VERY SEXIST EXPERIENCE. Worst experience EVER and that includes foreign travel where females are not respected. I made a reservation through AARP for a rental at this Avis location. My vehicle had broken down during the Winter Storm of the century in Texas. After troubleshooting in the small town where my vehicle broke down for a week and not having ANY transportation, my vehicle was towed to a dealership in Abilene. I had spent the entire day at the dealership hoping my vehicle could be repaired quickly. At the close of business I was told my vehicle wouldn't be repaired until the end of the week. This was Monday.
The dealership provided a ride to the Abilene airport to pick up an Avis rental I had made through AARP after getting the news of my vehicle repair. I had talked to Enterprise Rent a Car earlier and they informed me that I would be lucky to find a rental, as all of the rentals in the area had been taken to the bigger rental hubs because of the storm and Enterprise wouldn't have any cars available until Thursday.
I get to the Avis counter and the attendant couldn't pull up my reservation that had been made an hour earlier through AARP roadside. I offered to pull up the confirmation number on my laptop and the attendant said it was no problem for him to start a new reservation. He explained to me that he had only two rentals left, an Expedition and an F-150 pickup, but he would give me my choice of either of the upgraded vehicles at the rate of my reservation. As I told him the Expedition would be fine, a large obnoxious man entered the booth and began peering over the attendant helping me and asked him what he was doing. I could tell the attendant was intimidated and uncomfortable immediately. The attendant helping me responded to the other attendant that my reservation was for an economy vehicle and Avis had only two vehicles left, being an Expedition and an F-150 pick up. The bigger guy said, "Give her the pickup!" I said that would be fine, as my current vehicle is a half ton pickup also. The big guy started telling the attendant helping me what the day rate was for the pickup. The attendant helping me explained that he had already offered me my choice of the two vehicles at the economy rate. As the attendant helping me was finalizing my reservation and about to hand me back my drivers license and credit card, the other attendant said, "What's that? Her name on her license doesn't match the name on her credit card." I explained that one surname was my maiden surname and that the other surname was my married surname and that I have documentation with me that I can show him. He immediately cut me off and said the only documentation he needed to see was a credit card with a surname that matched my license. I tried to explain to him that I have documentation to prove that each name is one and the same as me and this had never been a problem before. He told me that he wasn't renting the vehicle to me and that it was Avis corporate policy not to rent a vehicle in that situation. I was shocked and dismayed. I hadn't experienced anything like this before and as I said, I do travel a lot. Even internationally. I asked him what I was supposed to do, since there were no other rental vehicles available in the area and I was stranded two hours away from home and my animals were stranded one hour from the airport and from me to care for them. He said, "Call an Uber!" He also yelled across the rental car lobby at the Enterprise attendant and said, "She's trying to use a credit card with a name that's not on her license." (Like I was stealing someone's identity or something.) He said, "You guys wouldn't rent to her either, would you?" Not only was he behaving in a rude and obnoxious manner but very unprofessionally as well.
This was an extremely horrible and toxic experience that I never want to encounter again nor do I want any other female traveling alone to experience. HE put me in a very unsafe and risky situation leaving me stranded in the middle of nowhere at night with no means to get back to my pets or back home. I will never rent from another Avis Rental Car center and I am sharing my experience with everyone I know to prevent other women from being harassed, ridiculed, bullied and subjected to a hazardous unsafe outcome created by another incompetent individual like this guy trained by Avis Car Rental enforcing Avis's sexist corporate policies. read more