As reported on washinton post dated February 18, 2007, Sheri Annis of Chevy Chase arrived at the Hertz counter in the Los Angeles airport with luggage and a tired toddler, expecting that, as in the past, a Hertz employee would help her install the child safety seat she’d reserved along with a car. But the policy has changed, she was told, and assistance is neither available nor allowed.
She was handed the seat

“A kind employee said he would try to help me,” Annis says. “When another employee saw him, he was scolded and reminded of the new policy.”

Hertz responded to her letter of complaint, explaining that eliminating assistance with safety-seat installation was due to a variety of factors, the biggest one being “customer interest in installing the car seats themselves.” That reason was repeated to CoGo. Annis says she is skeptical about “a public outcry to avoid help.”

Of the other biggest car rental companies, which will help? All managers at Avis are trained to install safety seats.”This is part of our quality inspection at all stations; we take it very seriously,” says spokeswoman Susan McGowan.

Budget, owned by the same company as Avis, does not have a policy to assist, “but it is a service we are looking at adding,” says McGowan. Enterprise spokeswoman Laura Bryant says, “We normally encourage parents to install the car seats,” adding that Enterprise does not own any car seats and that the company calls local contractors when one is reserved. No assistance is offered by National or Alamo.

All cars and safety seats made since September 2002 have a two-part connection system. Look for tethers that come from the back of the car’s seat, plus anchors that may be hidden under the car’s seat cushion.

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