Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that his

office has reached an agreement with the Avis and Budget car rental

companies over allegations that customers were not clearly informed about

the terms of usage for a toll plaza pass. Under the agreement, Floridians

who rented cars from Avis or Budget between March 1, 2008 and Sept.

30, 2008 will be entitled to refunds for fees charged for the “Plate Pass”

service on days they did not use the service.

Avis, which owns Budget, provides a service known as “Plate Pass” which

allows car rental customers to avoid waiting in lines at Florida toll

plazas and instead receive a bill for the amount of the tolls, plus a fee

for the use of the feature. According to an investigation by the Attorney

General’s Economic Crimes Division, when Avis originally initiated the

plate pass service customers were billed the fee only for the days they

actually used the plate pass. In March 2008, Avis allegedly changed its

policy so that if a customer used the feature just once during the rental

term, the customer was billed a $2.50 fee per day for the remainder of

their retail period.

The Attorney General’s Office began investigating after customers

complained they were not clearly informed that they would be billed the

fee for days on which the plate pass was not used. Avis has cooperated

with the Attorney General and by September 2008 made voluntary changes to clearly disclose that once the plate pass is used, customers will

thereafter be charged a daily fee for the use of the plate pass, including

days the plate pass is not used.

The agreement contains injunctive relief requiring that Avis continue to

clearly and conspicuously inform customers that they will be billed, even

for days they do not use the service. Avis will also refund Florida Avis

and Budget Customers who, between March 1, 2008 and September 30, 2008, were billed on days when they did not use the service. Avis has also

agreed to make a contribution of $10,000 to the Florida Law Enforcement

Officer of the Year fund as part of the agreement

Customers may download a claim for reimbursement on the Attorney General’s website at http://www.myfloridalegal.com/avis, or may call 1-866-966-7226 to request a reimbursement form by mail. Notarized claims forms must be submitted on or before February 15, 2010 as determined by postmark date.

Source: The office of Attorney General Bill McCollum