Rental car woes

"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
05/04/2019 at 01:15 • Filed to: None

How much is this going to cost me? Person in front of me ran over something that put a tennis ball sized dent on the hood :(

DISCUSSION (26)

Spanfeller is a twat > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 01:26

That looks expensive... But it’s a Nissan, so it’s cheap.

Oh, but it’s through a rental car company that will be a dick to you...

This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 01:26

Just hit it with some nail polish and roll with it.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 01:29

does your credit card have insurance included ?

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
05/04/2019 at 01:30

This

If its a Visa, then they should cover you.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 01:45

Even if you paid for it, they wouldn’t fix it...

smobgirl > Eric @ opposite-lock.com
05/04/2019 at 01:57

Oh I know, but they’ll definitely make someone pay!!

smobgirl > ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability
05/04/2019 at 01:58

THANK YOU!! Thank both of you. I’ve had this card since way back when it was a totally different card but it does have insurance coverage and they actually answered when I called to ask about it.

smobgirl > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
05/04/2019 at 02:00

I just called and they answered and it DOES. I’m sure it’ll be a pain in the meantime but I’m glad I followed the internet’s advice to always put travel stuff on a credit card.

smobgirl > Spanfeller is a twat
05/04/2019 at 02:01

Yeah. I’ve had other issues with rental cars but always on the company insurance. And one GIANT boulder dent in the bumper of a car that I was never charged for (but the next renter probably was). I guess this is karma.

smobgirl > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja:
05/04/2019 at 02:03

Truth be told, I’m just happy it didn’t get the windshield because I probably would’ve had a heart attack.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 02:05

Also your regular car insurance may cover rentals.

I would check your rental agreement to see if it says when you have to notify them. I messed up a wheel

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 02:27

Sometimes they don’t care. I think some amount of wear and tear is expected by the rental companies. They definitely don’t pull cars for repairs unless the damage is severe or could result in a lawsuit.

smobgirl > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
05/04/2019 at 02:36

I mean, it happened on the way to my hotel tonight and I’m returning the car at 6 am, so they’ll know soon.

My regular insurance does cover rentals but not the loss of use, etc. fees.

TheRealBicycleBuck > Eric @ opposite-lock.com
05/04/2019 at 05:28

Or leaves it open to the elements....

Kinja'd!!!

sammon287 > TheRealBicycleBuck
05/04/2019 at 08:26

Street parked in St. Louis?

66P1800inpieces > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja:
05/04/2019 at 08:39

I vote for Sharpie.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 09:54

As an insurance guy, I always get coverage. One time a rock hit the windshield of the Silverado I had and I just laughed

smobgirl > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
05/04/2019 at 10:23

Eh, in 12 years of this job (probably 400 or so rentals) I’ve had three incidents - this dent, a windshield issue (shot, I think) , and someone knocked a mirror off.

TheRealBicycleBuck > sammon287
05/04/2019 at 11:14

H otel parked in Houston.

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > smobgirl
05/04/2019 at 12:20

That’s what Oppo is for :)

His Stigness > Eric @ opposite-lock.com
05/04/2019 at 14:58

I wish there was a way to make them actually fix the thing they’re requiring you pay to repair.

“Sure, I’ll pay the $500 deductible once you guys pick it up from the body shop, just like how it works if I use my insurance.”

smobgirl > sammon287
05/05/2019 at 00:01

The windshield I thought got shot was coincidentally while parked at an airport hotel in St. Louis.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > TheRealBicycleBuck
05/05/2019 at 01:14

Yeah, they might pull it for that, but you’ll pay dearly for that downtime.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability
05/05/2019 at 01:22

Warning: This is not as universal as it used to be. My Chase cards aren’t primary except my travel-specific one, which I’d use anyway because of the point earning rate, but make sure you know the rules before you get stuck uninsured.

Not all Infinite cards in the US (at least) offer the same benefits they do in the rest of the world, either, presumably due to differences in the market landscape... Banks here are much stingier with the benefits than they are in other countries.

TheRealBicycleBuck > Eric @ opposite-lock.com
05/05/2019 at 08:25

Funny thing is, I probably won’t. This will be our third rental car claim. Here’s how it goes:

Something happens (one car backed into, one car with a broken windshield, one truck with broken side glass)

I report it to Enterprise and our insurance

Enterprise gives me another rental

Insurance contacts Enterprise and asks for the following:
Proof of the damage
A police report
Proof of the repair
Proof of fleet downtime

The first two are easy since I provide them, the others are not.

A year or so passes and Enterprise demands payment from me

I contact our corporate lawyers and they contact both Enterprise and the insurance company

I never hear from them again.

Perhaps that isn’t the best example, but Enterprise always gets hung up proving loss of use. Their biggest problem is the size of the fleet. If there’s a single car sitting on the lot, then the lawyers argue there was no loss of use because Enterprise never has 100% fleet utilization. The loss of use claim gets dropped, the repair bills get paid, and everybody is happy again.

SPAMBot - Horse Doctor > sammon287
05/09/2019 at 19:25

This happened to me in St. Louis in a rental mustang -_-