April 30, 2004 -- What's better than savings? Double savings. That's the philosophy Hertz is promoting with their new Double Take program, which turns little coupons into slightly bigger coupons.
The plan is really simple. Go dig out any Hertz coupons you may have -- from online promotions, from the Entertainment Book, from previous rentals, from wherever. If you don't have a coupon, write down this number: 953455. That's good for $10 off any rental of four days or more that includes a Saturday night.
Book your car over the phone or through www.hertz.com, using your coupon number. Then, when you get to the counter to pick up your car, ask for "Double Take." Pow. Your coupon will be doubled, to a value of up to $30.
You can also use the "Double Take" code word to double the frequent-flier or hotel points you get for your rental.
Before you take advantage of this promotion, though, make sure you shop around. Hertz isn't usually the cheapest car-rental company -- people generally choose them because of their reputation for quality and service.
For instance, for a four-day June rental from New York's JFK airport, we found a car from Enterprise (www.enterprise.com) on Expedia for a total of $250. The same car would have cost $310 from Hertz. Even with the doubled $10 coupon, that's $40 more than Enterprise's rate.
But Hertz tied with Avis for tops in customer satisfaction last year, leaving Enterprise in fourth place, according to research firm JD Power and Associates. Drivers often cite the high quality of Hertz's cars and easy pick-up and return processes as reasons to rent from Hertz, JD Power said in 2002 and 2003 surveys.
This Double Take promotion is good from May 1 through June 30.