South Island, New Zealand

Let me talk about this car rental experience. Rented two cars on May 21st, and one of them had a flat tire shortly after. We replaced the tire ourselves, and the next day, they gave us a different car, but my credit card was charged 500 NZD. We had purchased full insurance but received no timely response upon our return. Additionally, when booking, it was clearly stated that the rental company would cover the transition fee for the vehicle, but they refused to provide this. The car we picked up was different as well. About the car itself, the battery died the next day, so we spent the whole morning without playing around, then got a replacement car with a broken door. Trust me, don't rent from this platform. We rented three cars, and two had issues. The reason the price is cheap is that they are very old cars that you could buy locally for 3000 NZD, yet they're renting them out for thousands. The service is unreliable, and the condition of the cars is concerning, not to mention your safety. You'll likely spend most of your time dealing with repairs and replacements. And then, dealing with the insurance afterwards is a continuous hassle.

All encountered issues were addressed one by one.

Discount Car Rentals operates from 9 AM to 6 PM, while my pick-up and drop-off times were outside of these hours. To pick up the car, I followed the instructions to find the 'phone wall' inside the airport and called the two numbers provided. The car rental office is about 2 km east of the airport at a parking lot managed by an agent, which seems to represent several car rental companies. They sent a large Iveco to pick us up and take us to get the car. Since it's an agency, they only checked the passport and the rental document from QEEQ, then handed over the car. There was a vehicle damage report sheet, which was fully marked. The car had a full tank, so I drove off without signing anything. For the return, I refueled at a gas station within 3 km of the parking lot, drove to the parking lot to find the agent, and they helped us pay the speeding fine on their computer. Afterwards, they used a large vehicle to take all six of us and our luggage back to the airport. It's been 14 days since the car was returned, and I haven’t received any charges for repairs or violations, so I believe the rental has ended smoothly. Hence, I’m leaving this detailed review.

The instructions for contacting for picking up are frustratingly unclear and unhelpful and could be updated to say, go to the end of the international terminal, out the door, and wait for a van with the logo xxxx. There was no phone to call for clarity. I then missed the first shuttle.

Car was old, very high mileage 162k Back bumper held on by black tap, big dent in the roof, front bumper coming away from bodywork lots of small dent and scratches, radio only worked on right hand speaker. Basically car should not be used for rental. $2,500 deposit left for any damages was more than what the car was worth