Budget Rent A Car

Honest, timely and considerate are not words I reserve for rent a car places but these guys deserve each one.

I’ve rented cars from this Budget location at the Albany, NY airport several times in the past, and never had any major issues, unlike the experiences of other reviewers.
I make my reservations online, call to confirm the day before arriving, and then grab my luggage and walk out to meet the shuttle bus which takes you to the off-​site rental location. From there, I speak with the rental agent to ask if there are any upgrades available, as there usually are (as long as it’s not track season). Generally a smile and a ‘Thank You’ will make the process a lot easier. Review the terms of the rental agreement on their screen and ask questions if you’re not familiar with what is being offered.
Sign the agreement, grab the keys, and walk out to your assigned parking space. Give the exterior of the car a careful walk around, and take photos if that makes you feel any better. Then load up your luggage, check out the interior, make adjustments to the seat, mirrors, and so on, plug in your GPS or smart phone and off you go.
When you return, follow the directions of the car agents and line up where they point you, Offload your luggage quickly so they can scan the vehicle’s VIN number and process your reservation. Grab your receipt, hop on the shuttle bus, and ride in comfort back to the terminal.
Seems pretty simple to me.

Had a great experience here! Came in on a redirected flight on Christmas Eve at 11pm looking for a car, and Blanca and Gary were so nice in making it happen for me. They really took the time to consider every option since I didn’t have a reservation, and made sure I was taken care of. Excellent staff. Nice selection of cars too, not the usual dodge/​Chrysler everything bit. Most other counters were closed, so bonus points for being open late!

I am frequent traveler. I am usually OK or happy with Budget but not this location. Oh boy! I gave three chances at this location. Clerk sucks! She was lazy and did not bother to get up from her chair to assist. My flight got delayed and I had to rebook the reservation. I mentioned discount code but she refused to make extra steps. The price changed from around $ 50 to $ 120 a day rental. I stepped out and used my iphone to rebook myself. down to $ 50 again! That’s one! When I returned my car, I waited 45 min. in the car to be served. That’s two! Other clerk was the same … lazy not friendly or professional. That’s three strike out! Good Bye Budget!!!

My husband & I picked up a car at Bradley International Airport on a trip to visit relatives and attend a wedding. The 1^st car we loaded up with our luggage & started off in had an engine light on, so we had to swap cars the first time. The people working there couldn’t have been more apologetic & professional. We got another car & used it for 2 days when some big plastic piece came down from under the engine & started dragging on the pavement. We called Budget & had to go an hour out of our way to the Albany Airport to exchange the car, making us late for the rehearsal dinner. We asked that a day be taken off our rental price for the inconvenience. The manager, who was a jerk & totally unprofessional, told us he took off $ 80 (½ of our daily rate!) & if we didn’t like it, to,“call Corporate” & dismissed us. Luckily, Corporate was more than understanding & took off the entire day, with many apologies. DEFINITELY LAST TIME RENTING WITH BUDGET. IF CORPORATE IS SMART, THE WILL FIRE THAT MANAGER.

Rented a new Chevy Impala that was un-​washed, but otherwise ok. I’m a loyalty member through Fast-​Break so this was a big deal for me. What really pissed me off was being charged for fuel service when I had filled up the night before turning the car in. Took a couple of phone calls to the airport location to get a credit for this rip-​off, and credit to my M/​C account was slow.

I called about making a reservation when I knew my flight was going to be landing late. The person on the phone said that when you book online there is a place where you put your flight info, and with that they can see if your flight has arrived and they will stay around until you land. Thats what he SAID, not what they do. They lied. Not only were they closed, but later refused to honor the reservation. On top of that they went ahead and charged my credit card anyway for services they would not provide. Then on top of even that, they wanted to charge another $ 50 to cancel the reservation they refused to honor.
Congratulations Budget, you have lost a customer for life. I wish I could rate them in the negative numbers.

There are certain types of companies out there that seem unapologetic about blatantly ripping you off. And they get away with it because all their fellow competitors play the same games. Some that come to mind: Cable companies, cell phone providers… and perhaps the biggest scammers of all — rental car companies.
What is the F*ING DEAL with the exorbitant refueling fee Budget charges? You don’t bring it back full and they charge you $ 7.89 per gallon?!? (That was my price last weekend in Albany, but it’s similarly obscene at all Budget locations.)
Now I know I promised to bring it back full, and I even signed a contract saying so. Yep, that’s my fault. But contract or not, there is no reason for them to charge nearly FOUR TIMES the market rate except pure ripoff.
I would totally accept a slight markup on this gas since they have to fill it up themselves — maybe $ 1 over market rate? Even $ 2. That’s reasonable. But $ 6? That’s the company saying they’re going to straight-​up pound me in the ass just because they can.
Then they have the nerve to post happy customer-​service slogans on their website about the great «rental experience» you get. What absolute bullshit.
I hate you, Budget.