It's really scary to hear about stories like the one posted here. What I don't understand is that how Budget (or any rental agency) can hold renters responsible for damages after the keys have been returned. Honestly, anything can happen to a car (even in a secured lot) once it's returned, how then can a renter be responsible for those damages? Isn't it interesting how the rental agency can argue that a final walk-around at the time of return is not considered an "official" inspection, but yet it considers the first walk-around at the time of pick up just before it leaves the lot as official (as if we can do a detail inspection in a couple of minutes, especially in the dark!)?

Anyway, with regards to being aggressively holding renters responsible for damages not caused by them (or should I say "scam"), I think it may depend on the location. I personally have rented from several different Budget locations, and so far (knock on wood), I have not encountered any trouble. I hope Budget's corporate office can do something about these "bad apples" because Budget often provide very affordable (sometimes really cheap) rates.

LAX