AVOID BUDGET CAR RENTAL SA AT ALL COSTS!

On 13th March 2025, we rented a vehicle from Budget Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport and were sold Extended Roadside Assistance as an extra. On Sunday 16th March, our way back to Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport the vehicle broke down. I telephoned the Roadside Assistance number and stressed the urgency of the situation as this was around 14:20 and our flight departed at 17:05. They told me that they would get back to me and, eventually, having had to call back, they informed that they were sending a tow truck from Nelspruit. I informed them that, if we had to wait for a tow truck, we would miss our flight. Again, after having HAD to call back, I was informed that they were sending a vehicle from their Skukuza branch. Again, I informed them that would take too long, and we would miss our flight. I enquired as to why a vehicle wasn’t being sent from Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport branch, especially as we were only 30 minutes away from it, and was told that there was only one person on duty, and he couldn’t leave the desk. I asked for the contact details for the person bringing the vehicle from Skukuza and was told that it would be WhatsApped to me. After twenty minutes and not having received the contact details, I again called back only to discover that the person I had been dealing with had finished for the day and gone home.

Eventually the vehicle from Skukuza arrived, by which time we had had to change our flights to the following day (as that was the next flight to Cape Town) and had to book accommodation for the night at a total cost of almost R25K for the six of us. When I returned the replacement vehicle to the Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport branch, I discovered that there were two people on duty so a vehicle could have been brought from there. I was given the e-mail of Sam Lamani, the Regional Manager for Budget and e-mailed him the above requesting compensation.

He subsequently made three telephone calls to me and, during the first call, apologised to me saying “this wasn’t the way that Budget did business and the matter could have been handled a lot better.” He also asked me whether I would accept 50% of the additional expense we had incurred as compensation.

That was on the 31st March and in a subsequent e-mail he also said he would arrange for the return of my deposit which I hadn’t received.

On Friday 4th April I received the e-mail below from him: “Thank you for your patience while we reviewed the details of your request. We can see that our team jumped on it right away after you reached out, and we resolved things within 2-hour window, even considering it was after hours and needed a bit of extra coordination since the breakdown agent was not in the office. Given that, and because our standard policy does not cover accommodation bookings in situations like this (as we mentioned during our call), we will not be able to offer a credit for this instance. We totally get that this situation might have been a hassle, and we really appreciate your understanding of our processes.” Budget are very quick to sell add-ons (as are most rental companies) but do not believe that they are required to offer the service that you paid for. Considering that I collected the vehicle on a Thursday and was returning it on a Sunday the chances of the break down cover coming into effect after hours was high. Budget’s website also states that “If you have an emergency or require roadside assistance, or in the unlikely event that your rental vehicle breaks down, please contact us on the 24 hour number below” If it is a 24 hour operation, but I was told that our breakdown was out of hours.

To add insult to injury, I am still waiting for the return of my deposit although I have received a further e-mail today stating that my deposit will be in my account within 3 to 5 working days. That will be over four weeks after the return of the vehicle.

My advice to anyone considering using Budget based on my experience is not to touch them with a barge pole. From the moment we broke down I was **** to and to say that “our team jumped on it right away” is incredible considering that initially I was given an apology and told that the situation could have been handled much better.