Traveling and Customer Service

This past weekend I traveled to Cary, North Carolina with a friend.  Southern hospitality sticks in my mind from past trips below the Mason-Dixon line.  People hold the door open, say "hello" to strangers, and take life at a slower pace than in the Northeast.

In some cases customer service translates over to national travel chains - in others, it appears that it does not.  

Take our airline, for example.  I didn't even realize my cell phone was missing when my friend received a call - from "me" - on her own phone.  Apparently, I'd left the phone on the plane, and airline representatives called the last person I'd called to ask where I might be.  They left the phone at the baggage claim and I easily retrieved it.  The people at the counter were friendly and easy to deal with.

Our car rental has not been as easy.  Sure, the guy at the counter was friendly when he signed out our car.  He even put our bags into the trunk (more on that later) for us.  But the good service stopped at that point.

That evening the automatic headlights failed to turn off.  Luckily we didn't wind up with a dead battery.  It appears to be an issue with the car because sometimes they turn off and other times the door needs to be opened and closed a few times in order for them to shut off.

The following morning I dropped my friend off at the clinic we'd traveled south for her to attend.  I was on my way back to the hotel to hit the gym and do some work to make up for the time I was missing at home.  Just as I was about to enter the highway I noticed that the low air pressure indicator came on for the tires.  Fortunately, there was a gas station up the street - a better alternative than waiting hours for AAA!  I got some change for the machine and began examining the air pressure in the tires.

Tire #1 - 20 PSI.  Filled 'er up.  Tire #2 held 40 PSI, #3 50 PSI, and #4 an astonishing 60 PSI.  The sticker inside the door said each tire should be at 32 PSI.  It is of my opinion that the driver is ultimately responsible - but doesn't it seem like the rental car agency should send the car out of the lot with the tires appropriately inflated, especially since the driver isn't provided with a tire pressure gauge?  I certainly don't travel with one, although I do carry one in my personal vehicle, as well as a travel air compressor.  It makes one wonder what else could be wrong with the vehicle...

I tried to call the rental agency but there was no answer at 8:00 a.m. despite claims of opening at 5:00.  Later in the day someone told us our trunk appeared to be open.  It doesn't seem to latch securely - there is some scuffing and denting on it, too.  The car has about 17,000 miles on the odometer.

What's next?  Sure, I could take the Kevin Smith route and complain via Twitter.  I'm going to wait and see what they have to say when I drop off the vehicle.  Then I'll decide if other steps are necessary.


Update:


When I dropped off the rental car, the agent asked how everything went.  I explained the three major issues - the worst obviously being the tire inflation.  He said sometimes gauges don't work that well.  I said I that know how to read a tire gauge and that I had corrected the air pressure in the tires.  After some consideration and examination of the car, he decided to refund $10 of my four-day rental fee.