JC
Jesse C

1 reviews | Active since May 2016

04 May 2016, 16:23

Rental cost thrice the expected price/ terrible service

Last week I rented a vehicle from Woodford Cape Town- what a joke. I booked and paid a deposit for a single cab bakkie (with canopy) online through the Woodford site , 6 weeks in advance (total rental cost just over R2k). I then received a confirmation call from them, stating all is in order and that the vehicle will be ready at the stipulated date. The week before I was due to collect, I started receiving calls, confirming the order, which is when I was also told that the bakkie "may or may not have a canopy attached". I explained that the canopy was not optional, it was essential that the back was enclosed. I was then offered an SUV for the same rate, which I accepted. Although the SUV was suitable for my intended usage, if a customer books a vehicle six weeks in advance, I can see no reason for the ambiguity. I collected the car, noting a few scratches on the paintwork, and numerous chips on the windscreen. The car was great and all was fine. I filled the car and returned it on Monday this week. The gent accepted the car and I signed that all was in order. This is when the real issues started: Today I received two SMS's from my bank stating that two amounts, in excess of R3,000 and R600 had been deducted by Woodford. I called their CT office to query, and Ricardo told me that his system was slow and that he'd call back in 10 mins. He never called back, but sent me an invoice showing that I had been charged the following: Rate charge in excess of R1000 (which I had already paid when I collected the car) Fuel charge AND top up fee of approx R100 (although I returned the vehicle with a full tank and was signed off by Woodford as such) Contract fee of R50 (which I paid when I collected the car) "Damages" of over R3000 (no explanation, description or invoices, proof of cost etc) Auto valet of R450 (the car was dusty so I accept this, although I assumed it was part of the vehicle rental service) Airport taxes and tourism levy (which I paid when I collected the car) I called Ricardo back to get some explanation of what exactly these unspecified damages were, and to ask why I was being double charged, as well as why I was being charged for these ancillary, unnecessary things like a refueling fee. Again he promised to call me back, which he did not. I called again 45 minutes later, which is when he very rudely told me that he "has a queue of people waiting and that he doesn't have time to deal with this now" and that he'd call me back at some indeterminate future date. Woodford, if you plan on charging customers three times what they originally intended on paying for a rental, with absolutely no supporting documents, explanations, courtesy calls or even dedicated customer care person, Ricardo's long line of customers are all going to be throwing their toys out the cot, much like I am. The way you've handled this makes you look like a bunch of amateurs, with absolutely no idea what you're doing- just simply trying to make a plan at the last minute every time. I demand answers to the above.

0
Replies (0)