When an upgrade results in lower quality
More than a dozen times a year I rent a car while on a business trip. That puts me in the "Five Star Gold #1" Hertz loyalty category, two steps above a #1 Club cardholder and two or three steps below car rental nirvana.
The implication is that I would get a nicer, lower mileage vehicle than the once-a-year renter on vacation. There is more flexibility with the rental procedure, the ability to walk right out to the car, potential upgrade of a car class. The streamlined procedure is great, the upgrades were spotty.
I have been pretty satisfied with the five-star benefits as they affect my travel needs over the past half-dozen years.
BUYING INTO THE PRESIDENT'S CIRCLE
If you rent 40 times a year, you are admitted to the President's Circle (PC). Guaranteed one car class upgrade, up to Prestige. Guaranteed rental car with a reservation made as late as two hours before pickup.
Last year, Hertz offered the ability to buy into the PC level for about the price of a two/three day rental.
PRESIDENT'S CIRCLE CARS: TIRED AND DIRTIER
For 2008 the premium vehicles I drove were Toyota Avalons and Mercury Grand Marquis. Two of the three Avalons were traded out, they had "service needed" notices on start-up. Got a fairly new Impala (nice) and a Equinox.
The third Avalon had the same light come on during the rental. All of the Avalons were tired. The four Gran Marquis also had high mileage but were in better shape.
Gran Marquis sell best to the 60+ year olds in Florida, not my idea of a premium car. I also drove a Cadillac DTS and a Toyota RAV4.
As a 2007 five star member I drove Impala, Taurus, two Volvo crossovers, a Buick Lacrossee and two Cadillac STSs. The cars were lower mileage and in better shape. During 2008 the average age of the Hertz fleet stretched sixty days, leading to a ten month average vehicle age.
A far cry from the cash-rich days of renting directly from the Prestige Collection: Audi S4 and A6; Jaguar S type and X type; Cadillac XLR, Volvo S80, Lincoln LS, and Land Rover LR3.
The high point was renting a 2006 Shelby GT-H with just 20 miles on the odometer in San Francisco. A blissful, and nerve-racking, 250 miles. See earlier blog (HERE)
SERVICE AND PROBLEM SOLVING
The scope of travel service amenities continues to shrink. Hertz has significantly reduced the grace period for vehicle returns and been creative with the fuel option. They are much more aggressive in identifying vehicle damage and charging the repair to the renter.
Part of this is due to the change in resource allocation. When owned by Ford Motor Company, most of the vehicles were "program cars." They were OEM contract cars that moved from the rental car fleet after about 15,000 miles. Hertz did not have to worry about depreciation or disposal.
Now 72% of the Hertz vehicles are "at risk," owned by Hertz Global Holdings. Hertz carries the depreciation and has to sell the vehicles. Over the past year at risk cars have been kept longer and with less maintenance, which helped the company save $313 mm in incremental costs in 2008. It also explains my experience with 22+K shopworn Avalons needing service.
The benefit of a President Club membership is not so much an expansion of service but less impact on the reduction of service imposed on non-elite customers.
CHICAGO SEPTEMBER STORMS
Thunderstorms and flooding created days of havoc. When I went to pick up a car there was a forty person line stretching out of the Gold kiosk. The gold lot was almost empty, with a steady stream of quickly turned cars, still dripping after a quick car wash, showing up every few minutes.
When I got to the front of the desk I was assigned one of the few cars parked in a reserved space. No further waiting, a Grand Marqus with NeverLost. Wow!
HAVE WE GOT A DEAL FOR YOU IN 2009
Joe Brancatelli wrote about Secret Societies for Portfolio.com last year, describing the ultra-level of travel service that is invitation-only. (HERE) " … And Hertz Car Rental has a secret society so exclusive that one of the company's long-time executives didn't know the color of the card (platinum) or how many renters had one (fewer than 10,000)."
Not any more. This year Hertz is offering anyone the opportunity to become a Platinum member. Besides having the rental car personally delivered to you at the airport, it also offers:
- Guaranteed vehicle availability worldwide
- Guaranteed vehicle upgrades
- Personalized concierge service on every rental
- Private car service back to your departure terminal
- A four-hour grace period on your returns
Not a Gold member? No problem, $1,500 will buy you instant access. President Circle members will need to pay $1,200. Valid through the end of 2009.
I will not be writing about the Platinum experience next year.
Mike "FossilMedic" Ward
Also on FireGeezer…
- Winter Carnival Travel Tips – November 13, 2011
- The Comfort of Consistent Mediocracy – October 23, 2011
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