US car renters find toll fees too high

Some US car renters are becoming frustrated with what they see as rapidly rising toll fees, usually charged by car hire companies and included directly on a client’s final bill. Many major car rental companies in the US have now adopted a system, whereby drivers can bypass toll booths and no longer need to look for cash in order to use major highways or bridges, as a camera simply registers their car’s license plate, allowing the renter’s account to be billed automatically for the correct amount. Although this can make renting and driving much more convenient, some who have hired a car in Texas, and have driven along Highway 121 found that they were being overcharged. According to Dallas-based NBC5, passing through these tolls more than a couple of times may actually cost more than the basic rental fee of an economy class vehicle. For example, one client quoted by the news channel noted that while the original price of passing through a toll should have been 75 cents, she was actually charged an additional $40 service charge by Advantage Rent A Car. After having passed through the poll on numerous occasions, her final bill stood at over $197. One of the renter’s friends also reported that he was billed an additional $40 for each time he passed through a toll.

According to Advantage, the $40 service fee is used to pay for the costs of tracking vehicles that pass through tolls. Additionally, Advantage appears to be doing nothing unethical, as clients are all required to sign a contract, which stipulates that the firm may actually charge as much as $100 for passing through tolls along this stretch of highway 121. Part of the problem is that the companies that operate the tolls may charge a penalty if the full laissez-passer fee is not paid immediately. The transportation authority in Texas has now agreed to look into this problem and to cooperate with rental firms in order to bring down these costs.

www.advantage.com