‘I’m angry’: Driver says rental car company tacked on fee she wasn’t expecting

CHARLOTTE — A Charlotte rented a car before flying to Florida but when she got to the counter to pick it up, she says the company tacked on a fee she wasn’t expecting.

Nancy Monto says she flew from Charlotte to Orlando to surprise her father for his 90th birthday.

She landed and went to pick up her rental car from the company Zezgo.

“And they said my insurance was not sufficient. And I said, ‘Why? It’s full coverage,’” she told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke. “I questioned it, but I couldn’t ... they’re not going to rent me the vehicle if I didn’t and I was stuck there because I didn’t have … my family lives two hours from Orlando.”

She says she paid $122 for the insurance.

In addition, she says Zezgo asked for a $250 refundable deposit. She got a sedan and drove off. “I figured I would dispute it later and maybe I could get my money back,” she said.

Monto says a few days later, she dropped the car off without seeing a real person and flew back to Charlotte. She called the business. “I said, ‘Did you get the keys? Everything good with the car? I locked it’… They said, ‘Everything’s fine. You’ll get your deposit back in a few days,’” she said.

She says that didn’t happen. “They said, ‘Oh, the vehicle had a smell so we’re charging you for the smell in the vehicle.’ And I said, ‘Your vehicle smelled when I got it,’” she said.

“I’m angry,” she said. “I feel I got scammed.”

Monto disputed it with her credit card and complained to Action 9 and Florida’s attorney general. Between the three, she says she got back more than $370 for the insurance and deposit.

At last check on Monday afternoon, the Better Business Bureau gave Zezgo an “F” rating and counted more than 40 complaints against the business in the last 12 months.

Action 9 tried to get in touch with the company since the beginning of last month, but the business didn’t respond in time for this report. Monto says she booked the car as part of a package deal through Priceline, but that company didn’t respond in time for this report either.

No matter what rental company you use:

- Try to drop off the car to a real person if you can and make sure you’re all good and get it in writing.

- The FTC reminds consumers that the advertised rate “may not give you a true picture of the final price you’ll pay.” Watch out for return fees, airport surcharges, out-of-state charges, insurance, and even fees to add a driver.

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