V Rentals - Christchurch Airport Information, Car Rental Instructions & Policies

Overall the condition of the Toyota Camry meets my expectation. I would like to have a bit of power for overtaking with 4 adults which is a bit stretch. Generally, I’ve no complaint about car performance and engine-wise in quite good condition. Room for improvement for car cleanliness. Also one of the tailight has water leakage problem.

It was a very quick and easy process picking up and dropping off the car. The car was very handy to have in our travels around Christchurch and in great condition. Staff were very helpful and friendly to deal with.

Very good

Most aspects were pretty good, and the explanations were detailed. However, the store was hard to find as there were no signs in the office building.

The car was very dirty upon arrival, clearly not washed. Staff blamed it on the wind and sand, saying it might have gotten dirty after washing. Having just gotten off a ten-hour flight, we were too tired to fuss over it and drove the car that evening. On the third day of our road trip in Kaikoura, we noticed that both rear tires were worn out with no tread left. Even as a layperson, I knew they needed replacing. Communicating with the Chinese-owned rental company in Christchurch was fruitless; they kept denying any issues, claiming the car had passed NZTA inspections and was roadworthy. After failing to resolve it with them, I contacted the platform Zuzuche to intervene, but to no avail. As I had full insurance through Zuzuche, they suggested I replace the tires at a service shop and file an insurance claim later. Not wanting to disrupt our trip, I followed their advice. At the tire shop, the staff immediately said the tires needed replacing as they had no tread and one was even bulging. The shop manager warned us that driving further without replacing them could result in getting pulled over by the police. I explained the situation to the manager, who then called the rental company. They still denied any issues. Kudos to the friendly people in New Zealand; the manager took us straight to the police station. The officer inspected the vehicle and confirmed the tire problem, demanding the rental company replace the tires immediately or risk the car being impounded. The rental company quickly complied. Thanks to the rental company's reminder, we learned that raising issues is important—not challenging the rental company, but 'challenging' the New Zealand government, which ultimately made the rental company fix the problem.

A small stone chipped the car, creating a barely noticeable scratch near the passenger side. The staff, who was Chinese, was very impatient when we wanted to know if the glass would be repaired or replaced. We were labeled as troublemakers just for asking questions and were told they hated renting to Chinese people. The repair cost was RMB 2500 (including two miscellaneous items). They said they were being kind by not replacing the glass. If the glass needed repair, why was replacement even mentioned? We requested the repair receipts from the service center but were refused, citing that the staff only delivered the car. They also refused to give us photos of the repaired glass, so we couldn't confirm whether it was actually fixed. They only provided their company's invoice.

Very satisfied