You're better off disputing the ticket (it can be done online and is pretty simple) and explaining that it was a rental vehicle and hoping that the examiner takes pity on you. It's a crappy situation and you're right to be annoyed, but it's not really Hertz's fault so it's very unlikely they will pay. Just getting them to own up to issues that are their fault has been really difficult of late.

Consider a lesson learned the hard way.