to mask the smell. Due to the long weekend, I was given a mid size car rather than a compact . There were no compacts available at all. When I turned on the heating/ air con , there was a sudden burst of white matter that sprayed all over the interior of the car, leaving a white residue all over the dashboard. I didn't think much about it initially, but every passenger that rode in the car complained about the smell . After about a week into my rental period, I developed a persistent dry cough which got worse towards the end of the 2 weeks that I had the car. I didn't think much about it, until a friend asked what the white stuff was all over the dashboard. I told her it came out of the vents when I first rented the car.. she was concerned that my cough may be a result of this substance that was in the ventilation system of the car. When I returned the car, I pointed this out to the person who inspected the car. He was surprised to see the white substance and said he would make a note of it. It's been 7 days since I returned the vehicle and I still have a dry cough. I'm not a difficult customer which is why I did not return the car right after seeing the white substance. Next time I will make my health a priority.
8 years ago (25-10-2017)

rent from those people instead, NATIONAL in front of them is a total SCAM, don't trust them EVER
7 years ago (22-02-2018)

I get the whole liability for N drivers but that's bogus. You should have it written on the website stating you cannot rent the car to an N driver.. my boyfriend wasted half hour going downtown thinking he would have a car only to be told he wasn't get a car rental.
8 years ago (21-09-2017)