Hotwire Reviews

I have utilized hotwire to book vacations for many years and overall been pleased with the service. I recently booked a car rental but within 24 hours needed to adjust the date, so I reached out to customer service and was the absolute worst experience. The reps were not helpful at all. I called and also used the messaging app, but my concerns are still not addressed. This was by far the worst customer service experience and I recommend finding another provider. Staff is unprofessional, non-responsive, and I will not be using hotwire services in the future based off this experience.

Zero cancellation policy! My son is military, I rented a car thru hotwire, the military changed our dates. I called to cancel a reservation I will not be using because of this, NO CANCELLATION NO REFUND!

They really don't care, I rented a car in Fort Lauderdale which I admit I forgot to bring my driver's license but they wouldn't even issue a credit or voucher to use in another instance. If book with them you better don't forget what you need to bring otherwise they will not BE ANY help.

They are horrible for business DO NOT BOOK. We waited 3 hours for our rental and still didnt get it. I got refunded after I flipped out on missing half my trip. NEVER EVER BOOK WITH THEM

Dear hotwire,
We booked a hotel traveling 85 South around Spartanburg and by the time we got an answer, we were booked at a Baymont 20 miles backward and then on I26. Weary travelers at 11 pm after 11 hours driving do not want to turn around and go backwards through some of the worst construction, so we immediately said no. After being hung up on, put on hold and spending another hour with customer service, we were advised only $38 of $58 could be given in "hot dollars" as if we'd use this site again and they automatically keep$20! You took time off my life, money out of my pocket and ruined my holiday trip. It is my mission to let everyone know about your policies including highway robbery and tormenting the weary travelers!

I booked a car for 5 days through Hotwire. For unlimited mileage. When I arrived to the counter to pick up the car, they told me you can only drive up 92 miles a week anytime more than that you will be charged for 40 cent / mile. Then I called back hotel wife customer services. I explaining to them that you never told me this policy while I was booking with you. Their response was it's their policy and we don't refund money. They are very much a fraud and punish of scam bags.... I do not recommend using Hotwire

Faking data to appear on top of search results when people try to look up a higher-resolution version of a photo via reverse image search.

Another victim...should have checked the reviews... DO NOT USE HOTWIRE

WE BOOKED 2 ROOMS IN FT. LAUDERDALE FL. FOR A CRUISE. IT SAID WE HAD FREE BREAKFAST. WE GET TO THE HOTEL AND THEY HAVE NO RECORD OF OUR FREE BREAKFAST. THEY DIRECTED US TO HOTWIRE. ONLY FOR HOTWIRE TO SAY THEY LOOKED AT OUR SEARCHES AND IT WASN'T SELECTED. SO IT WAS NOTHING THEY CAN DO. TOTAL RIPOFF. WE PAID $30.00 EXTRA PER ROOM TO GET BREAKFAST WE WON' T RECIEVE.

Looking from Canada for a Hotel in Canada. They give the prices in US$. What was quoted for a 320$ stay is now a 450$ stay!
This is crooked and outrageous!
Very dissapointed, I will go back to AirBNB. Shame on me for trusting a big business again!

They were providing a very wrong distance from my hotel search location.
I called them to cancel the reservation.
They wanted to keep 40USD to cancel it as a cancelation fee.
They made a mistake and they wanted to keep my money.
Worst customer service ever. Stay away from them.
I remained calm and polite and they hung up on me.

I received a verification of a rental car. The email messaged said to I could change my reservation any time. Now they won't let me change it. I have talked to several people and sent in a request almost two weeks ago. They said they would respond within five business days. When that didn't happen, I called. I was told I would receive an email explaining what they decided. That was three days ago. Still nothing. Practically non-existent customer service.

I booked a car rental and cancelled it per their policy. I was told I would receive a refund within 10 days. One month later I called because I have not received the funds and was told that I never cancelled and would not receive the money. Bunch of lying crooks.

Booked the wrong date, can't change anything about it - filing for fraud with my credit card. Crazy!

We booked a hotel traveling 85 South around Spartanburg and by the time we got an answer, we were booked at a Baymont 20 miles backward and then on I26. Weary travelers at 11 pm after 11 hours driving do not want to turn around and go backwards through some of the worst construction, so we immediately said no. After being hung up on, put on hold and spending another hour with customer service, we were advised only $38 of $58 could be given in "hot dollars" as if we'd use this site again and they automatically keep$20! You took time off my life, money out of my pocket and ruined my holiday trip. It is my mission to let everyone know about your policies including highway robbery and tormenting the weary travelers!

I have used hot wire few times and although I do not stick to this site but whenever I find good deal I will use it.

I wish I could give them a - star rating. looking for a rental car directed me to a place that had horrible reviews .... I will never use or trust hotwire again.

Do not use Hotwire for a car . Showed up to pick up my car and someone stole my wallet. No drivers licence so I could not use my friend could not use his licence to book it. Out $300 and they did not give a $#*!. Asked if I could get my license sent to Florida the next day since it was a 5 day rental.They said no. Great way to start off your vacation . Do not use Hotwire they do no care about customer service.

Beware of Hotwire. Hot wire is tricky and does not offer refunds for so-called "Hot rates."
Even if you try to cancel within hours, they will only offer you so-called "Hot cash" which you can ONLY use on "Hot rates" for a year. And trust me, you will likely not find a "Hot rate" for that period if you need it and never use your so-called "Hot cash." What a "Hot mess!"

They will never ever cancel your reservation. Incorrect and misleading information. You can forget about your money. Wasting your time on the phone and never solving your issues.

They will show top results for rentals cars in a region that is not the region you searched. They also don't allow ANY cancellation. Use Priceline instead!

These guys are greasy.

Beware the "mystery bargains"
Beware the "mystery bargains" (where you get a "deal" but don't know who the service provider is). I had the misfortune of getting Ace Car Rental at LAX, where I was fraudulently billed for add on insurance that I specifically declined. In reading the Ace reviews (after I was locked into using them) I found that this is a common practice. Why would Hotwire use them knowing that? I'm now in the position of having to report the fraud and to correct it - my "bargain" has cost me far more than using a reputable company would have. No more Hotwire or Ace for me

Hotwire is a horrible company that does not trust or respect its customer. It charged me 69$ for a purchase I never made and then refused to reimburse me when I contested it. Management were disrespectful and are robotic simply repeating the same thing and not listening or acknowledging your requests even though I explained that there must have been a glitch in the system. Definitely do not use their services. You will be disappointed and scammed!

Hotwire is a SNEAKY SNEAKY company! I booked a hotel that was advertised to be 1.1 miles (1.77km) to the destination I needed to be able to walk to for an event. Upon booking the reservation I was sent the name and address of the hotel that I would be staying at. I then learned that the hotel is actually 8.33 miles (13.4km) away which takes 2 hours and 31 minutes to walk. When I realized this I called the company to ask to move me to a closer hotel or refund my money. The rep told me she couldn't refund my money because this was a "Hot Rate" hotel booking and they don't offer refunds on those bookings. I explained that I understood the rule, but this was not a cancellation because "I changed my mind." The information that was presented to me was FALSE! I said Hotwire's website CLEARLY STATED that the hotel was 1.1 miles away from my destination and that was the only reason I booked a 3 star hotel that cost me $200 CAD. The rep told me that the 1.1 miles represents a straight line distance, NOT and address-to-address distance and because the service is a blind booking they can't give precise distances. I explained that I understood that, but 1.1 miles and 8.33 miles (12 km) is quite a big difference. She refused to help me.
I asked to speak to a manager. After explaining the situation to the manager and telling her that I felt like I had been tricked/taken advantage of she explained the same thing the rep did. I got pretty upset at this point. I said, "Listen, Hotwire is a huge company and they falsely advertised information on their website. I know that you know that's not right. I know that you know that they are being sneaky by listing distances by how the crow flies rather than address-to-address when they clearly have the information. I need you to make this right. Either book me in a closer hotel or refund my money. What was represented to me was a lie." The manager proceeded to tell me about the "Hot Rate" hotel policy and that they would NOT be issuing a refund. I told her that I was really disappointed in their customer service and the fact that she made no effort to correct the misrepresentation. She told me that WE (meaning Hotwire) stand by our decision.
So here I am on a Friday night writing a bad review for a company that treated me poorly. I don't like writing bad reviews, but I feel compelled to because what this company did was wrong. I have worked in customer service for 30+ years. I can handle it if mistakes are made, service is slow, employees were less than ideal. I don't like it, but I can handle it. What I can't handle is when a company (especially one as large as this) and its employees do something wrong and won't make it right.
No apology. No we'll credit you a portion back so that you can taxi to your event since we made a mistake on our website, no we'll give you a voucher for your next stay with us. Nothing!!! Just...yes, we know what did was wrong, we're happy we have your money and we stand by our decision to take advantage of you. I will NEVER use this company for travel bookings again. I hope you won't either. PLEASE SHARE this information so you don't get taken advantage of.

Do not trust they will change your plans after you paid for your trip and they will books your trip for a different time other than the one you picked, don't wast you time or money and customers service is for the birds