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I just don’t understand the super long process and usually waiting in huge lines so that they can have you sign something you could have done electronically. We

I just don’t understand the super long process and usually waiting in huge lines so that they can have you sign something you could have done electronically. We’re talking hours of people’s lives when they’re already exhausted from travelling.

joshfraser 5y ago
Especially when GetAround and Turo have shown that you don't need a check-in counter or long paper contracts to run a successful car rental business.
globalise83 5y ago
So they can sell you add-ons with lower resistance, I suppose. It's like when you go to one of those kitchen salesroom places where they bombard you with decisions and save the highest margin add-ons for the end so that you just wearily OK them.
Rebelgecko 5y ago
Most of the big rental companies (Avis, Budget, Hertz, Enterprise, etc) let you do speedy checkin/out if you pre-populate some information like DL and CC# on their websites. If the "semi-frequent traveler" mentioned in the article hasn't signed up to skip the counter, he's probably not as seasoned as the article wants you to think. For example when I rent with Avis, the app tells me what parking spot my car is in. I just get in, show my driver's license to the attendant on the way out (some make you show your DL before you get your key, but usually this is a chance to get a free upgrade), and off I go. At some locations you can just grab any car you want from the lot and drive off. When I return the car, they're usually done printing my receipt before I've gotten my luggage out of the trunk.
- ufmace 5y ago
  > probably not as seasoned as the article wants you to think. I remember when the TSA split the security lines into "seasoned traveler", "regular people", and "families and children" for a while. The "seasoned traveler" line was actually the slowest, because everyone wanted to think that they were seasoned when they were actually disorganized fumbling newbies. The "families and children" line, meant to be the slow one, was actually the fastest, because everyone assumed it would be slow and went to another one. So all of the actually seasoned travelers knew that that "families and children" line was the real fast one. Funny how that works.
  - ajmurmann 5y ago
    I wonder what that would have happened if the line had been assigned on the ticket based on actual travel history which I'm sure the TSA knows. But I'm also a crazy person who wishes that everyone was required to take a class on how to effectively board an airplane before being allowed on any flight...
    - bigjimmyjohnson 5y ago
      I'm a crazy person who wishes for an airline offering flights with no overhead bins. Personal items only! This would make boarding and deplaning so much faster and more pleasant.
      - ajmurmann 5y ago
        True it would make it work faster. This is also an underappreciated factor in what boarding order is most efficient. Because most time is spent putting luggage in overheard bins which blocks the aisle, boarding everyone from the same part of the plane is the worst you could do. Unfortunately that's exactly how just airlines board. Do you always check you're luggage though or do you jl just always travel super light?
        bigjimmyjohnson 5y ago
        Exactly. People walk back and forth and put stuff out of order so the whole thing is very inefficient. I just travel light. I can fit a laptop, toothbrush, phone charger, electric shaver, and a week or two of clothes in a backpack. I remember packing more when I was younger but I don't remember why.
      - samus 5y ago
        That got me thinking. The usual seat arrangement is fine, you just have to turn it upside down. The chairs have to be on a raised floor, to store all the luggage under the sitting area!
      - ufmace 5y ago
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
ImprovedSilence 5y ago
when I book through work, I can just walk into the lot, get in a car, and head to the exit. the checkout kiosk they have at the exit just runs my card, and I'm good to go. Haven't had work trips since covid though, not sure how bad things are now. If I rented locally, they bring the car to the office parking lot, and I leave it there when I'm done. Talk about the good old days...

joshfraser 5y ago

Especially when GetAround and Turo have shown that you don't need a check-in counter or long paper contracts to run a successful car rental business.

globalise83 5y ago

So they can sell you add-ons with lower resistance, I suppose. It's like when you go to one of those kitchen salesroom places where they bombard you with decisions and save the highest margin add-ons for the end so that you just wearily OK them.

Rebelgecko 5y ago

Most of the big rental companies (Avis, Budget, Hertz, Enterprise, etc) let you do speedy checkin/out if you pre-populate some information like DL and CC# on their websites. If the "semi-frequent traveler" mentioned in the article hasn't signed up to skip the counter, he's probably not as seasoned as the article wants you to think. For example when I rent with Avis, the app tells me what parking spot my car is in. I just get in, show my driver's license to the attendant on the way out (some make you show your DL before you get your key, but usually this is a chance to get a free upgrade), and off I go. At some locations you can just grab any car you want from the lot and drive off. When I return the car, they're usually done printing my receipt before I've gotten my luggage out of the trunk.

ufmace 5y ago
> probably not as seasoned as the article wants you to think. I remember when the TSA split the security lines into "seasoned traveler", "regular people", and "families and children" for a while. The "seasoned traveler" line was actually the slowest, because everyone wanted to think that they were seasoned when they were actually disorganized fumbling newbies. The "families and children" line, meant to be the slow one, was actually the fastest, because everyone assumed it would be slow and went to another one. So all of the actually seasoned travelers knew that that "families and children" line was the real fast one. Funny how that works.
- ajmurmann 5y ago
  I wonder what that would have happened if the line had been assigned on the ticket based on actual travel history which I'm sure the TSA knows. But I'm also a crazy person who wishes that everyone was required to take a class on how to effectively board an airplane before being allowed on any flight...
  - bigjimmyjohnson 5y ago
    I'm a crazy person who wishes for an airline offering flights with no overhead bins. Personal items only! This would make boarding and deplaning so much faster and more pleasant.
    - ajmurmann 5y ago
      True it would make it work faster. This is also an underappreciated factor in what boarding order is most efficient. Because most time is spent putting luggage in overheard bins which blocks the aisle, boarding everyone from the same part of the plane is the worst you could do. Unfortunately that's exactly how just airlines board. Do you always check you're luggage though or do you jl just always travel super light?
      - bigjimmyjohnson 5y ago
        Exactly. People walk back and forth and put stuff out of order so the whole thing is very inefficient. I just travel light. I can fit a laptop, toothbrush, phone charger, electric shaver, and a week or two of clothes in a backpack. I remember packing more when I was younger but I don't remember why.
    - samus 5y ago
      That got me thinking. The usual seat arrangement is fine, you just have to turn it upside down. The chairs have to be on a raised floor, to store all the luggage under the sitting area!
    - ufmace 5y ago

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

ImprovedSilence 5y ago

when I book through work, I can just walk into the lot, get in a car, and head to the exit. the checkout kiosk they have at the exit just runs my card, and I'm good to go. Haven't had work trips since covid though, not sure how bad things are now. If I rented locally, they bring the car to the office parking lot, and I leave it there when I'm done. Talk about the good old days...