CAR RENTAL REVIEWS ON AVIS AT SAN FRANCISCO AIRPORT, SFO

We rented cars from this company for three separate legs of our self-driving trip in the USA. We chose this big company for its reputation, and everything went smoothly.

I was initially greeted by an Asian guy who seemed to be in a bad mood that day and was very rude, so I complained and got someone else who was okay. Everything else was great - the process was simple, no upselling, the car was in good condition, and both picking up and dropping off the car were very convenient.

Well, overall I'm satisfied, but they persuaded me to buy an extra $200 worth of insurance. The one I originally booked on the website was only around $500, but I ended up paying an additional $300. I should have researched this more beforehand.

Originally booked a Ford Focus, but was informed at the airport that it wasn't available. After some negotiation, I paid a small fee to upgrade to a Ford Mustang. AVIS had good service, the pickup and return process was convenient, the car was fairly new, and it was in good condition.

The cars from Avis in San Francisco are not very new. When I went to pick up the car, they informed me that the reserved model was not available and gave me a very old Ford instead, claiming it was the only similar model available. If I wanted to change cars, I had to pay extra. I saw many similar models at the pickup point, but after checking and returning to the counter, they still insisted it wasn't the same type and that I had to pay extra. The attendant was Chinese and tried to overcharge me just the same. I thought a big company like Avis wouldn’t have such issues. Finally, after arguing with the manager, they gave me another car, which they claimed was an upgraded Ford Explorer.

We picked up the car at San Francisco Airport on December 28, 2014. The front desk was an Asian guy who didn't speak Chinese at first, but suddenly spoke it when he tried to sell me additional insurance, fearing I might not understand. We originally reserved a Ford Edge, but it was not available upon arrival and we were offered a KIA SUV. I said I didn't like KIA, so they finally gave us a Chevrolet Captiva for the same price. Later, I realized the Captiva is a compact SUV, while the Edge is a standard SUV, and there should have been a price difference, but we were in a hurry and didn't notice. When driving on Highway 1, a small rock chipped the windshield, but it wasn't noticeable unless you looked closely. We didn't mention it when returning the car in Los Angeles, and the return went smoothly. Overall, I'm satisfied with AVIS, but the front desk service at San Francisco Airport could be improved.

All rental companies at San Francisco Airport are in one location, making it very convenient. Plus, AVIS car pickup is on the first floor, which is great. The first staff member we met insisted there were no Mustangs and kept pushing us to upgrade. We went to the car lot and saw numerous Mustangs, so we talked to a different staff member and finally got a Mustang! Los Angeles Airport is not like this – each company is quite far from the others.

The San Francisco airport branch is easy to find, accessible via the blue line shuttle. There are a lot of people in line and the wait time is relatively long, but the prices are comparatively low. The cars provided are new, and the sales agents will try to sell you various insurances. Overall, I'm satisfied.

The service is very convenient, attentive, and fast. The procedures are simple, and both picking up and returning the car are quick. The price is slightly higher than other companies, but you get what you pay for.

Renting a car is easy, the vehicle was as specified, in good condition, and the service was excellent. They offered roadside assistance. Returning the car was smooth.

Convenient and fast, good quality cars that are relatively new, and the car use instructions were explained patiently. However, it is still advised to adapt to the car a bit before hitting the road.

They explained the car model I booked clearly, so it was acceptable.

Returned at the Avis LAX location. It has poor reviews on Yelp, but when I went there, it was not crowded and quite okay.

The San Francisco airport location was extremely busy; we waited for almost an hour. The staff were inefficient, and I saw one woman chatting away with a customer, completely ignoring the line behind. Although the rental cost through zuzuche was 1250 USD, we added insurance for about 90 USD, making the final bill 1420 USD. The staff tried to add various insurances, and you have to negotiate yourself. It's quite troublesome, especially if your English is not good.

I didn't have a good experience with AVIS. The staff seemed to take advantage of customers whose English wasn’t very good. After waiting in line for over an hour, the attendant said he needed to find the car. About 15 to 20 minutes later, he returned and asked how many people and how much luggage I had. I told him the truth and he said he would get me a bigger car. I asked if the upgrade was free, and he nodded. When handling the paperwork, I had some questions about toll fees, so I asked for a Chinese-speaking representative. I also asked her about the upgrade, and she said it wasn’t free; it would cost $17 more per day. I immediately requested no upgrade. The initial male attendant pretended to confirm this and then told me that my reserved car was unavailable and that he had to give me an upgrade, which would cost a total of $14 for 11 days. Since we had already waited a long time and my elderly companions were very tired, I agreed. Later, I found out the Ford Flex they gave me was actually less spacious than the Chrysler Town and Country MPV I originally booked. In summary, it felt like a scam.

Very dissatisfied with the staff handling the rental. We waited in line at the counter at noon, and after half an hour, it was our turn. An older man served us very slowly. Since we had a lot of people and luggage, he said our reserved large car wasn't good and recommended upgrading the model for an extra $30 per day, which seemed reasonable, so we accepted. However, his operation was extremely slow and unfamiliar. He first charged my credit card a pre-authorization of over $4,800. Then he said he made a mistake and needed to cancel, since we upgraded the car model. He charged me $5,800, saying the first charge would be refunded. Later, we found out the $4,800 would be frozen for over two months, causing inconvenience for subsequent expenses. Why not recommend the upgrade before processing the payment? During the transaction, he kept saying he needed to CHECK the car, making us wait at the counter for over four hours. Despite various urgings, he kept saying 'soon'. I'd just flown for 14 hours, was tired and hungry, and nearly fainted. Finally, I complained to the manager, who immediately arranged a brand new SUBURBAN for us, which resolved the issue. What on earth!? We had to swap the car once more due to other issues, and AVIS did it efficiently, saying it would take two hours and it was very punctual. This service was satisfactory. Returning the car was very convenient without needing GPS, just follow the signs, very clear.

Picking up the car in San Francisco was very convenient, possibly because it was early and there were no queues. Chrysler's Town and Country has immense space; it fit our group of 5 people, 5 large suitcases, and 2 small suitcases. Truly an American car—big!

After all, it's a big company. Although Doller's prices are a bit high, their vehicles are new and in excellent condition. Our rented car surprisingly accommodated eight large suitcases and several small ones.

No car of the same class, had to pay for an upgrade! They said it was because of peak season.