A former Dundee man’s plans to show off his home town to his teenage daughter were dealt a blow when a car hire company refused to let him drive off in the vehicle he had booked.
Medical rep Graeme Brett (54) was told that he did not have the correct documents despite handing over his driving licence, his passport, his credit card and the email booking voucher.
Mr Brett, who was brought up in Blackshade and now lives in Lampeter, Wales, said such an experience left visitors with a poor first impression of Dundee.
He had brought 13-year-old Sally-Jane with him to show her the city and to visit family.
After their 12-hour journey from Wales Mr Brett and Sally-Jane stayed overnight in a hotel in the city centre before spending £8.50 on taking a taxi to Thrifty Car Rental in Kingsley Park, near Kingsway West, to pick up the hire car Mr Brett had arranged over the internet.
He said, “When we got there, I handed over the email voucher I had printed out, the credit card for the booking, my passport and my full driving licence.
“I hadn’t brought a utility bill with me it said in the small print I had to bring one and for that reason I was told they could not accept my ID and I could not have the car.”
When Mr Brett requested a refund of the £78 he had paid for the vehicle he was told no and he and his daughter were forced to take a taxi back into town.Request for refund deniedHe said, “I wanted to drive around and show Sally-Jane, then we were going to travel up to Montrose the following day to see my sister.
“We ended up walking around Dundee. I wanted to show my daughter all the places where I hung out when I was growing up.”
He added, “I was really upset about what happened and I don’t understand the problem.
“I am a British citizen and I had my passport and my driving licence with me.”
After arriving back in the city centre, Mr Brett managed to hire a car from Europcar, who were happy to accept his identification.
Mr Brett got in touch with Thrifty Car Rental’s head office to complain and was told he would not get a refund.
He said, “It’s not about the money it’s the principle.
“I think if you’ve got people coming to Dundee then this isn’t giving a very good impression.”
He added, “I’ve been round the world with my job and never had an experience like this.
“It spoiled our trip.”
A Thrifty spokeswoman said its Dundee office had dealt with the situation in accordance with the firm’s terms and conditions.