My conversation with an Avis representative in Florida a few months ago:
Agent: Would you like to add a Where 2 GPS to your agreement?
George: How much?
Agent: $11.95 a day.
George: Isn’t that just a Garmin Nuvi? The kind you can buy from Amazon for $100?
Agent: Yes, but it’s better. It’s a Where 2 by Garmin. It has all the Avis locations pre-programmed into it.
George: No thanks, Avis is just pretending it’s different from a normal Garmin Nuvi, but I already have all the Avis locations programmed into my Garmin Nuvi (pulls out own Garmin Nuvi from bag and shows Agent Avis location POIs). I think it’s exorbitant.
Agent: Would you like to prepay your gas? We charge less per gallon than most gas stations.
George: Sounds interesting, tell me more.
Agent: Yes, you can bring the car back with an empty tank, because you’ll have paid for a full tank at the discount price.
George: What if I bring it back with half a tank?
Agent: You still pay for a full tank.
George: That’s dumb. To make it worthwhile, I have to risk stranding myself and my family on a highway in an effort to get as close to empty as possible.
Agent: At least you won’t have to struggle to find a gas station on the way back to the airport.
George: But my Garmin Nuvi has all the gas stations pre-programmed.
Agent: I only sell these things because head office tells me I have to.
George: I know, it’s not your fault.
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Beware: I am a customer with a brain. Why does such a nice brand that “tries harder” have 2 such obvious rip-off products that it forces its reps to push onto customers? Shameful.