Rented for a week at Las Vegas 26 April to 2 May, returned 1 May.

I just got a letter (dated 13 May, postmarked 15 May, received 22 May) declaring damage and demanding almost $1300 for a dent. The record included 3 photos (VIN sticker, dashboard/ODO, and steering wheel), none indicating any damage (and horribly low res as well). I tried calling them twice, got bounced around and "our systems are down", opened two tickets via email and the online portal (once it came back up). No damage happened to the car, none was noted at return.

Emailed the branch operations manager (who had emailed me with a "follow up/review" email...)

My plan is to contact Nevada Consumer Affairs on Wednesday, along with Nevada DMV, and US FTC (where I "know some people, thank God..."), since this seems to be a pattern of behavior





by rental car agencies. It's on an Amex so I'll just dispute any charges but looks like I'm done with renting from Avis; not merely with "mistaken damage" but how they handle damage/claims generally. But if I can get regulators involved and definitively solve this problem for others, will be quite happy to do so.

Yes, pass it over to Amex and do make the consumer complaints. They will notice. I i�ve done the same with success.

I got an email today that it had been reversed/they weren't going to charge me. I will still complain to the relevant regulators and probably avoid Avis (and certainly be much more cautious about recording video of the car before and after drop-off).

It seems that pretty much all rental agencies try to "scam" customers with bogus damage claims. Perhaps they hope some will just pay while others pass off to CC coverage for payoff. There is a thread over on the Hertz forum that it's using AI scans to "detect" the most minor damages and undercarriage damages (who looks under the car during inspection?). I am hoping more customer complaints to government agencies can bring crack down on these scams. Until then, I am not sure there is much else we can do other than taking videos before and after the rental.

LAX