Budget Fastbreak/Costco Question

[Ralph&Pam]

We’ll be picking up a rental car at MCO. Reservation is with Budget, made through Costco. My Fastbreak number was included when I made the reservation. Costco paperwork says I will have to show my Costco card when picking up the car. I use the Costco app on my phone to verify my membership, so I don’t normally carry the card with me. Anyone with experience in terms of the Budget agents at MCO having to see the physical card?

 

[DaviVascaino]

just bring the card. why risk ruining your vacation ? even if someone here says they have used the app, you might get an agent that will require the physical card, and you will be in trouble. The paper says bring the card

 

[aea71]

We book rental cars through Costco a few times a year and have never had to show the card at Budget, Avis or Alamo. I would still plan on having the card with you just in case.

 

[Lewisc]

Years ago Alamo in PHX not only asked to see my COSTCO card but swiped it, captured my membersip number.

I Suspect the app would work, but the card might be faster.

 

[stinkpickle]

I rent thru Costco all the time, and I've never been asked to show my membership card at the counter. However, since I use a Costco Citi Visa for payment, my membership card and credit card are the same card.

 

[Robber Baron]

I have rented thru Costco over a dozen times. I have never been asked for my card.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Thanks for all the real world experiences. I usually rent with Alamo/Costco, so it’s been a number of years since I used Budget. Pricing was dramatically different in favor of Budget this time. I have never been asked for my Costco card when using Alamo, where we always take advantage of advanced check in and skip the counter whenever available. Haven’t use my Budget Fastbreak membership for a number of years, so I expect to have to visit the counter for credit card and license verification, and I will have the Costco card available in case I’m asked for it.

 

[nicko]

I rented at MCO Budget via a Costco reservation 2 weeks ago. I also had FastBreak. They didn't ask for my Costco card but I was ready with it just in case. I was able to skip the counter and use the mini counter in the rental garage. It had been a couple of years since I used FastBreak so I made sure all of my information in my FastBreak account was current. Everything went smoothly.

However, keep all your paperwork with your rate. When I returned my car they charge me $120 more than my contract price. When I protested they made me go to the counter where the Rep noticed I was incorrectly charged for a tank of gas even though I returned the car on full. I used the gas station at the southern entrance to MCO to fill up. They immediately reversed the charge but it was kind of annoying.

 

[_19disnA]

If your first time renting from Costco/Budget perhaps that is why they want to see the physical membership card. I agree with others it is no big deal to bring it along if that is what the paperwork says to do. Phones can go down for a lot of reasons you can't control. There might be some kind of software update, the battery goes dead or the network might be down. Phones are convenient when they work, BUT it is still a good idea to have a backup plan.

Over the years, certain cities/rental car companies have unique rules. I can recall vacationing somewhere using one of the major rental car companies where they said we had to show a paper gas station receipt as proof of the fill up. We always refill the car before returning to avoid their exhoribant refill charges. I would assume they were having issues at that location with people SAYING they refilled the car when they did not.

When I fly, I always print the paper boarding pass at home even if I have the info on my phone. One less thing to go wrong when traveling.

 

[katallo]

We recently rented through Costco Budget. This time we did show our card and Fastbreak was set up. After showing our Costco card we went to the garage and car was ready! We also fill prior to returning and take a photo of the mileage and gas gauge when dropping off the car. A tip I got on Disboards!

 

[mdsd8700]

We rented from Budget about 3 weeks ago from MCO through Budget. We have Fastbreak as well. There was a Fastbreak Board that had our name and number of the spot our car was in. Went to the spot but there was no car parked there. So was told to go the mini desk in the Garage. We waited an hour in the line. That was very frustrating. However on the way out we were not asked to provide our Costco Card.

 

[mdsd8700]

We rented from Budget about 3 weeks ago from MCO through Budget. We have Fastbreak as well. There was a Fastbreak Board that had our name and number of the spot our car was in. Went to the spot but there was no car parked there. So was told to go the mini desk in the Garage. We waited an hour in the line. That was very frustrating. However on the way out we were not asked to provide our Costco Card.

 

[mickeyinthehouse]

FYI - We just got back from MCO. Had a car booked through Costco Budget. When we arrived, the Budget line was ridiculous, it wound through all of the roped off area and went beyond. No other rental car counter had more than 5 people in line. We have fastrbreak so we went directly to the garage to another very long line. No one's paperwork was printed so they could go directly to their car so everyone had to stand in line. We had an appointment to get to so I immediately got on my phone and booked through another company. This is the second time this has happened to me when renting a car with budget at MCO. When we returned our car I did notice that there was only 1 person in line at the budget counter in the garage so I'm not sure if I just have bad timing on arriving at the airport when I have rented with budget or if this is a common occurrence.

 

[CarolynFH]

FYI - We just got back from MCO. Had a car booked through Costco Budget. When we arrived, the Budget line was ridiculous, it wound through all of the roped off area and went beyond. No other rental car counter had more than 5 people in line. We have fastrbreak so we went directly to the garage to another very long line. No one's paperwork was printed so they could go directly to their car so everyone had to stand in line. We had an appointment to get to so I immediately got on my phone and booked through another company. This is the second time this has happened to me when renting a car with budget at MCO. When we returned our car I did notice that there was only 1 person in line at the budget counter in the garage so I'm not sure if I just have bad timing on arriving at the airport when I have rented with budget or if this is a common occurrence.

Wow, our experience was completely different. We arrived and left on a Tuesday rather than a weekend, which might have made the difference. We booked via Costco and linked to our Fastbreak account via the Costco online reservation. When we landed, we had a text from Budget with a link to their website, telling us what car we had and where it was. We walked over there, loaded up, and drove to the exit booth where they scanned the QR code on the website, and off we went. We didn’t see anyone in line at the booth either.

 

[ScubaCat]

This is the second time this has happened to me when renting a car with budget at MCO. When we returned our car I did notice that there was only 1 person in line at the budget counter in the garage so I'm not sure if I just have bad timing on arriving at the airport when I have rented with budget or if this is a common occurrence.

it's a crap shoot. I notice the big line for fastbreak pretty regularly. I'll use them when the price is significantly better, but it has to be at least $100 or so to compensate for the immense hassle and time standing there.

 

[mickeyinthehouse]

it's a crap shoot. I notice the big line for fastbreak pretty regularly. I'll use them when the price is significantly better, but it has to be at least $100 or so to compensate for the immense hassle and time standing there.

I'm looking at my next trip and trying to decide whether to take the risk. We arrive at midnight so I'm wondering how many people could be in line at that time so maybe it's worth the risk. The flip side is they probably won't have many people working at that time so anyone in line will cause delay.

 

[georgina]

We rented from Budget about 3 weeks ago from MCO through Budget. We have Fastbreak as well. There was a Fastbreak Board that had our name and number of the spot our car was in. Went to the spot but there was no car parked there. So was told to go the mini desk in the Garage. We waited an hour in the line. That was very frustrating. However on the way out we were not asked to provide our Costco Card.

FYI - We just got back from MCO. Had a car booked through Costco Budget. When we arrived, the Budget line was ridiculous, it wound through all of the roped off area and went beyond. No other rental car counter had more than 5 people in line. We have fastrbreak so we went directly to the garage to another very long line. No one's paperwork was printed so they could go directly to their car so everyone had to stand in line. We had an appointment to get to so I immediately got on my phone and booked through another company. This is the second time this has happened to me when renting a car with budget at MCO. When we returned our car I did notice that there was only 1 person in line at the budget counter in the garage so I'm not sure if I just have bad timing on arriving at the airport when I have rented with budget or if this is a common occurrence.

These stories are why I don't usually go with Budget at MCO. Had one OK experience last May, had to use the counter as it was through UT. Someone asked me on another thread why I prefer Alamo, it's because I have never had an issue booking with Costco and going straight to the garage, choosing a car, and leaving. My reservation is also linked on the app so I hope my experience is like CarolynFH's. My current Budget reservation is $175 cheaper than Alamo

 

[Ralph&Pam]

These stories are why I don't usually go with Budget at MCO. Had one OK experience last May, had to use the counter as it was through UT. Someone asked me on another thread why I prefer Alamo, it's because I have never had an issue booking with Costco and going straight to the garage, choosing a car, and leaving. My reservation is also linked on the app so I hope my experience is like CarolynFH's. My current Budget reservation is $175 cheaper than Alamo

Longtime Alamo renter here. However, pricing was so much lower to book Budget that we used them for a 3-night pre-cruise and 7-night post-cruise rental last month.

We picked up at MCO and dropped off at Port Canaveral for the first rental and did the reverse for the second. Pick-ups were a hassle both times. At MCO, I had to go to the counter because it was my first Fastbreak rental so they wanted to verify my license and credit card information. Long wait in line to talk to the agent. Then a long sales pitch for their various loss waiver (insurance) options, with quite a hard sell even though I have good coverage through my personal auto policy, an additional personal liability policy, and additional car rental coverage through an annual travel policy. Drop off at the Budget location near Port Canaveral was another long line. At least the shuttle to the port worked well. When we completed our cruise, we took the shuttle back to the Budget office near the port. Another long wait in line (no Fastbreak service there), followed by the agent attempting to raise the rental rate by $120 for the week-long rental, despite my reservation paperwork and the fact that the shuttle driver had told us they had over 100 cars on site. After getting that resolved, another attempt to upsell the insurance products before we were finally given the needed paperwork and told where to locate the car. Drop off at MCO went smoothly, although I did not like the fact that they would only email me a receipt. Alamo at MCO has always printed one on the spot using a handheld unit. I particularly wanted to verify the charges since the agent had attempted to charges us the extra $120 for this rental. Budget had pre-authorized an extra $200 on my credit card for the each of the rentals compared to the rental contract, but the actual charges for both rentals were correct to the penny.

I will continue to book Alamo unless the Budget prices are so much more favorable as to offset the additional complications. This last trip, the two one-way rentals would have been twice the price to use Alamo instead.

 

[georgina]

Longtime Alamo renter here. However, pricing was so much lower to book Budget that we used them for a 3-night pre-cruise and 7-night post-cruise rental last month.

We picked up at MCO and dropped off at Port Canaveral for the first rental and did the reverse for the second. Pick-ups were a hassle both times. At MCO, I had to go to the counter because it was my first Fastbreak rental so they wanted to verify my license and credit card information. Long wait in line to talk to the agent. Then a long sales pitch for their various loss waiver (insurance) options, with quite a hard sell even though I have good coverage through my personal auto policy, an additional personal liability policy, and additional car rental coverage through an annual travel policy. Drop off at the Budget location near Port Canaveral was another long line. At least the shuttle to the port worked well. When we completed our cruise, we took the shuttle back to the Budget office near the port. Another long wait in line (no Fastbreak service there), followed by the agent attempting to raise the rental rate by $120 for the week-long rental, despite my reservation paperwork and the fact that the shuttle driver had told us they had over 100 cars on site. After getting that resolved, another attempt to upsell the insurance products before we were finally given the needed paperwork and told where to locate the car. Drop off at MCO went smoothly, although I did not like the fact that they would only email me a receipt. Alamo at MCO has always printed one on the spot using a handheld unit. I particularly wanted to verify the charges since the agent had attempted to charges us the extra $120 for this rental. Budget had pre-authorized an extra $200 on my credit card for the each of the rentals compared to the rental contract, but the actual charges for both rentals were correct to the penny.

I will continue to book Alamo unless the Budget prices are so much more favorable as to offset the additional complications. This last trip, the two one-way rentals would have been twice the price to use Alamo instead.

This seems to be a typical Budget MCO story. I did get the hard sell for upcharges in May with my UT rental but at least the counter line was short. I am really hoping that counted as a use of Fast Break so I can skip this time, I am flying in on a Saturday morning . I have used Budget several times to pick up a car at a hotel near Universal with no issues. I also prefer the Alamo printed receipt on the spot, but between $700 and $525 it is hard to choose the higher price. I keep checking every day!

 

[ScubaCat]

I'm looking at my next trip and trying to decide whether to take the risk. We arrive at midnight so I'm wondering how many people could be in line at that time so maybe it's worth the risk. The flip side is they probably won't have many people working at that time so anyone in line will cause delay.

the budget fastbreak counter (and also avis preferred) is closed at that time so be sure to check-in inside the terminal before walking out to the garage with your luggage. learn from my mistake!