Self-drive in South Island, New Zealand: Christchurch to Queenstown.

Quite satisfied

The rental process was very smooth, and the car was in good condition, although the exterior was a bit dusty. The interior was quite clean. Returning the car at Queenstown Airport was easy; just hand the keys to the staff. The staff member who helped me was a middle-aged woman, and she was very nice.

The car was in great condition and very new.

At the time of pick-up, the rental company did not mention that we needed to clean the car, nor did they state that there would be a fee for not doing so. The counter staff indicated that the rental fee had been prepaid and there would be no additional charges. The credit card was only for a security deposit. They also mentioned that since we had purchased full insurance, there would be no need for a vehicle inspection upon return, just hand over the keys. We were very careful with the car and did not go to any particularly dirty places. The car was not dirty at the time of return, just in a normal condition after use. The rental company did not inspect the vehicle upon return nor asked us to confirm the car's condition. The counter staff asked if we had refueled, and we confirmed that we had. We asked if they needed to check, but the counter staff said it was not necessary. However, as soon as we got off the plane, we found out Ezi had charged us NZD 255. Upon returning home, we contacted the rental platform, who informed us it was a cleaning fee! Ezi never mentioned this fee at any point. The counter's Chinese lady was very friendly and clear in her explanation, but why didn’t she mention the cleaning fee? This amount is enough for a full car polish. Please help us file a complaint with the rental platform. They asked us for evidence, but because there were no issues at the time of return, we had already deleted the photos. I want to ask, if there’s no inspection at pick-up or drop-off, why shouldn’t the party charging the fee provide the evidence? I will continue to follow up on this issue with the rental platform. But a word of caution to future users, beware of the dishonest Ezi. Always keep photos of the car's interior and exterior for some time!

Required to purchase local insurance