The staff was great, but the mobile check in was a nightmare. I reserved a cargo van, uploaded pictures of my drivers license, input my credit card information, the whole nine yards. When I get there I was given the option to do a mobile check in which was supposed to be faster and easier. Except the mobile check in made in input my contact info again, and my credit card info again, and take pictures of my drivers license again. I did all that already, why would I have to do it all again!? So stupid. Then it made me put in 2 contacts. WTH? I've never had to list contacts when renting a U haul before. Worse yet, when they called my contacts, they wouldn't say anything. So it was a never ending cycle of *Ring Ring* "Hello?...... Hello?....... HELLO ?!" After 25 minutes of trying the mobile check in I gave up and went inside. The guy at the counter was super helpful. He could see how frustrated I was (and he witnessed them calling me and then not say anything when I answered) and he was able to get me checked in and in a van in less than 5 minutes. Of course as I'm trying to leave my phone is getting bombarded with text from uhaul saying "Before you leave, don't forget......." The mobile check in is completely broken and an absolute nightmare, but the guy as the counter was awesome. He was a real lifesaver. Keep him around and pay him right.
Phillip SCustomer Reviews for U-Haul of Santa Monica
Testimonials From Recent Customers
Customer feedback is extremely important to us. We use these reviews to guide our efforts and improve our service. Everything that follows is direct from our customers, without any filtering or editing on our part.
Walter was great. Helped us through the app process. :)
Chris KThe young lady at the check in was excellent.
LANCE SExcellent customer service excellent equipment very friendly and helpful. Keep up the good work.
glinda hWay too much friction to pick up a truck. Grumpy manager who made me download the app to check in only to give him my phone and have to redo the process 3 times while having to listen to him complain about how hard his job is. Will choose a different company next tome
JULIA QNothing…… Just keep doing what your doing. Your kindness, knowledge and respect for your customers goes a long way!!
Cynthia NWalter Perez super nice Very friendly and exelent customers service
JULIO VI had a great experience renting a van from the Uhaul facility at Lincoln and Olympic in Santa Monica. Walter was very helpful and set a relaxed and comfortable mood. De Jon was friendly when I returned the vehicle. The van was very clean and was a very smooth ride. I thought the pricing was very fair. Overall I had a very positive experience. Thanks to all!
JOHANN WThe truck I got had the windshield covered with bugs and the 20 foot box truck had no back up camera which is unsafe. Someone had closed all the air conditioning vents on the truck so that the air-conditioning didn’t work, but I figured out the problem and at least got the ones I could reach open while I was driving on the freeway. The gas-guzzling ford used $50 worth just to pickup cabinets at the store.
PETER FThe people who work there are so nice!!!
Fabio RThey ripped me off on an 11 dollar fuel charge on my credit card when I took the truck back it was on the same level when I 1st picked up the truck im going to complain to uhaul customer service
DAVID HSmooth rental pickup and return
SANDRA EVery easy to get to and super helpful team!
KATHERINE GI had to drive a 26' uhaul truck through heavily populated, dense LA neighborhoods. When I got ready to drop the 26' truck, I was told that this location doesn't accept 26' trucks, and I needed to take it some place else. It was 7:15pm so I had to deal with the 3rd party call center. They were very unhelpful and couldn't direct me on what to do, other than drop the truck at this location. I also needed to finish the move due to all of the unforeseen complications, so I had to get an additional day. The people at this location were polite and helpful, but the logistics were awful. I will be asking for a discount on these charges.
JOHN CLove Walter and his team. Efficient, friendly funny exactly what I needed.
TARA CI would go back to this location. The staff were very helpful and good at their jobs; the supply store there is extremely comprehensive, the vehicle was reasonably clean (though they should wash the inside of the windshields with glass cleaner at least occasionally-- we weren't able to get some grime off it and it was hard to see through in low sunlight). The whole experience was pretty frictionless.
MAUREEN OThe manager himself ,was extremely rude and obnoxious. To rent a U-Haul was so stressful and frustrating-every aspect of this rental was a joke run by and managed by the most unprofessional people I have ever come across in a business Never again shall I or anyone of my associates rent from U-Haul again Thank goodness for competition
ROWAN JI would have preferred to have picked up the truck with a full tank and not 1/4 but Walter was a pleasure to deal with. Straight shooter.
ryan fI would give this location 5 stars for customer service and helpfulness. However, the auto transporter to which my car was attached was done incorrectly (potentially posing a danger). The strap on the front right tire came completely off several times during my drive to Texas. When I arrived at the U-Haul on FM 78 (San Antonio). The strap was already off that tire again. The gentleman who assisted me did tell me that the wrong bolts/equipment were used to secure my car my vehicle properly. I really hope this error did not cause any problems with the front wheel alignment.
LATASHA FI waited for my final receipt, and they never handed to me, I washed and cleaned so well, over charging is normal
OHANNES Kthe van smelled like an ashtray
JUAN TThank you so much to Walter at Santa Monica location for his great help!
ALFONSO BThe person who rented me the truck was rude and condescending. Last week and the week before I picked up a truck at City Car Rental on Ocean Park Blvd. The experience was far superior at that location.
Edward KEverything was great. The only thing is that there is a pipe and a lighter in the glove compartment. You guys should remove that. But apart from that everything was good!
JUAN LJerry and Walter were amazing and super helpful! Will be going back to this location if I ever need anything else from U-Haul!
VERONICA ALocations should have wifi to speed uploads from app. Uhaul should give credit for returning equipment with more fuel than it was issued with.
Eric SI really appreciate the great customer service the ease of me being able to use the app going get the keys rent the vehicle thank you guys great customer service whether I forgot something in a vehicle or need to make a phone call you guys have always been above and beyond👊🏿❤️🙏🏿
KARL WWalter really helped me out.
GRANT D👍🏻
JOANNA WQuicker rentals , my quote was confusing as it was told I have 750 miles but that was for a week rental and highlighted when I booked for only 4 days . Very confusing. Store location is horrendous. This is 2025 and in Santa Monica . Come on . Put money into your store and keep it clean .
JENNA CEXCELLENT STAFF. EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS, FOR SURE!
MARK FMr Walter, manager at this location, was very helpful and caring after my frightening experience. He encouraged me to drive his UHAul without fear. Also helped me in getting local help to unload old and load new UHaul. Thank you so much Mr Walter for your help and prompt help to make my 360 miles journey to Fremont, CA. He was busy with other customers but promptly helped me as soon as I arrive. He was very aware of my situation and provided all sort of help and comfort to make my trip comfortable. Thanks again Mr Walter.
Mukesh AWe reserved at Total Box Supply. At pickup time no one was there and no truck was assigned. We did not rector notification. We were able to reserve a truck at the Danta Monica location. The lack of parking at Santa Monica was a problem but the staff was very good.
Robin BImprove customer service
Rony HThe person at the counter was very helpful and courteous.
MArtin HWhen I rented a 10’ one way truck through the U-Haul app, there was a 45$ offer to return the rental truck at a further location from where I would be moving. I finalized the reservation and got a confirmation the amount due at pickup. When I visited the Santa Monica location to pickup, the sales representative acts more like a to do check list that has to be met, rather than answer customer questions/concerns, because when I asked why I was being charge the full 150$ rental as opposed as the offer of 105$ through u-hauls own app, he proceeded to say that it was the tax. Now I would like someone at U-Haul explain how tax is calculated from 105$ to reach 50$, and how that makes sense. Since it didn’t seem like the gentleman was not informed about this procedure I decided to take the truck since I needed to move and could not spend time and energy on someone who clearly is only there to hand you the keys and ask you to sign and has no knowledge about u-hauls own business. After the agent hands me the keys and gives a general direction to locate the truck, I proceeded to inspect it from the outside and open the back door, which was not simple as it seemed the latch that releases the door handle was not working properly as it was harder than what should be to open and unlock, and this is not the first U-Haul rental I have rented in the past. So I head back inside and ask the agent if maybe I am doing something wrong with the latch or if maybe it is not working properly, he comes outside and then someone else who I could not tell if he was an U-Haul employee also assists the U-haul agent to open the door, and he proceeds to press down with force to open it, and then the u-haul agent looking annoyed says there is nothing wrong and it is working as intended and that the truck is new, and everything is normal. So again at this point because I needed to move I proceeded to not continue any further as it also did not seem like this agent had any desire to help and just needed to get the trucks rented out. Now after using the door it would periodically get stuck and there would be a need to press down pretty hard for the latch door to open, there was about three times that it seemed as though even pressing down would not unlock the door latch, so overall not recommended to rent from this location and to also be careful when using the U-Haul app as it seems like they used a bait and switch method and still end up charging you the full rental, which also adds to the gas cost to make sure you return the truck with the equal amount of gas that was rented, and to also go out of the way to return the truck when if you are being charged the same why not return the truck somewhere that is a mile or so closer. I hope someone else looks into this poor business practice on behalf of u-haul if need be add some feature on their rental locations to inform their employees and business partners about the promotions, because this is deceptive and a poor business practice.
Miguel VGreat friendly uhaul agents
Raymond BThe 10’ truck I rented had dirty windshield & side mirrors. The driver side mirror was cracked & broken and the passenger side mirror wouldn’t stay in place because it was loose. The engine ran rough and it used a lot more gas than normal for the type of trip. The tire inflation light came on too. I checked the tires at the time and there wasn’t an obvious leak or flat. Gas was half full. A typical U-Haul rental experience
EVAN BThe guy that runs the place is not friendly at all. He’s direct and professional, but not friendly. He moves fast and impatient. I have more to save it. I’ll save it. But U-Haul has been a bad experience overall. And then I ran into a friend and said he had the same shit going on Actually on the same day at the same place. Bummer.
NICHOLLE RThe staff are excellent! I had some issues with the app while I was trying to check in and they were very helpful. Everything was clean and up to date. Overall good experience.
Ryder HI initially booked my Uhaul at Gulf Gas, I arrived late and they had automatically cancelled my reservation, which I understand because I was late. However, when I called Uhaul to rebook my appointment, they told me I was scheduled at the Uhaul of Santa Monica, but my app showed me that my new reservation was booked at Gulf Gas again. When I showed up at Gulf Gas that afternoon, they could not find my reservation and honestly were pretty rude and apathetic about the whole thing. I ended up going to Uhaul of Santa Monica after being on the phone for another 30 minutes to confirm my reservation. The check in process takes forever because the app doesnt work, the staff is also apathetic at the santa monica location and doesn't really make any attempt to help you- except for Timothy who was kind and helpful. The system crashed while we were there. Dropping off was also a mess because the parking lot was completely full and we got blocked in. The whole process made me want to spend the extra hundred bucks to book a moving company.
Nicole SPlease tell them that if you drive off with the bags of moving blankets, and even if you don’t open the bags or use them, you are still charged for them. I understood the explanation by the clerk when he told me but y’all really need to highlight it on the contract or post a sign.
Gary HThe check out and check in by mobile phone is laborious and painful. It felt like preparing for a lawsuit. Please simplify.
Robert KVan was not very clean inside. The handbrake handle was broken.
ABDULALI Mtook forever to get truck— and was stuck behind someone getting their truck. i also didnt like the vehicles did not have backup cameras
Michael NMuch more efficient and organized than the last U-Haul I rented 20 years ago
ROGER WCounter service was excellent! Very helpful. The truck had some trash on the inside and smelled of smoke. The oil warning light would "ding" and the icon would come on intermittently. Again, great customer service when picking up the truck!
JOHN JMy rental was supposed to be ready at 9 AM. I arrived ten minutes early. When the location opened, I was told the guy who had the key to the safe with my key in it hadn't arrived yet. I waited 30 minutes and then had to leave and come back around 12:30 that day. Lost 3 hours of work because of this and had to turn the truck in without putting gas into it -- I didn't have the time.
Ross RClearly explain what to do to return the truck
WILLIAM SManager at the Santa Monica location charged me for rental insurance without my knowledge or consent. I find this to be very unethical.
MACKENZIE FBouth station I find helpful team if work .
AMIR NQuick clean easy efficient cheap
ASHLEY LGreat service!
EILEEN HVery professional kind caring and courteous team
Farid HThere were issues with my pickup and it made me late. I had to relocate to the Santa Monica location and the front desk were amazing!
LEEANA PThis has nothing to do with the location, this has to do with your JF#@(*)U#@($ new, MANDATORY online checkin process. I could have gotten someone to assist me and gotten my vehicle FASTER than your stupid need required process. I don't WANT to give your website any location data/etc. I will NOT be renting from Uhaul again if it's at all possible for me to do. This is because of CORPORATE decisions and forcing me into a process I don't want.
Aaron BThe worst experience. Rude employees, confusing check in that did not indicate the frustrating process I had to jump through when I registered online. Terrible experience and you lost me as a customer. Will make sure I tell everyone I know not to use your service.
Glenn SThe staff forced us to check out using the U-Haul App which was not efficient. The staff did very little to assist those who were struggling with the App.
ROBERT HIt seems every company out there is moving towards self check-out, and U-Haul is no different. Really sad to see there is no longer ‘Customer Service.’ Although, the few people working there were quite pleasant and nice.
Andres RThe app check in process is terrible. I am sorry I was born in this time period.
RAYMOND MI had an amazing experience. The guys are extremely helpful. 10 out of 10 would recommend.
JUSTIN PJob well done,
JOHN SThere were not that many people working at the counter. The storefront was really pushing the app onto me, but I ran into problems and felt so much more comfortable having an attendant there to help me.
Shayna SHonestly the worst customer service. Employees are lazy. Don’t want to be there.
Louis S