Travel dilemmas: Car rental companies' gas-tank policies

Q: I rented a car twice at the airport in Ontario, Calif. I declined the prepaid gas option, so the attendant said, "Just return the car with a full tank of gas." The first rental was fine. But with the second, I was told that because I did not have a gas receipt, I was going to be charged $9, even though I brought the car back full. A supervisor, who had no explanation for why I was not charged on the first rental, reversed the charge, but my question is: What's the point of requiring a receipt if the gas tank reads full? It just seems like a sneaky way of making an extra buck.

By Catharine Hamm, Los Angeles Times

November 21, 2011