Rental cars in florida and toll road fees

Can someone refresh me on what the deal is with rental cars and the various toll road charges. I recollect that you can pay something upfront and thereby use their IPASS recorders in the car or you can decline that and go through the cash lanes. However I recollect that if you decline and go through the fast lanes by mistake they nail you with a large charge. Is this correct? I am specifically interested in Thirty Car Rental's policy.

Can someone refresh me on what the deal is with rental cars and the various toll road charges. I recollect that you can pay something upfront and thereby use their IPASS recorders in the car or you can decline that and go through the cash lanes. However I recollect that if you decline and go through the fast lanes by mistake they nail you with a large charge. Is this correct? I am specifically interested in Thirty Car Rental's policy.

They've done away with most of the cash only lanes. You either go through auto pay or they bill the rental car company which charges your card.

From the Sun Pass web site: https://www.sunpass.com/rentalcar

"Most major rental car companies now offer their customers the option of including tolls with the credit card used to rent the vehicle. These rental car customers can use Florida's toll roads and not worry about carrying cash or stopping to pay for tolls. They can breeze through the SunPass ONLY, E-PASS ONLY and LeeWay ONLY toll lanes throughout the Sunshine State.

How does it work? Cameras take a photo of the rental car's license plate as it goes through the toll lane and sends a bill for the tolls to the rental company's tolling program vendor. The vendor collects the toll plus applicable service fees from the customer's credit card, and pays the toll to the road agency. The service fees are retained by the vendor, not the toll road.

Using Rental Cars in SunPass, E-PASS and LeeWay Lanes

For more information on specific rental car programs, please contact your local rental car agency as each agency has separate programs and fees associated with electronic toll usage."

Greetings

As for most questions about Florida, depends on where you are going. Miami-Dade county toll roads are now all cashless. You either need a SunPass or they photo you tag and send the bill to the owner. Rental companies add a service fee and charge the renter or "rent" you a SunPass for some additional fee.

The toll roads throughout the rest of the state currently still have cash lanes for most exits (new exits that are added often do not take cash). There are moves underfoot to make the toll roads all cashless but the timeframe has not been finalized.

Good Sailing

Tom

they photo you tag and send the bill to the owner. Rental companies add a service fee and charge the renter

this is the correct part

most rentals have stopped renting a Sunpass. rather the rental companies all default to 'toll by plate' where the state sends the owner a monthly bill. If you choose to not prepay the rental company (with a sometimes silly outrageous fee) and they have to bill you they add an even MORE outrageous fee. the state fee is something like $1.50 a month. depending on the rental company, they add up to $15 PER TOLL.....

Miami area is significantly electronic toll only, while Orlando (including Orlando to Canaveral) still accepts cash at 100% of the plazas and 95% are manned (a few off ramps in lesser populated areas are unmanned exact change baskets but these are FEW and you probably have zero reason to use them . . .)

There are a few cars that have the transponder on their rear view mirror, and you need to pull it out of the case. Others just use the license plate method. As others said, you get a bill later to the credit card you used for the rental for costs plus typically a $4/day service fee. Pretty painless.

Can somebody enlighten me how Hertz works with toll roads? We drive from Tampa to Fort Lauderdale and back and have Hertz rental car in March.

I contacted Hertz office here in Finland and they have absolutely no clue whatsoever. :mad: They did not even know most roads have gone cashless. The girl I spoke to promised to find out but I am still waiting for her to come back to me.

I would be very grateful if somebody can share any experience. I will ask Herz rental office when I get a car, but being a Gold Club member might mean there is nobody to talk to... I do not know how it works in Tampa airport until I see.

Thanks for any help - I think there might be more expertese here on CC than on Finland Hertz office!

Can somebody enlighten me how Hertz works with toll roads? We drive from Tampa to Fort Lauderdale and back and have Hertz rental car in March.

 

I contacted Hertz office here in Finland and they have absolutely no clue whatsoever. :mad: They did not even know most roads have gone cashless. The girl I spoke to promised to find out but I am still waiting for her to come back to me.

 

I would be very grateful if somebody can share any experience. I will ask Herz rental office when I get a car, but being a Gold Club member might mean there is nobody to talk to... I do not know how it works in Tampa airport until I see.

 

Thanks for any help - I think there might be more expertese here on CC than on Finland Hertz office!

Greetings

As long as you don't venture into Miami-Dade county you will be fine. You can take I-4 east to the Florida Turnpike (south) then I-595 to the port or you can take I-75 south to I-595 to the port. Both these routes still take cash for the tolls.

Good Sailing

Tom

Thanks, Tom!

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

Dollar, Thrifty, Sunshine:

Customer must opt-in (decide) at the time of rental.

If renter particpates, there is a $6.99 daily fee each day of the rental wether a toll was used or not.

All tolls are included in the daily fee.

The maximum fee is $36.99 per week.

If customer does not opt-in and a cashless gantry or SunPass lane was used, a $25.00 fee per infraction will be added at the end of the rental.

Hertz, Advantage, Avis, Budget:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.95 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $14.75 per rental month.

National, Alamo, Enterprise:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.00 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $6.00 per rental period.

Dollar, Thrifty, Sunshine:

 

Customer must opt-in (decide) at the time of rental.

If renter particpates, there is a $6.99 daily fee each day of the rental wether a toll was used or not.

All tolls are included in the daily fee.

The maximum fee is $36.99 per week.

If customer does not opt-in and a cashless gantry or SunPass lane was used, a $25.00 fee per infraction will be added at the end of the rental.

 

Hertz, Advantage, Avis, Budget:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.95 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $14.75 per rental month.

 

National, Alamo, Enterprise:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.00 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $6.00 per rental period.

MiamiYogi, thank you so much for this. Finally a clear answer on this issue!

which is a cut and paste from the sunpass page previously referenced . . .

Dollar, Thrifty, Sunshine:

 

Customer must opt-in (decide) at the time of rental.

If renter particpates, there is a $6.99 daily fee each day of the rental wether a toll was used or not.

All tolls are included in the daily fee.

The maximum fee is $36.99 per week.

If customer does not opt-in and a cashless gantry or SunPass lane was used, a $25.00 fee per infraction will be added at the end of the rental.

 

Hertz, Advantage, Avis, Budget:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.95 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $14.75 per rental month.

 

National, Alamo, Enterprise:

Particpation is automatic, no descision is made at the time of rental.

If a renter accesses a SunPass Lane or cashless toll, the renter is charged a $2.00 per day fee plus the actual toll.

The daily fee is only charged on days a cashless toll or SunPass Lane is used.

Maximum administration fee is $6.00 per rental period.

Thank you this is helpful. Our situation is that we are staying in Orlando before our cruise. Our daughter is flying down to stay with us for a few days and is then going on to visit a friend in Tampa for a few days before she flys home. I believe the only toll she will encounter is the, I believe, one toll booth between the airport and I-4 on the Beeline expressway going west and that again when she returns. The last I knew that toll booth had cash lanes. Therefore she can refuse the toll charges with Thrifty. Correct?

which is a cut and paste from the sunpass page previously referenced . . .

It is... with the opt-in part highlighted. Thats where people get in trouble.

Personally I wouldnt rent with Dollar,Thrifty, Sunshine and risk a $25 per infraction fee opt-in or not.

curiously just last weekend I needed a rental which I picked up at the rental counter at Ft Lauderdale International at 11AM on Sunday

Absolutely no mention of electronic tolls fees or potential charges. Maybe the guy picked up on my local address from my DL ... saw no signs either . . .

I used Budget $31 for a one way run up to Melbourne International . . there were easily 30 people in line when I got there as the morning cruise ships were in mid flush . . took over an hour to get the car