ACE Rental Cars - Auckland - Airport Information, Car Rental Instructions & Policies

We knew we had paid for a budget car, but hadn’t thought the car we received would be as old looking as it was. The car was probably 10 years or older. That said, the car was very reliable and did its job. However, the age meant the car had many rattles from sun blinds, the dash etc.

1. The car was not parked at the airport as agreed in the booking, and the keys were not left at the information desk. Instead, an ACE employee asked us to pay NZD 60 for her to take us to the rental office. We had to wait over an hour in the evening for this. 2. The booking had a remaining balance of NZD 86 to be paid. The confirmation stated that NZD 38 was unnecessary to pay, meant to cover the parking fee when picking the car up at the airport (capped at NZD 38). It seemed clear from the confirmation that NZD 38 + NZD 38 + NZD 10 = NZD 86 would solve the out-of-hours car pick-up/drop-off issue. However, this was not the case! We were required to return the car to the rental office and handle our own transportation outside business hours, dropping the keys in a mailbox. The so-called premium location fee of NZD 10 and the additional NZD 38 really made no sense! 3. The car did not have the required road tax sticker. ACE provided an address and asked us to collect it from the post office ourselves, warning that we would face a fine if caught by the police without it. Our schedule was tight, and we could only go to the post office on the second or third day. While ACE said no payment was needed for the sticker, the post office required payment. We were unsure if they were referring to the same thing and decided to risk it without the sticker. Fortunately, we didn't encounter any police. Overall, a very bad experience!!