I have an interesting problem.

I rented a car in Japan from a small company (a micro camper van).

Halfway through the rental, the car breaks down on a highway. I see temperature light light up on the dashboard and pull over at the next highway stop (almost immediately, luckily there was a stop a mile or two after the light came on).

To make a long story short, I paid the car rescue/towing fee as the car would not start (it's a small company, and they were hundred of km away, in Tokyo). At the time, the rental company implied these costs would be refunded.

OK, I come back to UK and not only this is not refunded, but other fees and deposits are not refunded (e.g. the Ipad GPS deposit, which was returned, the car deposit). The company also has not refunded for the period when I was without the car (the remaining half of my trip, as they were out of cars).

In total, they owe me around £1500 (not including the emergency hotel fees).

They are implying that the money will be used to repair the car. Excuse me, but it is not the rental company's responsibility to ensure the car is roadworthy and if it breaks down, a replacement is provided and any cost (like towing) paid?

Thankfully, I always use my BA PP AMEX for such things and have send a chargeback request (which is being processed and the transaction "suspended"), but has anyone ever heard of such "behavior"?