Rip-off artists.

When collecting the car I asked the consultant at the OR Tambo AVIS branch if it is better to fill up the vehicle with petrol when I return it or not. She strongly advised that I should fill up the car before I drop it off. On my return I filled up the vehicle at the Engen Sky Stop at OR Tambo. I filled up with 35.97 litres (as this is what I used on my trip). When I handed the keys over I advised the consultant that I had filled up the car and was not expecting a charge for fuel. Well what was I thinking, of course I would be charged!!!

When I received my final statement there was a charge of R619 for 45 litres of petrol. The car only takes 45 litres, so it was clear to me that no one took the time to check if the car was filled and simply added the charge. I imagine this happens with every car which is returned to Avis. When I queried this on the 28/03/2018 I was advised that an investigation had to take place, again clear that NO one took the time to check the vehicle before invoicing out, and this would take 3 to 4 working days. When I asked why it would take this long to check if a vehicle was filled with petrol, I was advised that it could take less time and I would receive a e-mail. Well of course not, what was I thinking. I ended up calling back today (5/4/2018) only to find out that the "investigation" was done and I would receive a refund. My assumption was that the refund would take a further 5 days, my assumption was correct. I was again informed that I would get a email confirming a refund of R582 from an administrator. So even though I was charged R619, my refund will only be R582. This again could not be explained, I imagine I am being charged for the investigation. Still no email from AVIS!!

Now I understand that R37 is not a lot of money, however take that and multiply it by every customer they *******, which I can imagine is pretty much every customer.

I love the business model of Avis though, let me break it down for them. They take your money off when you collect the car, they then hold this money in their account for at least 10 days (5 days to investigate and then 5 days to refund). So they are earning interest and "admin fee" (assuming that is the charge of the R37 I lost) from pretty much every customer that rents a car.

I find it amazing how Avis thinks every person that rents from them are stupid, because what they do is so clear, obvious and simply disgusting!! I will definitely not be using them again and will also advise anyone looking to rent a vehicle to stay clear of AVIS!!