I had to go to Philadelphia for Passover and I’m not even Jewish. I rented an Alamo car at the airport for a couple of days. I always rent from Alamo and don’t know why. Maybe because of those cool “All the miles are free” commercials back in the 90s.

Alamo’s online “estimate” for the rental was $223.28. MasterCard billed me about $335.

I’m not surprised there was a screwup because when I returned the car the lady who logs in the returns out in the lot said her portable receipt machine wasn’t working and I had two choices: get a receipt at the kiosk (which meant schlepping two sets of luggage ‘way across the lot and lining up) or have the receipt emailed to me. I fell for the easy way.

When the bill from MasterCard arrived, I emailed Alamo to ask what’s up and back came the answer:

Thank you for your email. I have reviewed the account and you were charged for our Fuel Service Option and two additional hours. Being that the car was returned on a full tank of gas you received a credit for the difference. The credit of $39.47 was processed and will appear on your credit card within seven to ten business days. I will like to apologize for the misunderstandings and I have attached an update receipt to this email. If you have any other quesitons or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Hmm. I wrote back:

Thanks,
I‘m a little puzzled about the two extra hours, too. I think it was the reverse and that I returned the car two hours before it was due. The lady who was checking in the cars in the lot did not have her receipt machine, or at least it wasn’t working. I suspect that someone in your crew got around to logging it in a few hours later. I could have marched over to the building to get a receipt but I was hauling luggage for two and the shuttle bus stopped right where we were and the driver, very nice guy, waved us in, and off we went. It never occurred to me that I wouldn’t receive the promised email receipt.

Quick as a flash, this came in:

Thank you for your email. I apologize if there was an error with the charges on your account, also I understand fully your concern with the luggage and the fact that the shuttle was present at the time. However, it is best to always get a receipt for your rental so that we can discuss any charges at that time. If you have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Moving on, there’s just one question: Hertz or Avis?