Originally Posted by
rhwbullhead
As others have said, Hertz basically forces you to settle disputes under arbitration. You can't file a class action against them or otherwise sure them in court. There is an exception for small claims court, which my $75 , if this location is foolish enough to not refund when I return, would obviously fall under.
Another key point is that before you formally initiate the arbitration, you basically first have to request this informal resolution procesd with Hertz. My reading of it was you send them a letter to start the informal dispute process and within 30 days, you either do a phone call or video conference and they attempt to resolve the issue there. Only after you exhaust that option can you file formally for arbitration and the terms of method of doing that are specified in that link.
It will be interesting if the manager stands by telling me I have to pay the authorized user fee bc our AAA membership cards have different club codes. I'll tell him that I read the terms and it's no where in there and he'll be able to tell that I actually did read the fine print when I mention that he's gonna force me to either file small claims since I can bypass arbitration that way with this amount, or I can initiate the informal resolution process before I send the letters to file for arbitration.
How much is the amount in question? Arbitration can sometimes be better for consumers in that it is less complicated and time-consuming than court, and companies may be quicker to settle the case. They get charged $2,000 right off the bat by the other AAA and then have to fork over thousands more throughout the process, so they are likely to settle small amounts. Whereas in court, they have to pay attorneys fees, but some large companies will fight in court because it's a matter of public record and they want a precedent set if they win.