Woman says she waited several hours for a rental car at Buffalo Airport

CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Sheryl Cherico landed at Buffalo Niagara International Airport Friday afternoon. She headed to the Dollar/Hertz rental car counter to pick up a car for the weekend.

“I waited in line for 45 minutes and was told there were no cars and I was just checking in. It was just for check-in and it would take at least another two hours,” she said.

Cherico left the airport to grab something to eat while she waited for her car. After three hours, she returned to the crowded rental area where dozens of people were struggling with the same problem.

“They had two people at the counter and the lines stretched to the door. It was chaos,” Cherico said.

She was told she was the 20th person in line for a car and after several hours her car was finally ready.

“I didn’t get the car I paid for, and if I had lost the car, I wouldn’t have gotten my money back because I booked it through an online service,” she said. “I could have taken an Uber to another car dealership. I could have. I mean, I had a lot of options, but I didn’t want to sacrifice the $300 I spent on the rental car I paid for.”

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Cherico is not alone when it comes to car rental challenges. According to Auto Rental News, demand is stronger than ever following the pandemic.

Travel website The Points Guy suggests:

• Book as early as possible
• Call in advance to confirm your reservation
• Looking for a car rental outside the airport

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“It wasn’t really about the money, it was about the time and the stress it caused,” Cherico said.

If you find yourself in Cherico’s position, USA Today has put together a few rules for you to know.

If a company runs out of cars in your “class,” you should be offered an upgrade at no additional cost. And if the company runs out of cars at all, it’s industry practice to pay for a car rented from a competitor.

7 News contacted Hertz about Cherico’s situation. They told 7 News’ Kristen Mirand that Cherico had been credited $200 and operations at the airport were back to normal.