Admittedly I am not in best mind set to write this posting, but I just recieved my bank statement for my trip to Costa Rica and Tri Color sucked me dry, and to say the least I am slightly disgruntled. I can just say this. When you go in you sign over a blank check just in case anything happens to the car. I had a flat tire. Believe, me getting out of this country with out a flat tire will be a miracle. Some roads have a million rock and pot-holes. As soon as I figured out I had a flat, I changed it. Of cource I had rim damage by that time because you can't tell if you have a flat on those roads. They argue this is my fault. Hey, who knows what Judge Judy would say but I really don't know what I was supposed to do differently. Anyway, I got a Gran Vitara for a week. I get by statement back. $1000 dollars. Now you do the math. Man it aint worth it. Take my advice. I should have rented a limo at that cost. Okay I've vented. Other than that, Sansa Airlines was a piece of cake, and the water slides at Los Lagos are really fast which is great but I ripped the skin off the front of my foot.

Adios.

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience! I've been all over Costa Rica and on 14 trips I've never had a flat tire. Are you saying they charged you $1000 just for the flat and a little rim damage?

No the 1000 dollars was for the car and the rim damage. The car was supposed to be 530 dollars, of cource when I got there it was 570. As far as I was concerned that was plenty of money to cover incidentals.

You should definitely complain about this to Tricolor. Also, did you have any insurance that would cover such damage?

I'm amazed. We've had excellent experiences with Tricolor. And, in the 6 times we've used them, have NEVER "signed over a blank check". Something is amiss here.

Clearly something is wrong as you should never sign over a blank check to anyone...

gzidd,
Okay, perhaps I'm being literal here--you mean leaving your credit card imprint with them at the time of pick up?

Yeah, the blank check wasn't ment literally. I gave them my credit card imprint "incase anything were to happen". I'm sure most rental car companies in Costa Rica do the same thing. I guess when it comes down to it, the best thing to do, is plan on something like this happening, and make sure your butt is covered.

OK, a couple of things. Did you keep a copy of the original contract and did you sign for the total amount at the end. You can always dispute charges with your credit card company and most will not allow people to charge you extras unless you agree. Contact the card company, explain things and let them do the fighting for you. good luck.

Thanks. I've already contacted my bank (it was a debit card) and although I have talked to Tricolor, I will call them back tomorrow morning.

-G

AAARRRRGGGGHHHH! That's what I hate about those "debit cards" or "universal check cards" with the Visa, Mastercard, etc logos.
The money is out of your account in three days or so, unlike with older type credit cards, where you receive a monthly itemized statement. It's become my personal mission to constantly remind friends about this weakness of "Check Cards." What's more, if someone steals the card, then signs for a purchase (most places don't ask for ID, and unless it is for cash withdrawal, you don't enter your PIN number, at least in USA) your account is cleaned out before you know what hit you!

CaliNurse, yeah, my husband hates those check cards so we only have credit cards (and an ATM card with a pin number; the ATM card doesn't have a check card either.) Banks seem to automatically give you those check cards but we give them back and request a card without the check card option.

You do have to be careful with check cards. I dropped one in a stor once right before Christmas and my account was drained before I realized it. Luckily, my bank was great and gave me all my money back, promptly!

As far as TriColor, I've seen other complaints about them overcharging for repairs. The insurance usually has a high deductible too, so don't assume you are ever totally covered when renting a car in CR.