Silvercar

I have used Silver Car every time I travel to San Francisco and most recently, LA. I always rent a A4 but this last time I rented a A5 convertible. They were really busy and they don't have your typical office like normal rental car companies have but there is what I know. They have a FULLY LOADED Audi for the same price as the economy cars at the big rental car companies. Why would you rent a crap car for the same price as a fully loaded audi. In addition, I rented a car from a regular car rental company in Tampa one time. After 30 mins of not being able to locate the actual car I rented (Camaro SS) I had to select a different car. (never had this problem with Silver Car). Then when I returned it, I was running late so I told the person I didn't have time to top off the gas which should have been nothing more than 10.00. They charged me 90!!!!!. Silver Car literally charges 5.00. That's is. THEY ARE THE BEST!! Anyone who rates them poorly, obviously does not travel to truly understand what the other rental car companies are like.

Silvercar’s app based booking was easy and I had no problem getting to my car- which was a brand new Audi A4 for half the cost of a base model basic rental car (Ford Focus from other rental car companies in Seattle- $67 vs $145 taxes included in both prices). Return service was easy and the concierges were customer friendly. I will definitely use them again. If you want to extend the rental, you have the option based on availability but you need to call first- there is no way to do this from the app. They are located away from the airport rental building but serviced by a shuttle that was prompt and I had no issues getting there. No lines once I arrived as app opens doors to the car!!

My family rented from the Newark, NJ location. While traveling, the left, front tire developed a leak. We were staying an hour and one half away from Newark and did not want to exchange the car while missing out on our vacation. The company told us that, if the leak was due to hitting a pothole or other driver error the cost of a new tire would be ours. In this case, though, a staple was the problem, so I took the car to a shop early in the morning and had the tire replaced. We didn't miss out on our vacation and Silvercar subtracted the cost of the new tire from our bill. We were very pleased with the service.

Silvercar was extremely misleading. I had to do extra research into the company's practices in order to find out that a text I received from the company was reliable and trustworthy. Last minute just a few hours before my rental I received a text that I needed to bring additional documentation. They claim to be an easier rental car agency, but in reality they failed to mention that if you are renting locally there are a few documents that you need to furnish in order to rent a car with them. They asked for a hard copy utility bill and a pay stub or work badge. Those are not things I think about bringing when I go to rent a car, maybe a mortgage or a personal loan, but not a rental car. I had so much hassle because when I received it I was at work, and I live quite far from work. I ended up cancelling my rental and having to go to another rental car agency -- one that did not require such documents and only mentioning it last minute. Absolutely inconsiderate and no apologies made even when I contacted them with my concerns.

For what is perceived to be a premium brand, I am astonished at the customer service and booking process. As would have been first-time users, we reserved an A4 a couple of months in advance to be picked up in Orlando. We filled out all pertinent details including drivers license information, flight details and the like. Two days before our flight they cancelled the reservation with no notice. When we called and had to leave a message, they finally called back and claimed we had received texts about completing our profile. The profile was complete since they had all of our information when they finally called us back, and no texts were received. I’m not sure why their policy is to only send texts, and not emails like the confirmation regarding the threat of a cancellation. They rebooked us, at a cost of $30 more than we originally booked for. The customer service provided by Revlon, the associate, was sub par, and when asked to speak to a supervisor, her only response is that he would maybe send us an email. I’m sure that email will go where the texts supposedly went... to no one. So, no thank you Silvercar, you’ve lost a customer.

WARNING!!!! If you rent from Silvercar and have a flat they will charge you for a new tire! Overall their service was underwhelming. I thought I may or may not rent from them again. I travel a lot for work and have been with Hertz for over a decade. This was my first rental from Silvercar. I hit a pothole and had a flat tire. They got me into a new car but it was a real ordeal. I finished the rental and everything seemed fine. No contact from the company. Suddenly I get an email from a legal firm with zero explanation for the charge and said I have to pay $200 for damage. Again, no explanation. I call customer service and they see no notes about this on the system. Then they have some kid from the local office call me and say it was the tire. Again, over a decade with Hertz and I've had a couple of flats before. Hertz handles it faster and no charges. These guys are a startup and running on a tight budget. They seem a bit desperate. Just watch your back if you want to chance a rental with them.

Good concept executed poorly. These guys have a "cute" app and a lot of silver Audi's. We have rented twice and in both situations, it has involved some funky situations, which is the basis of this review. The cars themselves are "fine". In both our cases, the Audi's have had a lot of miles on them for the rental car business, but they are clean and run well. Fun cars to drive, as well. The app appeals to those not wanting to deal with a customer service counter and the text-based communication with Silver reps at the various airport locations is folksy and casual. But here is where things DON'T work. At all Silver locations I have visited, there are ONE or TWO employees servicing. I have not seen another renter while there --- which begs me to think that this is such a lean operation, that they aren't doing so well financially speaking. I don't know this for a fact, but consider what happened to us the last (and final) time we rented from them: We rented the car in Miami and drove the car to Key West and then up to For Lauderdale before dropping the car off at FLL before departing for LA. As we were traveling on I-95 north out of Miami on our way to Fort Lauderdale at RUSH HOUR in the EXPRESS LANE (where you cannot get OUT of for miles!) we had a blowout of the left from tire. Not just a blowout, an explosion of the tire! It was all I could do to pilot the car to one of the ONLY places we could stop without the right side of the car being IN THE FAST LANE of one of the busiest interstates in AMERICA! We were hemmed at the middle divider to the point where I's have to slide over to the passenger seat to get out and THEN -- it would be getting out in the FAST LANE of I-95. We called Silver in Miami -- Emergency Auto Service -- The guy with Silver who took the call in MIA was very nice and said he'd get in touch with Audi and call me back. No call back for awhile but when we reconnected, he said somebody with Audi/Allstate would be calling me. Now, I realize that we are only one party in need of help, so the Silver rep was doing all he could but I didn't receive a call from anyone for the next half hour and, when I did, it was from an Allstate rep (similar to AAA) who siad he would call around to see if there was anyone who could come. I finally received a call from Allstate saying it would be a window of 1 to 2 hours before anybody was available. At this point, the sun is beginning to set and when it gets dark, we are on marked time. My wife and I are now in 911 mode as we need the National Guard to come in and airlift us OUT of that precarious position. Even state patrol has passed us! Just when we think that we are up the creek, a DOT driver --- in Florida they have a service that patrols the highways and they are outfitted with AAA tow truck-type tools and the like --- The guy couldn't speak English but he yelled at us direction while he changed the tire. The old tire had been obliterated as if a retread had separated from its belt. We retrieved the old tire, threw it in the truck and were somehow able to drive the car out of the median area and into an off ramp that led us to safety on the spare. The rep for Silver advised me when I was able to drive again, take the car to the FLL location and switch the car out for a replacement. There was ONE REP at the FLL location and we were able to drive another vehicle. The rep was shown all the lug nuts, old tire remains etc. We returned from our vacation and that was that. A harrowing experience, to be sure, but we felt lucky to be alive. We didn't point any fingers at Silver -- after all, even though it had been years since I had a flat tire --- things will happen. Was the tire over inflated when we picked the car up? Doesn't matter. Did the tire have flaws? Doesn't matter. We received an "under-inflation" warning on the dashboard less than a minute from the "exploding tire". Apparently, Silver didn't see this as just a flat tire with clients who were in a "fix" one evening on I-95 between MIA and FLL. I got a call from AAA, my insurance carrier stating that Silver had been in touch and were seeking damages. To make a long story shorter, Silver is seeking $1,269.00 from us for having the flat tire on I-95. And they didn't even have to come get the car! You see, if a batter goes dead, or if the car drops a transmission, or if anything else goes wrong with the car, including having a flat, if you don't take their insurance, we are liable for ANYTHING that takes place. I understand the rental car insurance game. I can see it if it was deemed that we had taken the car off-road in the mountains or, if somebody got mad at us and took a sledge hammer to the body. I get that. But, as it stands now, our rental with Silver will end up costing us almost $300/day. Not such a good deal. AAA, by the way said that they don't usually have this problem with Avis and Hertz --- the major players --- so caveat emptor with the little guys trying to make a living. And I am all FOR those little guys, but when they gouge you regardless of the issue at hand, I'll be heading back to where proven service is king. Good luck Austin Ventures with your investment in Silver. Right now, I'd be selling...

I've been satisfied with SilverCar's service while using it twice in Los Angeles. However the second time I had to change my flight from 7p on sunday to 8am that morning. I returned the vehicle just before 6 am and inquired about pricing since I returned the car early. I was told to call customer service, which I left a voicemail and didn't hear back til the next day. The voicemail I received and saved stated that they charge for a full day after 4 hours. However the LAX location doesn't open until 5am... So I was charged for the entire day.