Ever caused a minor "ding" "scrap" or "dent" on a RENTAL CAR?
 

I recently rented a car and had a very minor accident. There was a small dent in the bumper. When I returned the car I decided to not say anything about the minor accident and see if the person from the car rental agency mentioned it. Nothing was said at the time. Though every night before I go to bed I think about the accident and wonder if the car rental agency has noticed the minor dent and plan to charge me for the damage.

Has anyone had a similar experience? Were you contacted after checking in the car? Or did a charge for the repair of the dent just show up on your credit card bill? Or did you get away with the problem? What happens when you get in a small car accident with a rented car and it was not discussed or noticed at check in?

Oops. I knocked a side mirror off a Europcar rental about 10 years ago. I reported it when I turned the car in. No way they were going to miss it. Why not call and report it? Better late than never. I don't think that will change the cost, but eliminates or reduces legal ramifications. Calling certainly gives you the opportunity to discuss it with someone rather than having a heart attack when your credit card bill arrives.

It depends. In the UK, my rentals are scrutised very closely when they're returned. If there's so much as a stone-chip, they usually point it out and threaten to bill me for it.

In the US, though, I've noticed that normal 'wear-and-tear' -- meaning parking lot dings, small scrapes on the bumpers, etc -- are normally not recorded. When you return a car, they're generally looking for something hanging off. If you weren't charged when you returned it, I suspect you're probably in the clear.

I rented a car with Hertz a few weeks ago. I spotted some scratch damage on the right side of the car, but the rest seemed clean. Still, I had just arrived on a long flight from Europe and didn't scrutinise it too closely.

The next morning, I noticed scratches on the LEFT side that were much larger than those on the right. While I'm absolutely certain I didn't hit anything, I can't rule out the possibility that someone hit my parked vehicle. Still, since I wasn't genuinely sure whether the damage happened during my rental or previously, I decided to return it without saying anything. Sure enough, the rental return agent didn't bat an eye.

YMMV.

Don't worry about it. You won't be charged for a small dent in the bumper. A gash on a different panel or broken mirrors are a different story.

Just look at rental cars when you first get it. Unless the car is brand-new, there are always small scratches and dents. They'll not charge each renter for those things, and they won't fix them after each such "incident" either.

I bumped a pole while backing out of the driveway in a rental car on the way to the airport a couple of years ago. It was a white car and the pole was black - some of the paint came off. I decided to stop at a Dollar General store and see if I could figure out a way to touch up the small scratches. I spent $1 on a bottle of Wite-Out and never heard about the problem from the rental agency.

Yep. It was a deep to the metal scratch on the drivers side door with a sharp key, done totally by accident. The lady scrutinising the car on return didn't say anything so I assume it wasn't a problem. Perhaps I should have pointed it out :o

It depends in which country you rented the car. I rent all the time in the US, and havge never had a single problem being charged for very minor dents.

Colombia and other foreign countries are very different. Before you take the car out in Colombia, bith you and the rental agent do a full inspection of the vehicle and denote EVERY ding, no matter how minor - even small dents in the bumper.

On one of my rentals (in Colombia) the agent met me at the airport as I was departing to pick up the car (standard practice). I absolutely did not damage the car in anyway, nor did he say anything upon picking up the car, but a week later the charge on my AMEX was $300 more than it should have been.

I called the agent, he told me he found a scratch, therefore he put through the additional charge. I told him there was no scratch and he was not authorized to charge my card.

AMEX agreed with me and reversed the charge two weeks later.

didn't cause the ding but been blamed for it
 

When I traveled to DFW weeks ago, I rented from a very little rental company in the terminal. I don't have a habit of inspecting scraches and dings of a rental car at pick-up. Only did so when I just started traveling. And I am not a person who would stick my eye balls on the car (not even my own car) to find a little ding.

When I returned the car, however, the rental company staff found a little tiny ding on the front bumper. So small, I couldn't even see it at first when he pointed to me. I had to walk so close to the car and stood at certain direction so there is enough light in the garage to reflect that ding.

I replied to the staff flatly, the din wasn't caused by me. I only rented the car for a few hours, I was very sure that I didn't bump into anything and it was very unlikely someone had bumped into that car, either. It caused me a lot of time to talk with that very serious rental car staff. He went to check the paperwork of the car. He wanted me to sign some paper which said the car was perfect when I picked it up and it is me who refused to admit the cause of damage. :mad: I refused to sign and I was very mad.

I asked to talk to the manager who went to checked the car and couldn't see the din untill very close. I think he knew it well that his staff was clearly over-reacted. But he didn't apologize and said it is only reasonable for rental car company to do so and so. However, he would let me go this time. :mad:

I rented a moving van after dark.... didn't notice some damage due to the lack of light, and got charged $200 on return!

It depends on the rental company, too. I never see more than a cursory once over when I return an Avis. But, the local Enterprise guys eyeball the car before I take it and mark up a sheet with all the dings and scratches. They do the same thing when I return it and compare the two.

had a hub cap stolen in UK - £15 for replacement :(

That's one reason I don't rent from them anymore. I'm tired of feeling as though I'm personally being inspected every time I bring a car back.

I was a passenger in a minibus a group of us had hired from Hertz in the UK. The driver managed to mangle a hub cap a bit and get a small dent in the panel next to the wheel. The driver admitted the damage when returning the minibus. The full £1500 excess was immediately charged to their debit card that they paid with. Subsequently after the damage was assessed they charged £120ish for the damage and refunded the rest of the excess. What we wanted to know is if the Hertz office ever had the damage repaired of if they just pocket the money. The dent was much smaller than several that there were when we picked up the minibus.

I hit a deer once with rental car. It was very early in the AM and I did inspect the car for damage. I didn't notice anything at all. I turned in the car and few days later got a call about dent in the hood of the car. I claimed ignorance, made a claim through my CIBC aerogold VISA and all was good!
CIBC Aerogold VISA rocks! They paid with no arguments at all.

Thats hilarious... Though I think car rental companies know that customers treat their cars like crap.

In NZ I:
-Had 2 flat tires with rims that ended up being bashed back into shape
-Lost all 4 hubcaps
-Had keas remove weatherstripping, most of the rubber on the wiper blades, and make off with the antenna (recovered but damage and unusable)
When I reported it at the counter I was told to "fill out the accident form if you have time" and since I'd purchased the full coverage never saw a charge. A prior rental car had the rear bumper ductaped on (interior) and it went unnoticed by Avis in NZ

When you rent a car from one of the bigger companies you often just drop it off on a designated spot/in front of their office or in a long line of returned vehicles where their agent will just hand you a slip - and that´s it. No one really "inspects" the car with you, in these cases. So, if the company decides to claim reimbursement for repair costs or something like that, is there any legal ground? I believe they´d have to tell you that upon return. Otherwise, the damage could have occured at any time after I returned the car and the company would hardly be able to prove who caused it.

Things To Do Before You Die:
#74 - Crash A Rental Car

I tried my best in Jersey on an Avis hired Ford Focus and failed. If it was to happen anywhere it would be that island. Even by European standards the roads are on par with something out of the Borrowers!

What about the rental car companies' own employees driving the things through the lot?

I have been happy with Avis, Hertz and National not making a big deal of small things, at least in the U.S. Another reason to rent from them and not the likes of Enterprise or the second- and third-tier outfits (though I hope Alamo doesn't ruin National).

I once got the third-degree damage look-thru in Costa Rica early in my car-renting career, and was obsessively careful and they still tried to claim damage on return (though they backed off pretty easily as it was pretty obvious there wasn't any additional). Seemed like something at the time they'd do to everyone.

Would also guess there are a number of destinations in the western U.S. where you stand a better than average chance of getting a rock to the windshield if you take the scenic roads.

Been There, Done That!
 

Totaled a Dodge Status from Dollar Rent a Car in Portland, OR. Good thing I had used Diners Club as they paid every penny of the charges. ^

Been there...
 

11/16/05 totalled a National Chevy Malibu in SRQ. National had a new vehicle delivered by the time I got back to the hotel. Less than an hour fifteen minutes from crash to police report to replacement vehicle... ^

Had a slight mishap with a Ford Falcon I rented from Hertz in Sydney, Australia a couple years back - wound up tearing off the front bumper. A mate's mate reattached it with just a 2 inch crack showing.

The Hertz folks never mentioned it. :cool:

Never Let FlyinHawaiian Park Behind You
 

I've put a ding in a parking lot on a rental car before and they never really even check. I did almost have a certain flyertalker driving a Hertz Cadillac almost run into the back of my Hertz Murano.

Hertz, you reading this?
 

I had an interesting experience at Hertz/LAX a month ago. I returned a Taurus around 530pm - it was dark - and the lot was buzzing with multiple returns coming in one after another. I parked, noted the mileage was grabbing a bag out of the trunk waiting for the attendant to scan the car and print the bill. Then he said, we need to talk about this damage. I said, 'what?' He started doing paperwork and had me look at the front bumper - and sure enough there were some light scratches to the bib of the front-end bumper. I couldn't believe it - this is something that happens as a part of routine driving.

I didn't remember striking anything and I'm a good driver - never had a moving violation or speeding ticket - ever! I thought perhaps this is something that happened when the car was at the hotel - a valet perhaps? So, presented with a need to get on the bus to catch my homeward bound plane I signed the ax report and wrote that I had no idea how the scratches happened. I have yet to hear from Hertz and I haven't been charged for the damage. I also always take the LDW and am a Hertz Five Star Gold Member.

Here's what I take away from this experience: I will always do a very thorough walk around the car and make sure to note any 'damage' before leaving the lot.

I'll also no longer dismiss any problems I have with the car. Dirty windshield - note it. Worn out wiper blades - note it. Coffee spill sticky goo at the bottom of the cup holder - note it. Crumbs between the seats - note it. From my point of view - if I'm going to be harassed for normal wear and tear; they're going to be harassed and expect to compensate me for maintenance problems.

Ha! Did the same thing in the UK...popped off the front ground effects making a tight y-turn on a cul-de-sac. We managed to pop it back in, there were a few scratches we added but it wasn't an issue.

Most of my travel in international, and I usually opt for the excess waiver and don't worry about it. As FGBdavidson says...one of these days I'll probably crash the bugger, and not worry about it one bit!

A friend at school did that. Going down a lane he had a choice of putting it in a ditch or the truck that was coming too fast towards him - it went in the ditch. The only problem was, the reason why he had a rental car was because his own car was totalled in an accident the week before and he'd got the rental from his insurance. They were not happy about it and forced him to take slowest rental car available when they replaced it!

I always rent from Avis and Hertz and haven't had any problems with dings or scratches. We rented from Hertz in May and were driving around Memphis through a construction zone on the interstate and some kids playing around under the overpass through a HUGE chunk of dirt and it hit the roof of our car. I really thought it was a chunk of cement, with the horrible sound it made. It almost hit our windshield and it left a small dent and scrapes. Then, same trip, driving around Phoenix and hit a chunk of cement in the middle of the interstate. It dented the underside of the front bumper and crunched it pretty bad. We pried it somewhat straight and they didn't bat an eye when we returned it at PHX. We didn't point it out, and they didn't notice, or seem to care.

If I'm understanding you correctly, your taking of the LDW is exactly why you never heard from them. They've essentially taken on all responsibility for the car's damage by selling you that LDW coverage.

I'm pretty sure this is one of the reasons (though not the only one) that Amex doesn't provide CDW in Israel (and maybe Italy?). I've been pretty pleased with my treatment at Avis, but I used to use an Israeli company called Eldan. Much like some of the other posts, they once made a claim on my credit-card CDW coverage for the tiniest scratches that appear to have been made by driving next to some bushes.

I'm just hopeful MasterCard doesn't eventually pull out for the same reasons. I try to stick with Avis now when I go, given that they haven't tried this crap on me yet.

I cannot believe how some of you can give back a car with damages and not alert the agency. That is very dishonest behaviour. If they are not going to charge you then they won't when you tell them. Do the right thing and alert them about anything you have done. Afterall, backing into poles or scratching bumpers is often the fault of the car's driver.

I disagree with the last sentence of your post. Shopping carts in parking lots, doors next to you in parking lots, uncareful valets, and the guy parking in front of you who inces in just a little to close in the spot are to blame usually as much if not more than the driver of the rental car itself.

When I was married to my Ex, he rented a car for a couple of months while his was in the shop. We returned it and Avis sent us a bill for $1,500 claiming all kinds of dents and damage, plus the lost rent while it would be in the shop for repairs. This was 8 years ago and I was pretty naive about that stuff then- hadn't inspected the car before he returned it (or when we got it) because I didn't know they were that picky. There was no obvious damage that I could remember. I sent them a check for $1,000 and told them that was all I'd pay. They took it and I never heard another word from them.

It depends on the agency and the country. I once rented from Alamo and they made a big deal about inspecting the car before renting it to me, and I could tell they would be very strict (another adjective comes to mind but it isn't appropriate for TravelBuzz). So I never rented from them again.

With Avis, in the US, I have never had a problem. They are not sticklers for little things like a stone that pops up from the road and dings something.

I had an accident with a rental car from Avis. They were very good about the whole thing. Ultimately, the other car's owner (ironically, a huge auto insurance company) paid for the damage as it was their fault. Avis was patient in waiting for compensation, and we had no trouble with the amount of money they wanted for the damage.

In Mexico, we noticed a small dent during the rental period. I don't know if we caused it or if it just happened. We returned the car and they inspected it and it didn't bother them. That was Avis also.

If I do any real damage I report it when I turn the car in. If it's a tiny incidental ding or whatever, then I don't bother.