~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SANDY SANDFORT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C'punks, On Sat, 19 Oct 1996, Black Unicorn wrote:
Curious about this policy I went out to rent a few cars this week with a new check card from a local D.C. bank.
Here were my results:
Avis: Refused Hertz: Refused initally, but accepted after coaxing Thrifty: Refused National: Refused Alamo: Refused, got quite impolite after coaxing Enterprise: Accepted, but only because the teller barely spoke english Dollar: Closed
In San Francisco, my experience has been different. I have used a Visa debit (check) card to rent cars from both Enterprise and Thrifty (and maybe Dollar, I don't remember how I paid for that one). No one even blinked. (It's a "gold" debit card, but I doubt that makes any difference.) Maybe it's a regional thing.
Just TRY, however, to rent a car with real cash. ... Cash is dead.
TRUE STORY--I've used cash to rent vehicles a couple of times, though not recently. The most interesting was on a trip to Arizona a dozen years, or so, ago. I flew into Phoenix and needed transportation up to Flagstaff. I didn't have ANY credit cards at the time. When I went to the car rental counter, I didn't mention my lack of credit cards before the young woman behind the counter had filled out all the forms. I wanted her to have an investment in the transaction. When she asked for my credit card, I told her I didn't have one and would make a cash deposit. I had plenty of extra cash for that purpose. Evidently, she had never done a cash transaction. She told me that I would have to make a deposit of $30 (!) and would need two forms of photo ID. Well, I had a California license and no other official ID. I asked her if a company ID would suffice. When she said it would, I pulled out the "Bank Courier" ID card I had made with my own two little hands. It had my signature, description, photo and this legend on the back: "This identification not valid without red bank seal stamped on reverse." Tho rental clerk read the legend, turned the card over, saw the faint red bank seal stamp, nodded her head and processes the rental agreement. For $30, I was the keys for a brand new car worth thousands of dollars. I was within 200 driving miles of the Mexican border. After I drove away, I realized that the woman had been so flustered by the cash transaction that she had forgotten to have me sign the rental agreement. (Upon returning the car the next day, I pointed out the omission to her and asked if she would like for me to sign then. In a low conspiratorial voice she ernestly asked me to do so. Life is strange. S a n d y ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~