rental car. do they even check for damage?

[joekingcorvette]

I rented a 2019 Volkswagon Golf all wheel drive wagon a month and a half ago when my wife and I flew to Maine. We rented this vehicle for a full 7 days
and when we returned it we quickly unloaded all of our baggage and items. They had a couple younger guys there to take the car away and didn't really even look at it that I could see. They move those cars in and out of that Boston airport area like crazy. It's about a minute wait to get the car when you drive and when you bring it back they drive it right off again. The car only had 3,300 miles on it when I got it and we put on another 1,000 miles. The oil was about 3/4 of a quart low when I picked it up and I was surprised they didn't add any oil to fill it up.

 

[dlundblad]

Ive always heard they only notice the pre existing issues after you return it. Might depend on how busy the place is, but it would be my luck.

Photos or a video before taking it off the lot probably isn't a bad idea.

 

[Lapham3]

My wife flew into Boise and a rental car to Pendleton in winter. She picked up a number of windshield impacts/hickeys from gravel thrown off by the trucks on the rather icy Interstate. When she returned the car and figured having an issue, they just laughed saying that they have to replace the windshields on most every spring!

 

[Dorian]

Enterprise tried to tell me that I damaged the Hyundai Tucson that I had for one month, but they said "its fine. normal wear and tear occurs.". The damage was definitely there prior. When walking around the car, the guy pointed at the tires and said "just normal wear and tear.". The guys there weren't the brightest considering they thought it was a RAV4.

 

[CT8]

My wife used to work at Hertz in the accounting office and she said the insurance for the company is a money maker for the corporation yet you just walk away from your rental with out worry .

 

[Jimzz]

I take my phone out and video the whole car, inside and out before leaving the lot, lot/building is also in the video.

Doers not cost you anything and takes less than 5 minutes. That 5 minutes can save you hours, days, or weeks of headaches fighting fake damage claims.

 

[Alfred_B]

I always buy the optional insurance so that they don't bother me and waste my time and nerves if something happens.

 

[PimTac]

The video idea is a necessary step these days. Be very particular on the walk around. Enterprise tried to scam me for damage when it was obvious that it was a defect on the part of Fiat Chrysler. In talking to my insurance agent she said that it's a well known practice on the part of Enterprise and its associated brands.

The costs are inflated because they will charge you for loss income based on the theory that the vehicle was rented for all the days out of service plus they will charge for diminished value as well.

 

[69GTX]

I always utilize the pre-inspection sheet and write down "EVERY" scratch, ding, paint chip on the exterior and all stains on the interior. Sometimes it takes me 15-30 minutes to list them all. Their problem....not mine.

 

[PandaBear]

This is why I always take photos of every single panel before I sign off and when I return.

 

[JimPghPA]

Back in the days when the country was making the switch from lead gas to unleaded and gas stations had both kind of pumps leaded with the old wider diameter nozzle and unleaded with the smaller diameter nozzle, the sales person for the company I worked for rented a car for a sales trip. A few days after he returned it the rental company claimed that he had put leaded gas in it and that damaged the catalytic converter. Our company had to pay hundreds of dollars to replace the catalytic converter and exhaust system.

 

[P10crew]

We always do a slow 360 video

 

[sxg6]

Originally Posted by Wolf359
I did rent a car from Enterprise once where I got too close to the curb and scratched up one of their hubcaps. I was expecting them to ding me for it but they didn't say a thing. They'll all get scratched up eventually I guess.


Originally Posted by ecotourist

I saw them make a big deal out of a scratched up alloy wheel on the return ahead of me, so yes some do.


They probably care less about hubcaps vs an alloy wheel.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted by sxg6
Originally Posted by Wolf359
I did rent a car from Enterprise once where I got too close to the curb and scratched up one of their hubcaps. I was expecting them to ding me for it but they didn't say a thing. They'll all get scratched up eventually I guess.


Originally Posted by ecotourist

I saw them make a big deal out of a scratched up alloy wheel on the return ahead of me, so yes some do.


They probably care less about hubcaps vs an alloy wheel.


Those hubcaps these days aren't cheap. New they're like $60 at the dealer. A little ridiculous when you add the cost of a steel wheel plus a hubcap, it could be more than an aluminum rim.

 

[rubberchicken]

Originally Posted by CT8
My wife used to work at Hertz in the accounting office and she said the insurance for the company is a money maker for the corporation yet you just walk away from your rental with out worry .


This is good to know, and confirms what I have read in other sources.