What brands do you avoid at all cost? I don’t keep up with the news all that much, and many of the reasons to avoid something don’t make it there anyway. So I’m asking here to make a big list of things to avoid. It could be anything from bad security practices to really frustrating packaging. Working as a cashier myself, I definitely know there are plenty of brands I avoid purely on the basis that their product is a pain to stock.
On the flip side, what’s the alternative? If you avoid Pepsi, for example, what do you turn to instead?
Hertz left me stranded in Austin TX last time I was there. Rented a car for a week. They let me think I had a car until the morning of my reservation, when it was an hour before pickup to notify me that “sorry we’re cancelling you”. I had no other options, every other place in town was out of cars. Most said I needed a reservation and I had to think to myself how stupid it was.
I spent over 500 in Ubers on that trip going stupidly long distances.
As soon as I was home I dropped my Hertz membership and joined Enterprise. They cost a bit more but I have never been treated that way. Hertz/Dollar/Thrifty are all pretty much the same, so I’ll never use them again.
Dollar, Thrifty and Hertz are all the same company now. They intentionally overbook. I don’t know the exact reason why, short of naked profiteering and not giving a fuck.
The last time I rented with them (initially Dollar) I booked several months beforehand and when I got up to their kiosks, I ended up getting one of the last cars that they had on hand. I know I got one of the last because as I was waiting (for hours), they first closed the Dollar storefront, then they closed the Thrifty storefront - funneling everybody into one line ultimately ending up at the Hertz storefront. Shortly after I got up to the desk and they were finally giving me my paperwork and keys, they began to shut down the Hertz storefront. At this point there were still literally more than a hundred people standing in line (it was a holiday). So closing up left a whole bunch of people carless and very, very angry. So even waiting for hours through this bullshit, I was one of the LUCKY ONES.
I booked the car online at the extortionate price of $800 for a week, but ever since the pandemic, rentals have been overly expensive so whatever. Subsequently, they proceeded to apply every possible extra to the rental, without my knowledge. Extra insurance, top tier insurance, full tank of gas, roadside assistance - everything - all of which are also at inflated prices. Not until I got home did I notice that the actual cost of this rental was going to be almost $1500, TWICE THE FEE I HAD BOOKED ONLINE. I had no choice but to accept it and get on with my driving vacation, but I never forget.