SCAM ALERT
SCAM ALERT - Booking.com users, please read.
Short story:
The people from the Budget office of the SJO airport are dishonest and will try to convince you to buy duplicate insurance. Do not accept any of their offers, even if they freak out saying that you will drive without any coverage. Double check what Booking.com (or other provider) mentions in their rental agreement and DO NOT BELIEVE THE PEOPLE FROM BUDGET. You are most likely already covered by Booking.com. We ended up paying extra $255 over a $303 rental.
Long story:
I booked a car through Booking.com. My booking included the rental + the basic insurance (CDW, TPL and theft). Once at the Budget office, the person in charge of the pickup told me that TPL (the most important insurance) was not included in my reservation. He offered me to pay $255 for their TPL. I told him multiple times that I was already covered, which he kept on refuting. I showed him the rental agreement received by Booking.com. He played with the words of the document, pretending it did not apply to their office. He even printed another document and told us that it is the official booking they received from Booking.com; this document stated that only the rental and CDW was included in the price.
I told them that there is no way I drive in a country I don't know without any TPL coverage. After 30 minutes of deaf conversation "I am covered" - "No you are not covered", I felt forced to pay the $255 for the coverage.
I then reached out to Booking.com, and they confirmed that the TPL was included in my booking. I tried to phone Budget through the various numbers provided in the rental papers and the numbers from the Costa Rican website. None of them worked - which is reassuring if something worse had to happen!
I ended up talking about this issue with them when I returned the car. They told me that I signed the paper for the insurance and therefore they cannot refund me. They completely denied forcing me to buy the insurance, saying the insurance is optional. This is true, but they played with the fact that it is totally irresponsible to drive without TPL, especially in a country you don't know. They also told me that I might have been covered by Booking.com, which at no point they admitted during the pickup. They told me to fill a claim online.
I filled a claim both at Booking.com and Budget. Both of them put the responsibility on me. Booking.com told me that I bought an insurance upon my own will. Budget said that Booking.com never informed them about any TPL coverage whatsoever and that they rightfully sold me their TPL. At no point, they entered in contact to each other to find a solution or an explanation. They closed my claims without solution, muting me.
I call this organized theft. I wish they will pay for this some day. In the meantime, I invite everyone to ban this Budget office.
