Budget Italia Reviews 

Un'odissea per cancellare la prenotazione (come previsto da contratto): mando una mail che viene totalmente ignorata, quindi chiamo il numero indicato nel contratto di noleggio. Il 199307373 è praticamente una truffa. Si paga al minuto, è tutta automatica, e NON FUNZIONA. La mail che mi conferma l'annullamento non mi è mai arrivata. Richiamo il giorno dopo per parlare con un operatore e mi mettono in attesa. Mezz'ora di musichetta, nessuno risponde, riaggancio. 15 euro di chiamata. Dopo altre mail e una chiamata a un altro numero ancora non ho la mia maledetta mail di conferma. Ma si può?

Left stranded by the roadside with two elderly relatives! Hired a 7 seater from Pisa airport, nice new car (albeit in the wrong parking bay and referenced a white, but was black on the documentation) Suffered a double puncture on day 2 of 4. Called roadside assistance (paid extra for the “plus” service) eventually got through after being on hold over an hour. Said they would dispatch a truck, two hour later got a text that they were 45 minutes away, did not turn up. Called and advised they would come tomorrow and they could not arrange transportation for us. Spent 8 hours by the roadside, was getting dark and cold, managed to bribe a kind local man 300euros to take us to safety. No communication from Budget, called multiple times only to be h7ng up on, no response to email complaint system either in the UK or Italy. Cannot block ring fenced payment so completely at their mercy as to what extra money they take, lost two days of car hire also, it to mention the 300 euros. Will be pursuing with MD and CEOs when we return to the UK after putting our elderly relatives at such risk.

Volevo modificare la prenotazione tramite sito web ed è impossibile. Il call center è a pagamento e ti tengono ore in attesa. Alle mail non rispondono neanche.Ho annullato la prenotazione, pessimo servizio

Ho noleggiato l'auto tramite il sito di ITA Airways in quanto iscritto al loro club SMART
Il noleggio è stato di 21 giorni per i quali ho pagato circa 800 eur nel mese di Aprile 2025.
Aspettavo l'accredito dei punti sul mio estratto conto ITA dopo aver saldato il dovuto il 27 Aprile.
Ad oggi, dopo circa 3 mesi, non si vede ancora nulla sul mio estratto conto... Mi hanno risposto che ci vogliono 6/8 settimane...
Risposta di BUDGET:
Gentile Sig. Vecchiotti,

La ringraziamo per la sua comunicazione.

Le confermiamo che l’ufficio competente ha già provveduto all’inserimento dei punti, e che l’operazione risulta completata correttamente da parte nostra.

Proprio perché la gestione dei punti avviene tramite una piattaforma esterna e non direttamente da Avis, ci sorprende che il servizio clienti di ITA Airways le abbia suggerito di rivolgersi a noi per una verifica che spetta invece al loro sistema.

Comprendiamo il disappunto e siamo consapevoli di quanto questo tipo di situazioni possa generare confusione. Tuttavia, ci fa piacere confermarle che, per quanto ci riguarda, l’operazione è stata gestita in modo corretto.

Rimaniamo a disposizione per qualsiasi ulteriore chiarimento o documentazione utile.

Cordiali saluti,

Stefano

We went to get our rented car in Rome airport. Terrible experience. We waited in a queue in the parking lot for 50 mins in 30 degrees (with two small kids). Whereafter we were given the wrong car twice - they even asked us to redo the queue to get the car we had booked. Terrible service staff, not kind. Will never use budget again

habe am Airport Palermo einen kleinen SUV über booking.com reserviert. Bekommen habe ich einen Ford Focus. Nach Reklamation dann doch einen leider rundherum beschädigten Seat Arona erhalten. Musste ohne Beisein von Budget Mitarbeitern 20 Minuten lang selbst den schlechten Zustand per Handy Fotos dokumentieren. Vorher schon 2 Stunden Wartezeit, trotz sogenanntem Quickpass, mit diesem sollte man das Fahrzeug eigentlich innerhalb weniger Minuten erhalten. Bei der Rückgabe wurde prompt ein „neuer“ Schaden reklamiert, welcher aber durch meine Fotos dann doch als alter Schaden anerkannt worden ist…. Musste dann auch noch knapp Eur 60,— Pannenhilfe Extrakosten bezahlen, weil diese von mir bei der Übernahme des Fahrzeuges ausdrücklich gewünscht worden worden sein sollen…… Naja, halt ein kleines Körberlgeld für unsere Famiglia in Palermo.

Horribly disorganized. They must enjoy losing business.
No order to picking up cars even with pre booking in Polermo Airport. Several workers walking around checking individuals names off of an outdated that was printed a day before. For what reason? No reasonable person would know.

Absolutely unacceptable experience – avoid at all costs.

I have been renting cars internationally for years, and I can confidently say this was the worst experience I have ever had.

We booked our vehicle in advance and paid the full rental amount upfront. At the counter, we purchased full insurance coverage, including roadside assistance, expecting peace of mind for the duration of our trip.

Unfortunately, that could not have been further from the truth.

We encountered a serious tire issue during our rental. When we contacted roadside assistance, we were told they only provide towing and would not help. When we called the rental office directly, we were told they could not do anything. No support, no alternative, no solution. We were forced to cancel our plans, repeatedly stop to inflate the tire, and drive under unsafe conditions just to return the vehicle—entirely unsupported.

The ordeal didn’t end there. After we returned the car, the company charged us again for the rental, despite having already paid in full in advance. When we called to resolve the issue, a staff member simply said it wasn’t her problem and hung up on us.

To this day, the issue remains unresolved.

This is hands down the worst customer service experience I have encountered. The disregard for basic safety, accountability, and professionalism is astonishing. If I could rate this company zero stars, I would.

Never again. Do yourself a favor—stay away.

If your Tuscan adventure hinges on a well-planned road trip with friends or family, and you’ve carefully booked a rental car months in advance to ensure comfort, space, and affordability—do yourself a favor and steer clear of Budget Rent a Car in Florence. Trust me, your travel sanity depends on it.
Our group of four lifelong friends (40 years and counting!) had finally carved out time for a long-awaited Italian escape. We booked a spacious car with a large trunk to accommodate our luggage, found a great deal, and ensured all documents were valid and ready. Certain Car rental agent Ramona L.—a Budget employee whose talent for turning joy into chaos deserves its own review.
Ramona greeted us with a smile that could curdle milk and a demeanor better suited to border patrol than hospitality. Despite presenting valid international documents and dual citizenship proof (all ID documents, including Italian), she invented bureaucratic hurdles on the spot. She demanded proof that I was no longer an Italian resident—something not required by any rental policy—and rejected my documents based on her own personal interpretation of reality.
When I offered an alternative set of documents from my other nationality, she refused them too, citing, “I’ve already seen you’re Italian,” as if nationality were a disqualifier. Even when we tried to add another driver with a “valid” set of documents (according to her), she declined, insisting the primary renter was “invalid.” The logic? Nonexistent.
We booked through Booking.com, and when we contacted their support, Ramona initially refused to speak with them. After 15 minutes of persuasion, she finally did—only to ignore their advice and continue denying the car. Her parting gift? Telling us her manager would be available the next morning, leaving us stranded.
The fallout? A last-minute scramble to replan our trip during peak tourist season, €500 in unexpected costs, and a €150 cancellation fee because Budget treated this fiasco as a “no-show.” We ended up renting a much smaller car in a Tuscan village—for double the daily rate—using the exact same documents Ramona had deemed unacceptable. That agent didn’t bat an eye.
Final tally: €650 in extra expenses—one-third of our total trip cost.
Moral of the story: If you value your time, money, and travel happiness, skip Budget/Avis in Florence. There are plenty of other agencies that understand the difference between customer service and power trips.

All'aeroporto di Napoli mi dicono che se voglio estendere di 1 giorno il noleggio basta chiamarli, chiamo e mi risponde un call center dopo 30 minuti di attesa. Mi dicono che se voglio estendere devo pagare 600 euro sennò devo farmi 1 ora di strada riportare l'auto e rifare una prenotazione. Vi esorto a lasciar perdere non sono trasparenti con le politiche e creano disagio. Sconsigliatissimi e disonesti

I rented a car on 30 May -1 June 2025 from Budget at Bologna Airport and had a very disappointing experience. The car was handed over dirty, with no windshield washer fluid, and was covered in scratches and damage that were clearly not properly documented by staff.

After returning the car, I was charged for a scratch that was already there when I picked it up. I have video proof showing the scratch at the time of collection, yet Budget still issued the charge, using a blurry, low-quality photo as supposed “evidence.” It feels like they rely on the poor condition of their cars to shift blame to customers — borderline fraudulent behavior.

The process of disputing this charge has wasted my time and caused unnecessary stress. I strongly advise others to avoid Budget at Bologna Airport — inspect everything thoroughly, film the entire car, or better yet, book with a more reputable company.

I rented a car from Avis/Budget Italia in Naples, Italy through my Airline’s frequent flier program. Avis/Budget Italia is a partner site of the Airline. The booking confirmation stated that the total cost of the rental was covered by my frequent flier program.

When I picked up the car, I agreed to add two “extras” to the agreement (a second driver and fee to return the car without a full tank of gas). These were clearly stipulated in the rental agreement as totaling $144.

After returning the car, I saw my credit card was billed $503. I also got a final receipt with unclear charges and terms that did not match the booking confirmation or agreement. These included $191 in “miscellaneous fees” with no explanation of what they are. I contacted Avis/Budget’s customer service in the US, and was told I have to resolve it directly with the rental office in Italy. The email address provided bounces back as “domain not found” and the phone number is “not in service”. The website is in Italian with no option for English (I don’t speak Italian).

It’s absurd that I can’t get support from Budget in the US and a global company has no oversight of their international locations. I’ve had to file disputes for the charges with my airline and bank. Avis/Budget’s suspicious billing practices and total lack of support are unacceptable.

Update 4/12/2025: I received a response from Avis/Budget customer service that they are unable to locate my rental agreement, yet I attached a copy of it when I contacted them and wrote out all the information in my email. They are asking for the same information again. This is all very concerning.

Al ritiro mi è stata inserita l'opzione carburante anticipato, da me non richiesta, senza che venisse neanche spiegata. Al rientro mi è stata quindi addebitata una spesa ulteriore e tutto quello che hanno saputo fare per rimediare è stato offrirmi dei voucher per il prossimo noleggio... Ovviamente non li userò mai visto che cercherò di stare il più possibile lontano da budget per evitare di essere truffato ancora... State alla larga

Ho prenotato un noleggio con loro tramite rentalcars.com. Mi è stata fornita un'auto misera e scomoda, diversa da quella riportata sul sito, dopo pochi chilometri avevo già le gambe indolenzite.
In più mi sono stati addebitati dei costi folli (325€!) per la riparazione di uno pneumatico bucato che ho avuto cura di sostituire con il ruotino per non rovinarlo e 26,36€ per la benzina nonostante l'avessi riportata con il pieno, non mi servirò mai più di questo noleggio

We tried to rent a car on the spot and were given a very high price. I stepped away from the counter and booked the car online with them half the price. The rep never honored online reservation and was incredibly rude to us. I would stay away from them.

abbiamo noleggiato un'auto attraverso il sito di expedia circa un mese prima del nostro viaggio a Nassau bahamas, sapendo che nel periodo di natale sarebbe stato difficile avere scelta e trovare occasioni. purtroppo al nostro arrivo l'addetta al check in ci ha comunicato di non avere auto disponibile per noi. non ha spiegato il motivo ha solo detto che non ne aveva e mentre vedevamo arrivare numerosi clienti ai quali è stata data un'auto. siamo stati lì davanti per circa due ore nel tentativo di capire come risolvere questo problema anche con expedia alla quale avevamo pagato una quota assicurativa. Con freddezza e assoluta
indisponibilità l'addetta non ha mosso un dito per aiutarci a risolvere il problema. abbiamo chiesto di darci qualcosa che documentasse il nostro arrivo e che era budget a non avere disponibilità dell'auto... ovviamente nemmeno questo perché le auto c'erano visto che venivano assegnate a chi arrivava dopo di noi! veramente sconcertante questo comportamento.
risultato abbiamo noleggiato auto da hertz che ovviamente costava molto di più perché di livello superiore. la cosa che ha stupito la modalità con cui questa dipendente gestisce l'arrivo dei clienti. in base a cosa si decide che vanno lasciati a piedi? sconsiglio vivamente budget per noleggio auto a Nassau. e sconsiglio anche di prenotare con expedia visto l'esito. purtroppo la sensazione è stata di avere subito una specie di truffa da un lato budget che prenota il noleggio ad un prezzo conveniente per poi senza alcuno scrupolo non fornirlo e dall'altra expedia che vende servizi come mediatore e sparisce completamente visto che ci è stato risposto che occorrevano 72 ore per risolvere il problema. peccato per Budget che non è così ovunque! mi auguro che venga fatta chiarezza sull'episodio nell'ottica della trasparenza e dell'accoglienza che qui non ci sono state..

We rented a car from Malpensa airport for 3 days. The check-in was quick and easy: we were given the keys and told the car would be in a numbered bay.When we got to the parking lot,the bay was empty. We went back to the terminal to be "told off" saying we should have looked around for the car.
Half way through our journey we stopped on a rest area in the motorway to just realise the car did not close using the remote control or the key. We attempted to contact them five times before being able to talk to someone. They advised returning the car to the nearest branch, so we did.Once arrived no one had made contact with the other branch, so no cars were available for us to take. We had to wait for a car to become available and being cleaned. We wasted 2 hours, and had to cancel our meeting due to this. Not only we received no apologies from them, but we were charged 27 euros for the fuel and another 20 euros for various taxes when returning the car. When we wrote to them complaining all they could offer was a 20 euro voucher to use with them. Their email was aggressive and rude and they refused to refund any moneys we spent due to a fault that was entirely theirs.
Unbelievable - please use reputable companies

Sono assolutamente non professionali. Ho dimenticato il telefono nel cassetto dell'auto e nonostante abbia segnalato immediatamente la cosa per telefono ed emails....niente...non si sono fatti sentire, neanche una risposta.
Un noleggio da evitare completamente.
Abbiamo aspettato oltre 30 minuti per ritirare l'auto nonostante avessimo fatto il quick check-in e una persona indietro a noi nella fila è stata fatta passare prima. Non sanno veramente lavorare.

Rubbish! Their car they lent me had no coolant... Its lucky I noticed after 20 minutes driving and filled it up with water at the service station!

I reported this and they gave no recovery for what could have been a blown up engine!

Absolute unsafe company! Do not use them at all!

Noleggiare is cheaper and much better quality cars from Milan airport!

Stay away at all costs, they scammed me for refuelling charges after I returned the car and will not correct it. I submitted a dispute within 20 mins of returning the vehicle since Aug 8 but they have not responded.

When you drop the car, they will scam you. READ WHAT YOU SIGN BECAUSE by saying diesel is full, and show you ONLY the signature area on their device, but you are actually scammed to sign your vehicle has no fuel.

My first hand experience: Returned my vehicle on Aug 8 to a budget employee named Fillipo with wavy hair. He confirmed and verbally told us the diesel is full and there is no damage. He scrolled directly to the signature area on his device and told me to sign. When I was going through security 15 mins later, I got an email saying I am to be charged for refuelling. I immediately opened a dispute ticket [TA150A82E] with them and provided evidence of paying for 40litres of diesel(full tank) less than 20 mins before I dropped off the car. I also mentioned they could literally check right now that the fuel is full but 2 weeks later, still no response and my card has been charged on Aug 9 for refuelling for a total of €116.54.

Does anyone know how I can charge them under any consumer protection laws?