A couple of weeks ago, we learned that SkyTeam is making an…interesting choice in introducing a new member to their ”airline” alliance: Hertz. While I’m hoping this means flying cars become part of their Ultimate Series fleet, I have a feeling that the term ”GroundTeam” is a more likely outcome of this unique partnership.
Continue reading: How Does Hertz’s Loyalty Program Work?
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Something weird about that airline partners link.... it includes airlines like Malev, which went out of business over 5 years ago...
I am Presidents circle but do not like it at all as I cannot book online. I always get ‘please call for price’ regardless whatever destination. If I book w/h logging in I get a price straightaway. Result is I always end up with Avis as I am really not going to call Hertz to figure out what the price is.
You're forgetting the unadvertised Hertz Platinum, which offers the ridiculously amazing perk of being picked up curbside at Arrivals in your vehicle. The Hertz driver takes the shuttle back to the rental car center and you drive off.
Ultimate Choice, while a wonderful idea in itself, can be a hit or miss. I saw great selections at UC lots, but not always the case. So if you really need a certain type of car (e.g. AWD SUV), don't bet on UC.
Another benefit of the Amex Platinum partnership with Hertz is that you get a four hour grace period when returning. If you frequently rent in situations where you’ll be renting just over 24/48h this can save you quite a bit.
Our company has some deal with Hertz and all employees are part of some exclusive loyalty tier. Essentially, benefits as far as I can tell include: car is available immediately outside the terminal in the valet parking, cars are always loaded with bottled water and refreshments, most of the time our personally selected car (I always pick the XJ-SuperCharged in Europe and the XJ-R in the US) is provided in immaculate condition, and we receive a personal concierge number with a note and their business card in the vehicle in case we encounter any difficulty. In addition, all tolls and gps usage are complementary.. It's a fixed service rate so we are encouraged to use the service for our leisure trips as well. I don't know how to or where to obtain the details to be enrolled in this program.
I've been PC for the last couple of years and I'm on the whole sort of happy with the programme. I mostly rent from LAX which is a decent location for upgrades. It's pretty sweet driving off in a Jaguar XF when you've paid for a Corolla. I will say that HLE locations are nowhere near as generous and the 'guaranteed' upgrade is absolutely not a guarantee because it's still based on availability which makes a mockery of the whole thing but whatever. It's not perfect, Hertz has crazy IT structural problems and I have to call up to get points awarded after nearly every rental but on the whole I've been happy with how it works.
I've gotten my Hertz Five Star by status-matching from National Emerald Club (which I get from my CSR).
@Bjam
Glad to know I’m not the only one. President’s Circle as well and Something happened earlier in the year and now my points NEVER post after a rental. I have call and have them posted manually.
Every time I call no one can tell me why my points are not posting. It’s super annoying.
I'm a lowly Gold, and Hertz usually has the highest prices, IMO.
Their rewards program is not particularly easy (for me) for the following:
1) the "best" rate from hertz is the pre-paid, but that requires manual processing of the points. 50/50 chance of having them tell you the 0 points they applied is what you get, or the "we're sorry it's still been years since we've known about this and we have to manually process this for you, here's your XXX points).
2) The points expire unless you actually rent or redeem. Not an issue for most, I imagine.
3) Try redeeming them. Sorry, online never works, I don't wanna spend 30+ minutes on hold, and even then there's enough blackout/restrictions depending on when and where you rent, it makes it difficult to use them, IMO.
I have the Amex Platinum, and I have already an account with Hertz.
How do I get the 5-Star status? Is there under Hertz/myaccount?
What am I missing: if you book a free rental using Hertz points you are not paying for the rental with a CC so you don't get the CC's free insurance for the rental - the cost of Hertz insurance often exceeds the cost of renting a mid sized car so the free rental costs you more than if you'd booked with, for example, Chase Sapphire Reserve and gotten free insurance.
Hertz President’s Circle works well in the US but it is mostly useless in Europe. I had several occasions in Europe where my PC status was completely ignored by he local Hertz agent. Based on several personal experiences I can guarantee you the following perks are useless outside the US. Again, maybe none of them are considered "participating locations":
.Confirmed reservations at participating locations: I always rented a SUV for my family.Not once I got a SUV. All I got from the agent was: that is all we have. Take it or leave.
.Access to the President’s Circle rental area at participating locations: some locations in Europe never even heard of this perk
.A guaranteed one car class upgrade: never the case unless you want to pay the difference. No tks!!!!
Again, my issue with Hertz is their inconsistency outside the US. I rather use Avis or National (Enterprise) abroad or even Sixt in Europe.
Key thing about Hertz program is where it works and can be redeemed. Like Avis, they exclude all franchise locations from redemptions. Renting in Croatia or Cape Cod? You'll be out of luck if you want to redeem those points (check their FAQ for included countries for earning and redemptions). And some quirks eg, can earn in Switzerland but can't redeem there.
When you do get a corporate owned location, the pain on redeeming outside the US is that you have to call in to do so.
On the comment re PC upgrades in Europe, I've had good success in the UK-LHR, Spain-BCN and Italy-LIN, for example.
@Steph:
Thank you, this was really helpful, and a pleasure to read as always. Could we get similar walkthroughs for the other rental agencies?
At lovely Hobart Airport, yesterday, I had to walk the 400 meters to their service yard to pick up the vehicle. So much for PC in Aus!
Nice in-depth review of Hertz Status Levels and benefits! Surprised you didn’t also mention Hertz Platinum Level?
The PC and Ultimate Choice combo is pretty good. For premium cars, I agree with you that SFO is great. LAX generally is bad. Other places are hit or miss, but you can often get an Infiniti. In general, if your expectations are that you will get the mid-sized car you reserved with a slight chance of a luxury upgrade, you will be happy. If you expect an SUV or luxury car every time, prepare to be disappointed.
Best way to book is Autoslash + Priceline. Priceline prepaid rates are not eligible, but normal rates are essentially the same as booking on the Hertz website and you can still us UC. Amex Plat + Autoslash coupons generally gives the best rate. I've never had anyone verify that I actually have an Amex Plat either.
I was Hertz President’s Circle at one time but switched to National where I’m Executive Elite (at least 25 rentals) several years ago and have never looked back. Customer service is better, car selection is better, upgrades more consistent, and using credits for free rentals is much simpler. Every 5 rentals for Exec Elite earns a free day coupon that you can use any day of the week. And each year they have a promotion where every three rentals earns you a free day. No more trying to figure out how many points I need for a certain number of free rental days...and did I mention the customer service is better?
One question for everyone. I never ever get Hertz Gold emails with promos or statement balances. I always get my reservation confirmation and return emails though. I've called Hertz a few times to inquire and nobody can figure it out. Has anyone else had the same problem? Is there a magic word to ask for. Points post normally, but I always miss out on promos.
I've rented from Hertz for almost 30 years. The quality of their vehicles is typically very good. Service is very hit and miss. Elite status is rarely recognized by staff and inconsistenly applied even at the same location. For example, one rental at LHR I might get upgrades to a Mercedes AMG, whereas the next time get nothing. Selections available at the UC section depends on time and day but never found anything unusual all this year with over 20 rentals. I can't figure out pricing from one time to the next - assuming it's driven by their anticipated demand, it varies hugely from week to week. I can never find cheaper rates using airline partner sites, I end up just using the AAA discount. Fortunately, never had an issue with any vehicle or rental. So I'll stick with them for the foreseeable future. Oh, and the previous comments about points never posting appears related to prepaid rentals. It's a known issue that I've had with Hertz for many years. They don't seem to be bothered to fix it either, assuming most customers will not notice. You need to email them at [email protected] to make the request, since their missing points form is rarely answered so don't waste your time.
Amex Platinum doesn't qualify the holder for 5-star status with Hertz. Instead, Amex provides a CDP number for the discount, benefits and upgrade: CDP#211762
Note: the hyperlink in the article is incorrect as it references Delta status)
The correct process for Amex CM to enroll in the Premier rental program using these online steps:
Log on to americanexpress.com/platinum .
Scroll down to Car Rental Privileges .
Click Learn More .
Select Hertz Car Rental Program , then click Enroll .
Hertz CDP number 211762
If your already a Hertz Gold member just add CDP number 211762 to your profile. As the committer above noted anybody can most likely use this.
My pet peeve with all the rental agencies I've used is their definition of "midsize." It's not like the list is: compact, midsize, full size, luxury, etc. It's more like: economy, compact, intermediate, standard, full size, hybrid, premium, luxury (I just looked this up for EWR)...plus a bunch of other classes for SUVs, minivans and the Prestige collection. To get that "free" one class upgrade you're basically forced to pay to upgrade yourself from economy to midsize. So I basically tell them to F themselves and always rent the cheapest car I can find.
@ Ron - there’s something wrong with your account. That’s not normal. I’m PC and have no gigantic issues online.
+1 on National. Not greatest coverage map international, but simple rewarding program, great service, typically good cars. Last car I got was a BMW 740i less than 2k miles.
Thank you. A great summary, much needed since YMMV from day to day, week to week. location to location. But once you accept that, it's pretty good overall. I got away from Hertz for 10+ years, but returned in the last few just because they are the most consistent.
A few things I have gleaned:
Prices vary significantly from day to day depending upon demand and anticipated demand. I find it best to reserve something I'm OK with and return periodically to check prices. I saved $250 on a 10-day rental at JFK by doing do.
Prices vary significantly from CDP to CDP. Amex is pretty good.
Midsize = Intermediate
If you are Delta PM or higher and want Pres Circle, you will probably have to email Hertz at
[email protected] to make it happen. If you don't hear back in a week or so, follow-up.
Lastly, one of the reasons I came back to Hertz is most of their USA locations are corporate owned and are straight shooters. The Franchisees, especially in Europe and Germany in particular, have glommed on to the "damage assessment" to increase revenues. Be warned.
There’s another level: Platinum. I was a Hertz Platinum for about four years then had it pulled a few months ago. The whole process is mysterious to say the least.
Also PC. Service and car choices are good enough for the most part. The insurance thing is an issue as RDM mentioned although it's never been more than the rental for me. Use points when the rental costs are ridiculous. If you have access to USAA, use their site for car rentals. Rentals are significantly cheaper and you can fill in your Hertz number which gives you express access like you do with direct rental.