Hertz - Electric car fuel charge

[gaz0303]

Hi all,

I’m a 5star Hertz member. Last week my intermediate suv booking was upgraded to a Polestar electric vehicle. I have just been invoiced $27.50 fuel usage for 215km travel. I returned the battery back at 1/2 charge. What is the protocol of returning electric vehicles? Am I meant to get to the airport a couple hours early and put it on charge myself?

 

[lovestotravel]

So you expected to be able to drive without paying for "fuel" ?

215km for $27.50 is OK though

Like any car you return it with the same amount of fuel/battery charge than when you picked it up

EV Recharging costs If you return the EV at a lower charge than the battery departure level: –we will charge you the EV Battery Recharging Service fee to bring the EV back up to the battery departure level; and –If you return the vehicle at 15% battery level or less, we will apply an additional Low Battery Recharging Service fee.

EV Battery Recharging Service Fee You are liable for any reduction in battery charge percentage from when you picked up your EV to when you returned it (no refund will be provided if this figure is higher, upon return). If we are required to recharge the EV to return it to its battery departure level, we will charge you a price per kilo watt (kW), as detailed on your Rental Agreement.

EV Low Battery Recharging Service Fee If you return the vehicle at 15% battery charge level or less, we will charge an additional recharging service fee, as detailed on your Rental Agreement.

 

[gaz0303]

I think I’ll decline the next upgrade if it is an electric vehicle. Definitely not convenient. The problem with an upgrade is that the above isn’t made clear. You just get the key and drive away.

Mods - feel free to move to travel mistakes thread.

 

[TomVexille]

That is about what you would have spent on petrol anyway.

I agree that it should have been explained to you when you picked up the car as you didn't specifically reserve an EV. However that pricing seems to be competitive.

 

[luckypierre]

I think I’ll decline the next upgrade if it is an electric vehicle. Definitely not convenient. The problem with an upgrade is that the above isn’t made clear. You just get the key and drive away.

Mods - feel free to move to travel mistakes thread.

I recently declined the upgrade by Hertz ex LGW for a Polestar (previous post made to Upgrade thread). I actually wasn't informed it was an EV upfront, but previous customers in the queue had alerted me to the issue. I declined the upgrade, the Customer rep indicated that they seem to be getting sent more Polestars.

 

[BAM1748]

So the upgrade comes with an inconvenience, that doesn't make it an upgrade.

Glad you've flagged it so I can decline when I eventually get the offer.

 

[lovestotravel]

Yeah Hertz have ordered heaps of Teslas and Polestars and no-one wants to rent them.

Who would have guessed.......

 

[dylarr]

Like any car you return it with the same amount of fuel/battery charge than when you picked it up

Don't know if different locations enforce this differently but interestingly Hertz in CBR have always been fairly relaxed when it comes to returning Teslas. They are fully charged when going out and have advised me in the past to not worry too much about recharging it, just don't return it with less than 15%. They've never charged the EV charge fee.

Haven't got any experience from other locations however.

 

[moa999]

Polestar is about 20kWh / 100km on a highway cycle.
So about 42kWh of energy used.

Hertz thus appear to be charging approx $0.65/kWh which is pretty reasonable (no markup) and as others say probably about equivalent to the petrol cost in a Camry.

Chargefox and Evie (the two major independents charging networks in Australia) are $0.60/kWh for their ultrafast chargers. Tesla Superchargers typically run $0.56-0.66/kWh depending on location.

There are cheaper chargers around but they are generally slower.

The rental fleets will quickly go electric - helps their environmental goals, and big savings in maintenance for the operators.

 

[tony.young4650]

I got wacked with a $46 charge by Hertz after a trip. The agent talked it up that it didn't need to be re-charged on return.. he didn't mention about the charges in the fine print of the contract.

Any way I read the invoice and couldn't work out how they even got to the final charge. I also noticed that their contract states $0.65 per KW which is incorrect terminology, it needs to be $ per Kilowatt-Hour.

They credited the charged but didn't offer any explanation to the dodgy calculation or fixing their contract etc...

 

[knagelli]

I recently turned down an upgrade to Polestar at OOL airport. Firstly I was staying at a beach front apartment with limited access to parking and it did not have any dedicated charging stations. Secondly I did not know what mileage like with full battery as we were driving around a lot.

 

[Quickstatus]

Do rental EV come supplied with charging cables or mobile charger?

 

[moa999]

also noticed that their contract states $0.65 per KW which is incorrect terminology, it needs to be $ per Kilowatt-Hour.

Pretty poor that they can't get that right.
It's basically speed v distance.

 

[kookaburra75]

The past two times we've been in Melbourne, I've hired through Sixt rather than Hertz - mainly as I am an NRMA member and get the 15% discount. The most recent we got an Atto3 to try it out, and at least Sixt don't charge you for battery use, and provide free charging. I think I will continue to give Hertz a miss.

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www.sixt.com.au

 

[PeteMac007]

I hired an EV in the UK over Christmas and returned it to LGW. It was charged just 20 quid, even though the battery had 10% or so left.

Super convenient.

BP Pulses were my friend in the end. It always had a 50kw/hr charge and was conveniently located. Saved heaps on 'fuel' so will hire again.

 

[clifford]

The rental fleets will quickly go electric

I guess your Chrystal ball may have been a bit cloudy.

 

[CaptJCool]

i thought the point of EV's was that it was cheaper to charge than to refuel fuel?

if what OPs are suggesting here is accurate, then its not? or is it just overpriced ?

if you're not saving $$ why would anyone bother?
besides, I would just foist that charging time cost onto the hire car company seeing they are foisting EV's onto renters...
and they could actually work out how to absorb the minute costing within their overall daily charge rate.

its not like renters have the time to sit around and twiddle thumbs while the electric battery charges

 

[antycbr]

The past two times we've been in Melbourne, I've hired through Sixt rather than Hertz - mainly as I am an NRMA member and get the 15% discount. The most recent we got an Atto3 to try it out, and at least Sixt don't charge you for battery use, and provide free charging. I think I will continue to give Hertz a miss.

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www.sixt.com.au

Yep we got downgraded from a Tesla to a BMW coupe with internal combustion engine by Sixt at Adelaide Airport - someone had crashed the Tesla.

So we asked for the petrol charge to be waived on the BMW as the Tesla would have been free, and they agreed!

 

[elanshin]

I remember hiring from Europcar in AKL a kia niro ev (some kia quirks i didn't like) that allowed me to return on whatever charge.

So did a solid 480km return to and from Rotorua charging only overnight at hotel (free). Seeing the fuel prices in AKL that saved us probably over $100 in fuel (maybe more).

Also did something similar in Tassie with Sixt and a Tesla Y. The free charging campaigns around are pretty sweet deals with fuel prices being high. Also EVs seem cheap to rent atm as well.

 

[encryptededdy]

if what OPs are suggesting here is accurate, then its not? or is it just overpriced ?

They charge about on-par with what public chargers charge, but significantly more than charging at home.