Short answer: usually you get your money back if you cancel well before the booking date, then there’s a fee closer to the day, but the answer depends entirely on what your contract says. These vary between cities, companies, and booking windows, so you need to read the cancellation terms in your rental agreement. Exotic rental companies tend to charge fees if you cancel inside a certain window, usually around 48 hours. Rain is not an unusual event that they’ll refund for.
Rules and Contracts Change Between Shops, Cars and States
Miami Convertibles gives all your money back unless you cancel within 48 hours of your trip, when it keeps about 10 percent. Apex Exotics (NY, NJ, CT) refunds everything if it’s more than 2 days away, or 50 percent if less. Premier Auto Miami hands it all over unless you wait less than 3 days. Veluxity keeps a 10 percent deposit whether you show up or not.
If you make a reservation, the company has set aside the time on their availability, and probably turned down other potential customers. The fee, then, is intended to cover the business disruption you’ve caused by taking their time and canceling the reservation after they’ve turned away work for you.
Bad Weather
You can’t count on getting your money back if it rains on the day of the rental. The company was prepared to do business that day. While it may seem that you ought to be able to simply walk away on those rare occasions when the otherwise beautiful Florida weather turns ugly on you, the actual policies vary between shops and contracts. Miami Convertibles returns your money in full if a state of emergency is declared for your trip days. Premier Auto Miami gives the money back or lets you change the date when there’s a hurricane watch or tropical storm warning. Veluxity offers no refunds for bad weather or early returns. Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, making that a period to study your contract’s hurricane clause. As for no-shows, Miami Convertibles holds the car two hours and then takes the whole rental cost.
Before you cancel, you may be able to avoid a cancellation fee by choosing a different day for the rental. Some car rental companies let you move the date if you ask in advance. Here, too, the terms are as varied as the contracts, so you must read your rental terms for specifics. A phone call is worth the price of your time for the question.
Right to a Refund
People often assume they have three days to change their mind and cancel a vehicle rental. They don’t. The FTC Cooling-Off Rule covers only sales at a home or your workplace, at a seller’s temporary location or at a dorm, so a contract you sign in the company’s usual business office or over the Internet has different rules. Any right to a refund or to avoid fees at cancellation usually comes from a company policy and the written rental agreement. Read them.
If you have a refundable deposit when you cancel a trip before the pick-up date, the hold is released, not refunded. The money was never charged to your credit or debit card, so there is nothing to refund; it simply stops being held. How long that takes depends on your bank, usually from a few days to two weeks. A cancellation fee is separate.
On Turo, cancellation runs both ways. As a guest you can get a full refund if it’s more than 24 hours to the start of your trip. Bookings less than 24 hours ahead get one hour to make a free cancellation. The host can cancel too, with a fee; it’s $25 if they cancel more than 24 hours ahead, $50 if within 24 hours. The host’s first cancellation is a freebie every 10 trips. Then you can rebook, or ask for a refund, and in 3 to 10 business days you get that back.
If a promised refund never arrives, dispute it as a billing error under the Fair Credit Billing Act. The government gives deadlines, so do your part in time: The written dispute must reach the card issuer within 60 days after the first bill showing the error was sent. Before booking, get the cancellation window in writing and put the deadline in your calendar.
