Flat Rental Car Tire - Miles from Rental Company - What to Do?
Jul 16, 2018, 7:52 am
#16
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: SJO - MAN - LAX
Programs: MileagePlus Gold, Avis PP, National EE, Lifemiles Silver, ConnectMiles Gold
Posts: 532
Yeah but now days it's your responsibility to check the car, and tires before you drive off. I've refused at least 5 cars now due to bald tires or missing chunks off the sidewalls.
I personally would either A) Get it replaced (think that's out of the questions) B) Buy another one and expense through work/insurance or the rental company if insured.
She was 200 miles from the hire place, it's no longer their problem unless insured. For all they know she could've hit a pothole doing 70 and blew it. I wouldn't count them on just simply saying "Yeah sure, we got yer back!"
I personally would either A) Get it replaced (think that's out of the questions) B) Buy another one and expense through work/insurance or the rental company if insured.
She was 200 miles from the hire place, it's no longer their problem unless insured. For all they know she could've hit a pothole doing 70 and blew it. I wouldn't count them on just simply saying "Yeah sure, we got yer back!"
Jul 16, 2018, 1:50 pm
#17
Moderator: Avis and Rental Cars
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 8,031
Jul 19, 2018, 1:49 pm
#19
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,746
Also worth noting: The credit card insurances that I've looked into all have said that they deny claims to tires unless there's other damage to vehicles. I guess they want you to take the flat tire run the rim into a large curb/pothole and then call them for coverage
Contrast this with the coverage for Amex Platinum, where tires are explicitly excluded: https://www.americanexpress.com/cont..._Rev_09-17.pdf
The Chase coverage is also primary, so is clearly the card to use if you have it.
Jul 20, 2018, 10:40 pm
#21
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: San Diego
Posts: 75
Looks like the Chase CDW coverage that comes with the Sapphire Reserve Card (and possibly others, I didn't check) covers tires as it is not listed as an exclusion - https://cdn.f9client.com/api3/file/1...84610029e9df78.
Contrast this with the coverage for Amex Platinum, where tires are explicitly excluded: https://www.americanexpress.com/cont..._Rev_09-17.pdf
The Chase coverage is also primary, so is clearly the card to use if you have it.
Contrast this with the coverage for Amex Platinum, where tires are explicitly excluded: https://www.americanexpress.com/cont..._Rev_09-17.pdf
The Chase coverage is also primary, so is clearly the card to use if you have it.
Jul 23, 2018, 8:31 am
#22
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 353
Also worth noting: The credit card insurances that I've looked into all have said that they deny claims to tires unless there's other damage to vehicles. I guess they want you to take the flat tire run the rim into a large curb/pothole and then call them for coverage
The real rule is that if the flat is the result of an impact, they will pay. Then, it's a question of what proof you have (such as police report, picture of the pothole, etc.) and your negotiation skills.
Jul 23, 2018, 9:56 am
#23
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Peoria
Programs: Southwest, Best Western Gold, La Quinta, Dollar
Posts: 819
I may have gotten lucky. I ran over a piece of debris in the dark and shredded two tires. Nice car, too; it had barely 3 or 4 thousand miles on it. Rental place sent me another car on a flatbed and took the disabled car away and I never heard one word about it afterward. If it was my own car I would have popped for a couple new tires, so I was fully expecting to do so with the rental. Not a peep out of them. Maybe its an unwritten perk of being in their loyalty program? Ha ha.
Jul 24, 2018, 4:56 pm
#24
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Sacramento, CA, US
Posts: 2,229
About 20 years ago we were in Death Valley during the summer and drove up the Aguereberry Point Road (unpaved) in the Panamint Mountains. A tire was damaged by sharp rocks. We called the rental car company and reported that a tire had failed. They directed us to a tire shop in Ridgecrest, CA, where the tire was replaced for free. That was a good deal.
Jul 24, 2018, 4:57 pm
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,746
About 20 years ago we were in Death Valley during the summer and drove up the Aguereberry Point Road (unpaved) in the Panamint Mountains. A tire was damaged by sharp rocks. We called the rental car company and reported that a tire had failed. They directed us to a tire shop in Ridgecrest, CA, where the tire was replaced for free. That was a good deal.
Jul 27, 2018, 12:52 pm
#26
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SGF
Programs: AS, AA, UA, AGR S (former 75K, GLD, 1K, and S+, now an elite peon)
Posts: 23,194
That contradicts my experience at the company I worked at/managed for 9 years. If you bought CDW from us, you didn't pay for tire repair or replacement. In a few instances, I even dispatched a replacement tire to customers in distant rural areas by same-day air freight when tire shops in their area didn't have any in stock--at no cost to them. (And if we didn't have it in stock in our back lot and they were staying still for a few days, I'd order one express from TireRack.com to be shipped to them.)
It is possible, though, that other companies have different policies.
And regarding credit card CDW, I haven't tested it, but my Costco Citi Visa does not exclude tires in its T&C (and it's primary, too).
It's so confusing to me why people seem so hesitant to give the name of the company they rented from--both you in this post and the OP in his original post.
I am almost certain that you rented from Enterprise (or subsidiaries Alamo/National). They have a nationwide contract with Sears for tire and oil change issues. If you rent with Enterprise and need a tire repaired or replaced, or you are on a long-term rental and need an oil change, they will direct you to the nearest Sears, and Sears will bill Enterprise directly for the service (and you may never see any charges).
If the OP rented from Enterprise, this would have been my advice. But the other companies handle their tire issues location-by-location (and in-house at most midsize and up locations), so your two options are to either return the car to them for repair/replacement or repair/replace the tire at your own expense at a local tire shop. (With Hertz, the in-house repair is often significantly cheaper than normal prices outside if you agree at the counter to pay the charge then and there, so there's at least that--I paid $45 at the counter to replace a $180 tire on a Volvo S60.)
Correct. If the damage can be traced back to a faulty tire provided to the customer, then the rental company will (or should, at least, if you press them hard enough) accept responsibility for the charges.
For better or for worse, this.
It is possible, though, that other companies have different policies.
And regarding credit card CDW, I haven't tested it, but my Costco Citi Visa does not exclude tires in its T&C (and it's primary, too).
About 20 years ago we were in Death Valley during the summer and drove up the Aguereberry Point Road (unpaved) in the Panamint Mountains. A tire was damaged by sharp rocks. We called the rental car company and reported that a tire had failed. They directed us to a tire shop in Ridgecrest, CA, where the tire was replaced for free. That was a good deal.
I am almost certain that you rented from Enterprise (or subsidiaries Alamo/National). They have a nationwide contract with Sears for tire and oil change issues. If you rent with Enterprise and need a tire repaired or replaced, or you are on a long-term rental and need an oil change, they will direct you to the nearest Sears, and Sears will bill Enterprise directly for the service (and you may never see any charges).
If the OP rented from Enterprise, this would have been my advice. But the other companies handle their tire issues location-by-location (and in-house at most midsize and up locations), so your two options are to either return the car to them for repair/replacement or repair/replace the tire at your own expense at a local tire shop. (With Hertz, the in-house repair is often significantly cheaper than normal prices outside if you agree at the counter to pay the charge then and there, so there's at least that--I paid $45 at the counter to replace a $180 tire on a Volvo S60.)
Another scenario, which if I recall correctly, was common several years ago on old, very high mileage Hertz cars and U-Haul ancient one-way trucks- the tires were given bald, and coincidentally blew out with the current customer. In that case, keeping the original tire to give back to the rental company would show if indeed the car maintenance was negligent and consequently should not be charged to the renter.
For better or for worse, this.
Jul 27, 2018, 1:05 pm
#27
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,746
Alas, it appears you are incorrect. On page 11 of the Costco Citi Guide to Protection Benefits (https://www.cardbenefits.citi.com/~/...CostcoCon.ashx) it states "In the United States, the coverage provided by this benefit is secondary."
Jul 27, 2018, 1:34 pm
#28
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SGF
Programs: AS, AA, UA, AGR S (former 75K, GLD, 1K, and S+, now an elite peon)
Posts: 23,194
You got me all excited there for a second - a free credit card with primary rental coverage!
Alas, it appears you are incorrect. On page 11 of the Costco Citi Guide to Protection Benefits (https://www.cardbenefits.citi.com/~/...CostcoCon.ashx) it states "In the United States, the coverage provided by this benefit is secondary."
Alas, it appears you are incorrect. On page 11 of the Costco Citi Guide to Protection Benefits (https://www.cardbenefits.citi.com/~/...CostcoCon.ashx) it states "In the United States, the coverage provided by this benefit is secondary."
Jul 27, 2018, 3:12 pm
#30
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SGF
Programs: AS, AA, UA, AGR S (former 75K, GLD, 1K, and S+, now an elite peon)
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https://www.cardbenefits.citi.com/~/...CostcoBus.ashx
Oh, I was able to attach it after all (in case the link above changes--previously, FT didn't allow attachments this big):