ibrandsguest

Uh, oh...

I picked up a car at CLT and rented it for just a quick drive. When I dropped it off, the very nice agent said, "Sir, are you aware of the scratches on the bumper?"

I looked, and there were some big scratches on the right-hand corner.

I always glance around a car before picking it up, but somehow missed checking the bumper this time. I took the car for just a quick trip down the highway and to a relative's house for 24 hours and am 100% sure that I didn't bump into anything.

I told the agent that the scratches must have been there when I picked up the car and that I was sure that I didn't hit anything.

What are the likely consequences here? The agent didn't say anything more. I am Executive.

Other than being more careful in inspecting a car when I pick it up next time, is there anything I could/should do?

Thanks.

Often1

There is nothing more you can do and, to be frank, unless you were physically observing the car 24/7, you have no way of demonstrating that the dings didn't occur on your watch.

Sit back. If you never hear about it, it's over. If you receive an invoice/claim, you will need to ante up or claim through your insurance.

One issue to consider is whether your insurance -- as some CC do -- would require you to report the potential claim within a # of days. If that is the case, you will need to balance the risks when the day (or the day before) arrives.

ibrandsguest

Thanks.

UGH, I just got a call from National asking about what caused the damage. The agent was very, very nice, and I told the agent that I didn't know what caused it but thought that it was there when I picked up the car, all of which is true.

Does anyone know how much I'm likely to get hit for paying for large scratches on about 20% of a bumper of a midsize car?

Thanks.

Tony King

I've had 2 vehicles I returned with scratched bumpers. It will all depend on what the estimate is from the body shop doing the repairs.

Example 1
2013 Chevrolet Malibu LTZ - Scratches to RR bumper. Estimate was $13xx.00 plus diminished value, administrative, and loss of use fees. Estimate included time to remove the entire bumper from the vehicle, prep (sand all the paint off) the bumper and repaint the entire bumper cover. Then it would be reinstalled.

Example 2
2014 Nissan Sentra - Scratches to RF of bumper. I thought these scratches were worse than the damage done on the 2013 Malibu. Estimate for damages was $285.07 with another $102.xx for administrative and loss of use fees. On this estimate it did not include time for removing and replacing the bumper cover. It appeared that they would just sand down the affected area and repaint, then match it up with the rest of the bumper.

So you'll just have to sit back and wait until you hear from them. Sometimes it may take a few weeks to hear anything back.

ibrandsguest

Thanks for the info.

I received a letter from the National "Damage Recovery Unit", listing a claim number, the date of loss and a claim information sheet, for me to fill out my insurance/credit card company, claim number, "name of claims adjuster", etc.

I haven't gotten any more specifics about the damage- such as the dollar amount, and I certainly don't have a claims adjuster, so I don't really know what to do.

What do I do with this- just fill in the name of my credit card company and send the sheet back to National and notify my credit card company that there will be a claim, but that I don't know how much?

Thanks.

HUB Flyer

Just got a similar letter re: what I consider normal wear and tear out of SAV. The letter doesn't say that I need to contact anyone by a certain date and it doesn't say they will be contacting me. Very strange.

peteropny

I had a rental car hit on the bumper (pretty bad) in a hotel parking garage. Since I knew that a claim was coming, I filed a claim with my personal insurance company and credit card. When I got the same letter that you just got, I had the information ready to give them. That was the extent of my involvement, the rest was handled between National DRU, my personal insurance, and credit card insurance. The entire damage claim was closed within about a month, national waived the fees involved (loss of use, diminution of value, administrative) since it was easy to settle sll the way around. I was afraid of having to fight for the fees to be paid / waived since it wasn't recognized / paid by my personal insurance.

Go ahead and file the claim, national will send you the claim amount later that they will also send to your insurance / credit card or you can forward once you get yourself.

However, if you had valid CDW (for this rental I used the KLM code which is for Flying Blue members) it seems like National doesn't care about damages. Another rental car was slightly sideswiped by another driver. The other driver filed a claim with their insurance company who contacted me and surprisingly acknowledged liability and responsibility. I forwarded this information to National DRU but never heard anything back and the other insurance company never got any contact or paid on the damage. Frankly, I think this was pretty stupid on National part since it was an easy claim even if the damage wasn't significant.

ibrandsguest

Thank you! This information is very helpful. I'll go ahead and file a claim with my credit card company and will from now on just pay for insurance whenever I rent a car.

ibrandsguest

Thanks again for the info.

I had filled out (to the extent I could) a letter that I got from National a few days after the damage might have occurred, and I submitted a claim to my credit card company.

Today I got a bill for only $175 from National, with instructions: "if you've filed a claim with your credit card company or insurer, let us know the details..."

Well, National, I already filed a claim and already sent the details to you by email, which you must have missed...but it's only $175 and so I am not going to lose any sleep over this.

I wonder if National waived a bunch of charges because I am Executive?

Blueskyheaven

never ever agree to pick up car yourself. those so called premium fast lane or service are to trick you. go over to the car with the agent with pen and piece of blank paper. Spend few minutes looking around in and outside. write down every major or minor problems including small scratches. When you drop off, have the agents sign and write OK on the rental paper if you didn't damage the car.

This is the only way to save yourself from getting ripped off. No surprise bills!

Everyone must do it unless you paid for CDW in full.

CodeAdam10

Really. It's not THAT serious. Some of us who frequently rent don't have time for that always. A detailed look and anything unordinary is what I go after. Use a CC that offers adequate insurance and/or know your personal policy.

Blueskyheaven

i have always done that and never received rip off bills! if spending few mins before and after with the rental agent with a paper and pen is what people don't like, than they shouldn't be surprised when they receive rip off bills

ibrandsguest

I LOVE Emerald Aisle since it saves time and gives me a choice of car! From now on I'll be taking a pictures of the entire car when I pick it up. $175 isn't bad, especially since I should be covered by insurance.

peteropny

I agree that this is good but it defeats the purpose of our Emerald Club membership which allows us to choose the car and drive off without going to a counter. I'm not even sure your strategy works with National since major locations allow people to choose the car without assistance after checking in at the counter and there aren't agents to help you once you choose the car. Any damage should be noted with the checkout gate agent and ask for a receipt noting that.


I'd say your $175 is pretty much maybe a repaint. In my 20+ years with a National, I've only had one claim from them that was dubious and was dropped after my response that I did not damage the car and the return agent did not make any comment after a look over so while maybe there was damage, how do I know that they didn't do the damage moving the car.

Anaom

Two quick things.

I was dinged from that wonderful franchise owner in Milwaukee because they claimed the damage wasn't there previously. Even though I had the little card that showed it. They said if it was that severe, they would have noted in on the reservation. So I use the flashlight app on my phone to go around the car completely. If I notice anything, I take a picture and email it to myself. It's not ironclad but I could probably show it to an agent to let them know it was there previously. In addition, do not take their word for it that its noted in your reservation. I always ask for a printout to verify they documented it properly. Does it take a little longer? Of course, but it's worth the piece of mind.

-A