Car hire at Nelson Airport

The easiest and friendliest car rental process ever! Booked online for Nelson Airport pickup and return Feb ‘24. Cheerful and helpful man at the desk. No surprises. Smooth process. But be aware that there is an extra surcharge for the airport ( ours was $45).

I had a late pickup when it was dark and raining so I was unable to check the car properly. The next day I was shocked to see the number of scratches on the paintwork. I called the Nelson airport office and was told they could send through some photos from your files so I could verify that the scratches had already been noted. The email/link to photos did not reach me. I was also told that scratches are regarded as wear and tear but there was one significant long scratch that I was particularly concerned about. The next day I noticed a dent in the passenger door. I took a photo and I think I called again. Basically for the whole of the hire I had anxiety and uncertainty whether I would be charged the excess for repairs to the dent or the scratches, that I hadn’t seen when I picked the car up. I was unsure whether I would be held responsible even though I had taken care where I parked the car and certainly wasn’t aware of causing any of the scratches or dent myself. I won’t be picking up hire cars in the future when it is dark but I also think the check over of the car should have been done with one of your staff. The fact that Budget regards scratches and dents as general wear and tear is up to you but it doesn’t help your customers if they pick up cars late and during bad weather making it impossible to check over the car adequately. Apart from this, I was pleased with the car and pickup/drop off was very straightforward.