Thrifty Rent A Car

Service was horrible. The line was extremely long. To make matters worse– they now have a phone booth to process orders– don’t do it! It will take twice as long as waiting in line for a live person. After you get the contract, the people outside organizing when you get your car are disorganized and unprofessional– joking and laughing while customers wait in the hot sun. An hour long disaster. Never again!

Horrible experience. Line was out the store and wrapped around in the garage. The car was dirty when we got in, and we did notify the attendant. There were soda spills and even plastic silverware left behind. The worst part is that the car REEKED of smoke for the entire week we had it, even though they have a NO SMOKING policy?!?
Would NOT rent from Thrifty again.

RENTERS BEWARE! When you drop your car off, MAKE SURE you check the entire interior before you walk away. My daughters laptop was left in the back seat of a Nissan as she hastily checked it in to get to the airport on the shuttle. She realized it was left behind and returned to the rental location within 20 minutes… the car she had rented had disappeared off the lot. It couldn’t be found anywhere. The manager and staff were less than helpful… the customer service phone line was impossible to reach, the agent at the airport Thrifty booth could care less. So now, her work projects are pretty much lost and somebody at Thrifty has drug money!

Ben was awesome helping me at pickup with my rental and answered all my questions and helped get me signed up for the Blue Chip program. Rhonda was very friendly at the drop off, too. The rate I got through car
was really good. Only ranking this low because they need more agents working inside to check people out. And shuttles should run more frequently! Now I’m on the shuttle and it’s a real hassle with people not having their bus tickets and it’s holding us up !

Great experience. Easy and fast check in, got to select my own car. No long lines or sub par customer service. Use your Visa and your deposit is lower. Will return, thank you!

Giving 2 stars as the rental price is good. However, they don’t have enough busses to pick up passengers at LAX. Be prepared to wait 30 – 45 min, while all other rental car people get picked up. They share the bus with Dollar rental car so bus ride will go past Dollar first, another ½ hr ride.

Some friends visiting from out of the county used this car rental service and I could not believe the horrible experience they had. The agent was terribly rude to them, trying to bully my friends into taking additional car insurance after they told the agent that they did not require insurance and that it was provided through their credit card compant. The agent had them call their credit card company because he did not believe it and when it was confirmed to them that it was, the agent wanted to know who did they talk to — was it a friend of theirs and insisted they call again so he could speak to the person from the credit card company himself. They called and let the agent speak to the credit card person and the agent proceeded to belittle and accuse the credit card rep of knowing the travelers and harassing everyone involved. Unfortunately my friends could not cancel the car rental because they had reserved it long before and had expensed the car rental which had already been reimbursed to them. The agent went on to say the French are always a problem and proceeded to ask the others in line, where they were from! I cannot believe that this can be allowed — this is how they do business? My friends were forced to incur additional insurance or not get a car. In addition, while all this was going on, my friends’ daughter was sitting with the suit cases and another rental car agent walked by and made a rude remark about what was going on to which she responded «Those are my parents!» VERY UNPROFESSIONAL!
When we heard of their terrible experience, my husband called to speak to a customer service representative. Well, after many phone calls, being sent to various extensions and winding up with the same person, he was able to speak to someone. After telling the story, the agent just responded «What would you like to me to about it?» Unbelievable customer service — NONE!!! How about just making at a least a report of the bad service the agent provided to keep a record of how he treats people. I guess they don’t care.
Now my friends will incur additional cost to return the rental car to another location because they do not want to ruin the rest of their trip by the possibility of dealing with the same agent again!
I WILL NEVER USE THIS CAR RENTAL SERVICE AND HOPE YOU WILL NOT USE THEM EITHER. THIS TYPE OF TREATMENT CANNOT BE ALLOWED!

When business calls for the road Thrifty is always my 1^st stop. Hours fit my needs service is great. Why go anywhere else.

The car was ready when I picked it up but when I dropped off the car– i returned it after filling it up at a local gas station and the guy asked me «do you have the gas receipt» I said «no– i was only told to fill it up before returning, so I did»… I rushed out of there with my two kids and load of luggage to get to the airport as soon as possible and discovered that they ended up charging me to fill up the car with their gas! I feel like they took advantage of the fact that I was traveling with such a large load and trusted that I wouldn’t get charged for something that wasn’t needed.

I had an excellent experience renting one-​way with pick-​up in LAX and drop-​off at SAN. The car was ready for pick-​up when I arrived (I’m a Blue Chip member, which is free and signup is easy). I had been upgraded to a «full-​size» and given my choice of several cars. I got a low-​mileage Toyota Camry which was clean and in near-​perfect condition.
The drop-​off process at San Diego International was quick and smooth with timely transport to the terminal.
Great experience all around and all staff were pleasant to deal with. Would recommend highly.

I’ll make this brief because it’s all been said. I arrived at Thrifty on Century Ave near LAX. There were about three people in line and one active agent. I waited there while the agent casually chatted at length with the one customer. I didn’t time it but I suspect it took at least twenty minutes. There were two other agents at a different counter but they took no notice of our long wait. I couldn’t use my Blue Chip because something is fouled up in their system and although they could retrieve my account, it couldn’t be used. I had tried to get it straightened out when I made the reservation but nobody I spoke to had the ability or inclination to correct it.
Unlike others, I had no problem declining the extra coverage.
On the plus side, the price was good and the car acceptable except for what seemed like a persistent dog odor.

The process of picking up my car and dropping it back was the easiest I’ve ever been through. I never had to wait in a long line, the customer service from everyone was very helpful and friendly. And the car they gave me was new and very nice.
When I dropped my car off, that process was very fast and easy as well. I told them I was running late to catch my flight so instead of putting me in the shuttle, they had Domeka give me and a couple other clients a ride to the airport in a van. Domeka was extremely friendly and helpful as were all of the staff I interacted with at this Thrifty.

Desk agent got super weird with me when I declined car insurance. I told him I had coverage through my credit card and he asked about my second driver and when I turned to her and asked if she had her own card insurance he very aggressively said «UH UH. You look at ME. Not her. Do you assume responsibility?» When I said «Yes and I’m declining» he told me again «No, you look me in the eyes. Don’t talk to her. You’re solely responsible for this car, you understand?»
Not only was this uncomfortable, but when I double checked with my credit card company, I discovered I had coverage for a second driver anyway. I know the agents probably have to meet quotas for unsurance upsells but this guy treated me with zero respect. I would complain to them directly but they require too much personal info to even send an email.
This was at the LAX branch. I will not be using them again.

Thrifty was my «go-​to» for car rentals, but never again.
Long waits for shuttle, even longer wait for car pick up.
I waited so long for the shuttle back to the airport, decided to catch an über.

I don’t know where to start…
1. They were not open at 12am, when I booked and confirmed to pick up my car at 12am. I had to call their office and they told me I was supposed to go with their sister company, but why didn’t they say anything at the booking? Or send me an email with directions?
2. I reserved a standard suv, there wasn’t one available at the lot. The standard suv section was empty! The man at the counter tried to help and gave me a upgrade and told me to take a regular sized suv. But when I got to the gate, I couldn’t get out of the gate because they said I didn’t have the «right» car.
3. I went back in, the manager said they have to charge for the upgrade. I told her I didn’t want the upgrade, I just wanted my standard suv. She said there wasn’t anything available but I could take a mid-​size car or upgrade for the suv. I would be charged regular price… then why did I make the reservations online for a standard suv? BECAUSE I didn’t want to go through THIS at 1AM!!!
They have the worst service and are unfriendly. They need to get a new manager who can figure out different options when a situation like this occurs. Why would you let customers reserve a standard suv online if there won’t be any available? I wasted 3 hours of my life here from 11:40PM to 3AM.

My experience here has been fine. Speedy transaction and return. Little to no wait for the shuttle. Nice people.
However, the shuttle operates between here and Dollar, so you have to take the additional stop into account. Prepare for that, and you’ll be fine.

Man I thought it would be hard to out-​do the shit show that is Fox rent a car, but their neighbors Thrifty give them a run for their money.
Don’t expect to EVER catch a shuttle back to the airport. I should’ve known when they handed me a golden ticket to get on the bus that it was a truly exclusive experience. In fact I saw the Fox shuttle come 3 times while waiting for it. And when it finally arrived I had to fight for a spot on it.
And my car smelled like hamburger pickles… Like from McDonald’s. So that was awesome.

Yes, possibly the first quote you get is the cheapest one out there. Our was — by around $ 100. But by the time they add everything other hidden cost possible we ended up paying $ 800 more. From $ 800 we paid $ 1600 for a one week rental.
Definitely DO NOT RECOMMEND IT!

I’m somewhat surprised at Thrifty Car Rental LAX’s average two-​star rating. I had a great experience renting from these guys and would rent from them again.
I booked my Thrifty rental through my United MileagePlus account (voted the best frequent flyer program for the 12^th straight year by Global Traveler). It cost only 5,100 miles to book a compact car for three full days with no surcharges — an excellent deal. I reserved the car online through United Airlines’ web site and received a confirmation email.
We arrived to LAX Terminal 5 (Delta) and followed the signs to ground transportation and the rental car shuttles. We waited in the purple section of the median outside baggage claim for the Thrifty shuttle. It took a long time to come. It took so long that we saw shuttles for other rental car companies, such as Avis and Budget, arrive twice before the first Thrifty shuttle showed up. This was the most annoying part of our experience.
I guesstimate we had waited about 30 minutes before the Thrifty shuttle came. By that time, a full busload of people were waiting for it. The bus got so full that it became standing room only. Part of the reason the bus was so full was because it served not only Thrifty, but the nearby Dollar Rent A Car too (Dollar and Thrifty are part of the same holding company).
Even though Thrifty LAX is located close to the airport, due to traffic and other stops, it took about 20 minutes for the shuttle to reach the shop. Luckily, when we got there (around 3:00 PM on a Friday), there was hardly a line and we were seen in under 10 minutes.
All I needed to do at check-​in was hand over my driver’s license and a credit card, answer a few questions regarding insurance and fuel fill-​up, and sign a document. After that, we were on our way. I originally reserved a Ford Focus online, but the Thrifty rep told me I could choose any compact car in the lot. Also, my reservation said I had to return the car by 10:00 AM Monday, but the rep extended it to 2:00 PM at no charge just because I asked. How nice.
Before we headed out to the compact car lot, I used the restroom. It was clean. On our way to the lot and at the lot itself, two separate Thrifty employees politely greeted us and asked if we needed any help.
There were several compacts to choose from: Toyota, Nissan, Ford, etc. We chose based on trunk size and ended up with a silver 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage. Its trunk was big enough to fit two carry-​on roller bags, one backpack, and one large purse. It also concealed the contents of the trunk. The car was clean with minimal dings and scratches. I used the Waze app on my phone to navigate and brought my own car phone mount and car phone charger which worked out nicely.
I was very happy with the car. Even though it was small, it got us to where we needed to go reliably and safely across LA from LAX to Sawtelle to the Miracle Mile to Long Beach to Marina Del Rey to Rancho Palos Verdes. I liked how easy it was to pull into and out of tight parking spaces and I felt safe enough on all the freeways. It was efficient. I would not recommend a compact car if traveling with a party bigger than two people, however.
When it came time to return the car, I opted to save money and refuel the car myself. Thrifty requires that you replace the fuel at a gas station within 10 miles of the shop and bring a receipt to prove you did so. When I got in the vicinity of Thrifty, I used Waze to direct me to the gas station with the cheapest fuel prices in the area. It led me to «A & Z Fuel» in Inglewood. It wasn’t as nice as the name brand gas stations closer to the car rental shops, but it did have the cheapest gas in the neighborhood. When I returned the car, no one at Thrifty asked for the fuel receipt.
Returning the car was painless. Two Thrifty employees greeted us in the return garage. One checked us out and the other was our driver who gave us a lift back to LAX. We got lucky because the driver greeted us inside the return garage and offered to give us a ride to LAX in an SUV. We didn’t have to wait and take one of the standard shuttle buses. It was awesome. Our driver was Steven Finnie and he did an excellent job. Despite the cluster of traffic at LAX, he got us back to Terminal 5 in a timely fashion. Both Steven and the lady who processed our return were very kind.
I hope to have the same experience if I ever rent with Thrifty LAX again.

I have to preface that I got dropped off here so I don’t know much about the shuttle process but I did like that this was right on century blvd so it was easy to find!
My husband dropped me off before picking up our guests curbside at LAX and I had about a 15 min wait & 15min processing at 10pm on a Friday.
I really loved how I got to pick my own car… I know this seems like a given but I’m kinda weird about visability and blind spots and so I really appreciated being able to roam the lot and sit in all the cars that caught my eye without someone holding my hand, tapping their foot.
I had a long-​term rental just over a month so I was happy to be able to establish complete comfortability with the car — I ended up choosing a Kia Soul in RED perfect for the holiday season and I actually was looking to purchase a car in this class so trying it out for a month was awesome.
Upon choosing I was told had to fill up the tank within a 10mi radius and bring gas receipts which I didn’t love because I’m an OC native and this LAX area can be a bit sketchy but with my husband with me I didn’t really mind to much. The part I got annoyed by was when I made the extra effort to do the reciept thing, the return agent only just visually checked it was full. lol Silly little thing… but just sayin, be thorough on policy.
Everyone I dealt with was nice and I got to use my own insurance —
I booked a hotrate with hotwire and got my WHOLE month rental for only $ 306!
Definitely book here without hesitation.