Hertz Gold+ Guide: How to Earn Points and Get Free Car Rentals

Hertz Gold+ Free Car Rentals: Hertz is one of the biggest car rental companies in the world. It has rental locations in more than 160 countries across six continents. The company also runs a loyalty program called Hertz Gold+ that gives rewards and special benefits to customers who rent cars often.

Anyone can join this program and it does not cost anything. Once you sign up you can get some simple benefits when renting a car. These include member only prices and the option to add another driver for free in many cases. The program is made to reward people who regularly rent cars through Hertz.

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Members can earn points when they rent vehicles. Later these points can be used to get free car rentals or discounts.

How You Earn and Use Hertz Gold+ Points

The main way to collect Hertz Gold+ points is by renting cars from Hertz. Members usually earn 1 point for every dollar they spend on the base rental price. Taxes and other extra fees are not included in this calculation.

People who reach higher membership levels can earn extra points.

• Five Star: 25% bonus for a total of 1.25 points per dollar spent
• President’s Circle: 50% bonus for a total of 1.5 points per dollar spent

Points do not stay forever in your account. If a member does not earn or use points for 12 months, the points will expire. Even if you keep your account active, any points that sit in your account for more than five years without being used will also be removed.

Using points can sometimes be a little confusing. Hertz has two different types of reward bookings called standard rewards and peak rewards. Standard rewards usually require fewer points but they are only available on certain dates depending on the rental location.

Peak rewards are easier to book because there are no blackout dates, but they cost twice as many points as standard rewards. Because of this, many travelers try to book standard rewards whenever they can.

Special vehicles like SUVs or other large models may also cost double the normal points. High end cars such as sports cars or luxury vehicles are sometimes offered under special categories like prestige or adrenaline vehicles. These options are available at certain locations but availability is often limited.

Hertz also gives discounts if you use points for a full week rental. In the United States a weekly rental can start at around 4,750 points (This depends on location and car category), which works out to roughly 675 points per day.

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One way rentals, where you return the car to a different location, usually cost double the points compared to normal round trip rentals.

Membership Levels

Gold status

The Hertz loyalty program has three main membership levels. The basic level is Gold status, which anyone 21 years or older can join for free. Gold members can skip the rental counter at many locations and go straight to pick up their vehicle.

Five Star status

The next level is Five Star status.

To reach this level a customer must complete three rentals or spend $1,000 on rentals within a calendar year. Five Star members may receive upgrades if better vehicles are available at the location. They also earn bonus points on their rentals and have access to more cars when choosing a vehicle.

• Space-available upgrades: You’re eligible for a one-class car upgrade if the Hertz location you’re renting from has cars in stock.
• Bonus points: You’ll earn 25% more points on all rentals, totaling 1.25 points per dollar spent.
• Wider Ultimate Choice availability: When renting from a Hertz location with an Ultimate Choice lot, Hertz Five Star members have access to a wider range of cars.

President’s Circle status

The highest level is called President’s Circle status. Customers can reach this level after 15 rentals or spending $3,000 on rentals in a year. Members at this level often receive guaranteed upgrades when cars are available.

• Guaranteed upgrades: You’re eligible for a guaranteed one-class car upgrade. In practice, the upgrade depends on whether the Hertz location you’re renting from has an upgraded car in stock.
• Bonus points: You’ll earn 50% more points on all rentals for 1.5 points per dollar spent.
• Widest Ultimate Choice availability: If renting from a Hertz location with an Ultimate Choice lot, you’ll have access to a wider range of cars than a standard or Five Star member.
• Dedicated Hertz Gold+ phone line: You can access a dedicated Hertz phone number for President’s Circle members.

Extra Travel Benefits

Some travelers can get Hertz elite status through airline and credit card partnerships. For example, members of the Delta Air Lines SkyMiles program who have elite status may qualify for a free status match with Hertz. Depending on their Delta level they can receive either Five Star status or President’s Circle status.

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Complimentary Hertz status

Certain credit cards also provide automatic status benefits. Cardholders of The Platinum Card® from American Express can receive complimentary President’s Circle status after enrolling. Some Capital One credit cards also offer similar benefits including President’s Circle or Five Star status.

If you have the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card or the Capital One Venture X Business card, you can sign up and get Hertz President’s Circle status for free. Some other Capital One cards, like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, can give you Hertz Five Star status.

How to use your points on a Hertz reservation

The actual process of using your Hertz points for a booking is a bit involved and requires the following steps:

• Log in to your Hertz Gold+ account.
• On the upper-right-hand section of the website, under your name, select “Use My Points.”
• On the page that loads, click “Book With Points.”
• Then, run your search like normal. Unfortunately, the points price will not display.
• Select your desired vehicle on the final booking page. If the car is eligible for using points, there will be an option to “Pay With Hertz Rewards Points” for anywhere from one day to the length of your rental.