Costs associated with flat tire
 

Hi

I rented a car from Budget in FL on a recent trip. While en route to Miami, we got a flat tire around 10pm. We called Budget's roadside assistance and were told a tow truck would not be able to pick us up and swap the car out until 5am the next day, so we took a taxi to a nearby hotel and rented a room for the night. Does anyone know if Budget can/should be reimbursing us for the hotel stay? We declined all additional coverages/insurance from them so not sure if it would be covered by them, and I forgot to ask when we picked up the new car.

thanks

Welcome to FlyerTalk! Hopefully you find us a useful bunch and stick around.

To the question at hand: Unfortunately, Budget won't be liable for the hotel/meals/other items associated with your flat tire. If the tire was damaged upon pickup (and you noticed it just after leaving the lot), then it would be on them. Also, Budget might send you a bill for the tow truck/replacement unless the damage is their fault. If you have AAA or other travel insurance (through a credit card?) that might cover your items.

Flat tires are the responsibility of the renter. Who's to say you didn't run over a nail, or clip a curb, or hit a deep pothole and damage the tire? Not saying you did any of those things, but if you had, it would be your fault. If the tire was damaged before you left the lot it would have been noticeable at that time, or at least that's how the theory goes.

Your first mistake was probably calling Budget's roadside assistance unless you had opted in for their optional Roadside Assistance service. Without it, your rental contract likely states they can bill you for the cost of the tow, plus the cost to repair/replace the tire.

Did your rental have a spare tire by any chance? If so, did you try to change the tire to the spare?

In situations like this where I don't have coverage for tires etc, I usually find that it's cheaper to just replace it myself or have it fixed.

There is usually a spare tire or a tire repair kit in most rental cars. No one ever checks for either of them.

I've gotten nails pulled for $5.

Just an antidote regarding this.

A couple weeks ago I got a flat tire on an Avis car in central Rome just as I was about to return it. It probably had something to do with the construction site I drove by. It was extremely stressful. While I had insurance, it doesn't cover flat tires. It cost me 180 euros. The agent said they usually charge for two tires but he only charged me for one as he understood it wasn't really my fault, there was no other damage to the car and I returned the gas tank full. While I paid with an AMEX Platinum card which usually also insures rental cars, they specifically omit Italy as one of the covered locations.

Be careful out there kids.

I once had a flat on my way to return a car. I changed to the spare and returned the car with the spare on. I was charged for the tire. YMMV. Next time, time permitting, I'll get the tire fixed myself.

My Budget rental wouldn't start. I called Budget's Roadside Assistance line to report the problem. After discussing what the issue might be they sent someone out to check it out. Some private roadside assistance company. They gave me a jump and that was that... or so I thought.
I find out they are going to bill me over $150. I think not... not without a fight.
I had 2 issues with the charge. #1 I have to pay for a crappy battery that dies on me? And #2 They never mentioned that that there would be a charge for the service. (I have AAA and could have used that)
Long story short, they removed the charges and all was fine.

If you can get it patched for $20 before returning the car, great. Since you had to pay to replace it, like in my case, the charge for the tire was probably much more than had you paid a tire shop to replace it.

If the tire is damaged beyond repair, it could be difficult to find the same brand and model and I wonder if rental car company employees would notice if it was a different brand and tread for one of the tires.

Discount / America's Tire will patch for free. Received a Range Rover Velar from Avis with a flat tire at SFO last year - very slow leak, but America's Tire patched it for free still.

I was part of about half dozen cars pulled over on the side of I-40 after hitting a sharp pothole about an hour outside of Albuquerque. After unloading all our luggage in the breakdown lane I discovered there was no jack and no spare tire. Fortunately, a friend with the exact same car made the two hour round trip to rescue us. We used her jack and spare to get the car home.

I went to a used tire shop the next morning and had a replacement for $35. He even swapped the front and rear to lessen the noticibility of the newly formed bump in the rim. Never heard anything about it after returning.