So you rented a car and everything went without a hitch. You got a great deal, used the checklist before leaving the lot, fueled up and saved the receipts. All that accomplished only to run in to traffic on the way back. Bummer.
But there's still hope! Many places have a grace period on returns where no additional charges or fees will be applied to the final bill. Most agencies give renters an additional 29 minutes on their return times to account for unforeseen circumstances, with the exception of Thrifty, Dollar and Fox.
In any instance, it pays to be punctual. Here's the rundown on what different agencies have in place:
| Agency | Grace Period | Penalties |
| Alamo | 29 minutes | Hourly charge for every full and partial hour late |
| Avis | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: ¾ day's charge |
| 90+ minutes: full day's charge | ||
| Budget | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: hourly rate |
| 90+ minutes: full day's charge | ||
| 7+ hours: additional $10/day fee on top of everything else | ||
| Dollar | NONE | $15.99 charge per day late on top of daily rate |
| Enterprise | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: ¼ daily rate per hour |
| 2+ hours: full day's charge | ||
| Fox | 59 minutes | 60+ minutes: hourly charge |
| 3+ hours: full day's charge | ||
| Hertz | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: hourly rate |
| 2+ hours: full day's charge | ||
| National | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: hourly rate |
| 2+ hours: full day's charge | ||
| Payless | 29 minutes | 30+ minutes: hourly rate that starts from minute one |
| Thrifty | NONE | Immediately charged hourly rate |
| 24+ hours: charged daily rate |
