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Are car rental employees rewarded for finding dings and dents on your vehicle?

September 2, 2010

The allegation that car rental companies have turned the damage claims process into a profit center is so common, I could probably write an entire blog on it.

I just covered one big case with Thrifty — still unresolved — that triggered some discussion. Here’s another interesting Thrifty case. And here’s yet another incident.

But one customer now alleges that car rental employees are being offered a 5 percent kickback every time they find a new ding or dent on a rental car. I think that’s worth investigating.


The charge comes from Juanita Ruf, who recently rented from Enterprise in Las Vegas. She writes,

When I pulled in to get the car it had multiple dings and scratches. The guy who checked me in kept saying, “Don’t worry about that, that is small, we don’t worry about that.”

I rent often from Enterprise or Budget, I am a 59-year-old CPA and very careful. I’ve never had a problem before. When I pulled in to deliver the car I noticed something very strange about the gentleman’s behavior who was checking me in. He ran around the car several times and saw a small dent that was near the right rear well and said that I had caused the damage.

The only thing I can think of is that this is one of the double-dipping fraudulent issues. My cell phone doesn’t have a camera, so I borrowed a cell phone camera from a young man who worked for another rental car company. The dent was very small, and can hardly be seen on the picture. The young man who I borrowed the cell phone from said he had heard they get 5 percent when they find something.

I’ve never encountered anything like this. Although I have insurance, I don’t want to pay for damage I didn’t cause. What can be done?

I contacted Enterprise to get its side of the story. A representative said Ruf’s case would be closed in the interests of providing good customer service. As to the kickback allegation,

Apparently one of our competitors, who shall remain nameless, made a comment to this customer that employees receive some sort of 5 percent kickback — complete nonsense, of course. I believe the customer now understands this is simply not true.

What do you think? Are car rental companies rewarding their employees for finding damage to their vehicles, that can then be turned into a claim?

Are damage claims a profit center?

I’ve been covering this business for a while, and I can say this: The reputable operators probably wouldn’t dream of doing something like this.

But maybe there are smaller, ethically challenged companies, who see this as an opportunity. I wouldn’t be surprised if a car rental company somewhere was offering this kind of incentive to its agents.

(Photo: Spider Hill/Flickr Creative Commons)

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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41 comments

  • http://www.usrentacar.co.uk Gavin Boswell

    You would hope this is not the case, in the UK the packages we offer would cover the customer against this sort of thing but domestically I guess its different.
    In my general day to day routine I work quite closely with the car hire suppliers and find them generally trustworthy and customer orientated.
    As a long term plan offering commission to agents to find dents etc would not help with customer loyalty.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    “The guy who checked me in kept saying, “Don’t worry about that, that is small, we don’t worry about that.””
    - – - – - – - – - – - —
    The solution is simple…put that in writing on the rental agreement or please note these small scratches\dings\etc. or give me another car. If you have a cellphone or digital camera that can make videos, record the person making that claim. If the rental person refused then it is very likely that you will encounter a problem when you return the car.

  • Chris in NC

    Chris, I don’t believe any of the major companies engage in this behavior. However, it will not shock me if some of the franchises (as opposed to corporate) engage in similiar unethical business practices. As I have said before, most of my problems with car rentals occur at franchise locations, and never at corporate owned locations.

    I have 2 friends that work in the car rental industry. While they may not get a kickback from questionable repair bills, their performance is tied to how much “profit” they extract from each customer. In other words, the sales associate that has the highest sales rates of CDL and other add on insurance are the ones that gets the biggest bonuses and promotions.

    Even if there isn’t a direct kickback for finding “damage” I believe the business model encourages some workers to be overly obsessive. After all, customers who pay the “inflated” damage bill equates to more “profit” for the sales agent. Its akin to a state trooper telling me once “We don’t have quotas on writing tickets, however, if I go out all day and come back empty handed, my commander will say what did you do all day?”

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    “Are car rental companies rewarding their employees for finding damage to their vehicles, that can then be turned into a claim?”
    - – - – - – - – - -
    It will be nice if you could find a disgruntled employee with a company issued memo and/or paycheck showing the spiff. Personally, I think that there might be a company or two that could be doing that. It is ‘buy our optional insurance’ or ‘we are going charge you for damages.’

  • Chris in NC

    With regards to small dings, I have heard the same line before “don’t worry about it.” I insist it gets documented and it does. When renting a car, I take lots of pictures and video the check-out and check-in process. Even if you don’t have a phone on your camera, a small pocket sized camera with video can be obtained for under $100 now.

    I do find it amazing how insignificant scratches when you check-out a vehicle can become an issue when you return a vehicle. The only time I had it happen was at SFO (can’t remember the company), but I had the pre-exisiting damage documented on my contract and had no problems whatsoever.

  • Ira

    Seems to me that if a rental car company checked for dings every time a rental was returned and charged a customer for repair, cars would never have dings when rented. They would also be off the lot regularly being repaired.

    One could then conclude that, as dings are regularly found on cars that are rented, repairs, if made, are done so as a group, to keep the cars available as much as possible.

    Repairs done in concert cost less than repeated individual repairs, so if the rental company has charged multiple users for independent acts of damage, yet repaired the damage in a single instance, they profit from charging more patrons for damage.

    Unethical – seems so to me. Business as usual – probably. Profit center – I’m sure – even a single ding can result in a high “billable charge” despite a real cost of repair being minimal. Multiple occurrences only magnify the potential profit.

  • Robert Davis

    We usually rent from Dollar (never have had a problem) but we fill out that damage diagram they give you in minute detail every time. Our last rental in Seattle took us 10 minutes to get out of the lot due to so many dings/scrapes on the car. I took about 20 photos to make sure.

  • Phil

    I think car rental companies will do whatever it takes to make a buck. While everyone looks at small dents and dings, how many actually go into the trunk of the car to ensure that there is a spare tire? Bring a car back and they look to see that the spare is not there, and you will be picking up the bill for a new one. A great way for the car companies to make a few extra bucks, they just don’t put a spare in the trunk.

  • cjr

    I am going through a claim right now with Enterprise and Visa, and so far it has been somewhat painless, although patience is certainly required. The damage to the vehicle was legit – several long scratches, one of which was rather deep. It appears I got swiped or something when parked, and the damage wasn’t there when I got the car.

    Enterprise gave me the documentation I would need from them before I left the rental lot, and when I had questions, they were able to answer them. The employee was also stressing to me that they do not attempt to make money off of car damage.

    In the end, the bill I received for the damage I thought a little on the high side: the parts cost very little, but it was something like $28/hour for each of several hours of labor. Having never owned a car or car insurance, I can see why insurance rates in this country generally suck.

    I’ve never had problems with Enterprise with little scratches and dings, and I’ll be renting again from them soon.

    Visa, on the other hand, could do more than simply send me form responses when I e-mail them specific questions about my claim. That, and they’re certainly in no hurry to process it.

  • Mary Graham

    I can’t imagine them staying in business long. Hopefully, as many people as possible get the word out (company reviews) about this perceived practice. We need all the help we can get!

  • http://www.thetravelinggiraffe.com Crissy

    I wouldn’t be surprised if there are some isolated incidents of employees getting kick-backs, managers do stupid things some times. I doubt it would be industry wide or even common within any one company.

    As for your performance evaluation being based, at least in part, by how much damage you have found – that I suspect is wide spread, and is in a way human nature. You’re making more money for the company therefore you are a better employee. I don’t have to worry about you missing damage and the company losing money on it so you get a better evaluation. Also, if you sell more insurance you probably get a better evaluation. And employees with better evaluations might get bonuses.

    I haven’t rented that many cars in the past, but have found how rental companies work to be very inconsistent. I’ve never had a problem with one. One place will go over the car with you like a fine tooth combed, another place gives you your sheet and sends you on your way leaving it up to you to report any damage. Returning can be just dropping off your keys and praying or they’ll go over the car with you, and everything in between.

  • Mike Z

    I have no doubt that the companies are looking at these small dents and dings and making someone pay for them when they are noticed. When a rental car is sold from its fleet, the company is already taking a hit on its value simply because it was a rental. if there are numerous dents and dings or scrapes and scratches, that means even less at auction or on the sales floor. These cars go for thousands less than your typical well cared for one owner car. So because the value declines so much, companies have a vested interest in making up that value difference on claims of damage.

    I doubt it states in a memo that they get a bonus based on scratches, but I can guarantee that the employees know car sales, and therefore additional profits are tied to a car’s value, or lack of.

  • Rich

    @Ira.
    This is, of course, presuming the repairs are actually being done.
    Would it surprise you to learn that an unscrupulous location would charge a customer for the (alleged?) DAMAGE but not actually have the REPAIR performed?

  • Rich

    I’m sure there’s no official policy to do this, but I’m also sure a lot of the franchises do it unofficially.

    Somebody already mentioned checking for a spare tire which is essential.

    Also, don’t forget to minutely check all the window glass and light lenses for cracks. They can be extremely hard to see, much more difficult than scrapes on the bodywork.

  • Carver

    @Arizona

    I think it is unlikely that you would find such a smoking gun such as an explicit memo. I think more likely, a memo encouraging all employees to explore and maximize all revenue generating opporunities. The subtlety won’t be lost on the employees

    @Phil

    Do you have any personal experience to back up the assertion that car rental companies are wilfully not putting in the spare tire so as to charge unsuspecting customers. A little conspiratorial perhaps?

    @cjr
    $28/hr for labor is a steal. Regular garages charge $55/hr and up depending on the location.

    @Mike Z

    I doubt if minor dings and scrapes really hurt the resale value. I would assume that when a car is taken off the fleet to be sold, it is cosmetically rehabilitated including power washeding and touch up painting.

    @Rich

    Its not unethical to charge for damage that the customer legitimately did and not repair the vehicle. . Basically, if you caused damage its your responsibility to pay for it. What the car’s owner does is his business.

    Consider, if you sideswiped me and cause $100 worth of damage, you owe me $100. I can choose to fix the damage with the $100 or spend it on pizza and beer. What I do with it is my business. I don’t have to fix my car

    What would be unethical would be to charge multiple people for the same damage, i.e. double dipping.

  • Laine

    We have a young relative that works for Enterprise. He has told me that they get no comission (he WiSHES they did!) and no kick backs. …nothing but their salary. That’s not to say that every location is the same, but I’m guessing that is the company policy.

  • Chris in NC

    In my experience, cosmetic scratches and dings have been recognized as normal wear and tear. I still have them documented on my rental contract. Many times the agent will object, but if I insist, I’ve never had them refuse.

    @ Carver and Arizona
    It is well known in the car rental industry that bonuses and promotions are based on “net revenue” generated by the sales agent. It is also forbidden for sales agents to be unethical and misrepresent services. The services with the biggest profit margins are the insurances (ie CDL, etc.) then the pre-paid gas, hence the hard sell. Any time you have a system where sales agents are rewarded based on how many “extras” they sell opens the door for abusive and unethical agents.

    My friend who I referenced in my previous post was totally miserable working in the car rental industry. While not written specifically, there was always pressure to sell as many insurance policies as possible. Associates that failed to meet an imaginary quota, would be “let go” and the associates that sold the most would be the ones that got the biggest bonuses. At this company, all managers and executives were hired from within, so there was tremendous pressure to sell.

    He had a miserable time because he never applied the hard sales tactic. Despite his customer satisfaction surveys being among the highest, he was passed for promotion by others who were higher revenue producers.

    On the flip side, the car rental companies also gets fleeced on occasion. Many renters do NOT realize that credit card coverage (with the exception of Diners Club) only provides SECONDARY insurance and get upset when they have to file a claim with their insurance company. Also, there are limitations with credit card rental insurance that excludes certain vehicles (ie certain SUVs, pickup trucks, exotic cars) where purchasing a CDL is a good idea.

    One extreme story was that there was a customer who always came in and rented a specific make and model of a vehicle for years. Unknown to the rental car company, he drove the same vehicle and rent it for a day, and switch out the tires (exchange the rental car companies for his own)! It took a few rentals before the customer was caught doing this.

    So its not always the car rental companies that behave unethically!

  • Sebastian Poggel

    I personally think there is some sort of a reward system, be it based on percentages, credits, points or whatever. Some people seem to greedy to find damages, no way a 7.50$h employee would bring up the motivation for that without additional kickbacks. Most often they pull this with customers who are not holding a higher status with the rental company and might create a stink for them.

    However I have to say that some companies charge very reasonable. Having a Hertz schedule in front of me because of current developments their tire replacements run from 49$ to 180$ for the biggest 19″. Windshield Replacement 148$, Bumper 85$, Dent 30$ and Scratches 75$. Multiple charges not to exceed 200$. I worked at a dealership for Audi in Germany and have to say these charges are a gift ! If you bring in a Winshield replacement thats 590 EUR, Scratches go easily beyond 1000 EUR.

    That being said, this is reasonable for valid damages that I created and claim responsibility for. If someone tries to accuse me of damaging the car to make cash for the rental company or to secure his kickback then I get angry and not only complain to management but also demand compensation for the treatment. So it can go both ways. People often get intimidated by bad customer service and are happy to get out of the situation, the best way to approach this is actively seeking contact to the management on site (if time allows) and not only making clear that such behavior is unacceptable but also that this insulting business practice costs them at least a travel voucher.

  • Rich

    @Carver
    While you’re correct, of course. My point (which I failed t0 detail) is that an unscrupulous vendor may charge ME for the dent in the fender and then not have it fixed. Then subsequently charge YOU for the same (unnoticed at the time of rental) dent in the fender.
    The process could repeat itself a number of times.

  • Steve

    @Carver: I agree that in general it’s not unethical to charge for damage whether or not it is actually repaired; however, depending on how the amount of the charge is determined it matters a great deal whether the vehicle is repaired. It’s my understanding that car rental companies add “loss of use” charges, for one thing, that assume the car was in the shop for a period of time and could not be rented. It would certainly be unethical to charge a loss of use fee on a car that was never repaired and thus was not taken out of service.

    There’s also the issue of determining the true cost of the damage. If the vehicle owner chooses not to repair it, then the only cost is lost resale value. If the vehicle owner chooses to repair it, then the cost is the cost of the repair. Either cost could legitimately be higher depending on the vehicle in question. I agree in principle with your example, but there’s really no such thing as “$X worth of damage.” I happen to own an old compact car that doesn’t look very good anymore. If someone put, say, a 3-inch scratch on the side of it, I could theoretically go to a body shop, have it repaired, and say that the cost of the scratch was whatever they charged me to repair it. Of course, if I didn’t get laughed out of the body shop I’d probably get a confused phone call saying “which of the dozens of scratches did you want repaired?” :)

    Anyway, I think the fundamental problem with renting a car is that there’s no objective distinction between wear-and-tear and damage. No one would expect a car that’s been driven 50,000 miles to be literally identical to a brand-new one; cars accumulate tiny dings, scratches, and imperfections over time and it’s not really anyone’s fault. I’m not arguing that renters shouldn’t be responsible for *damage* they incur, even if it’s minor, but there’s a point at which it becomes unreasonable.

  • Les

    Renting a car in Israel is a special experience. Aside from the driving there being a combination of Mediterranean and third-world exuberance, parking under the best of circumstances would make an experienced NY City driver cringe. In addition, insurance and rental documents clearly warn renters that any damage to tires or undercarriage is deductible (renter’s responsibility) up to $500 US!

    In the midst of chaos in a Jerusalem hotel parking lot the rental agent showed me our assigned Mazda – a much battered 1600cc sedan, dinged and bashed on every panel, badges missing, bumpers scraped. I asked him to go over the car with me and note the damages. He complied cheerfully – though I realized that he was writing in cursive Hebrew, which I do not read. He could have been noting his mother’s address. My wife asked me if I thought we should ask for another, less battle-scarred car. I demurred, reasoning that if we did add another dent to this one it would be lost in the forest.

    When we turned in the car three weeks later at the airport (with no new dents) the agent glanced at the paperwork and the car, checked something off, and away we flew.

  • http://www.talestoldfromtheroad.com Dick Jordan

    Based on what I read (often on Elliott.org), it does appear that rental car companies (at least in the U.S.) are becoming fairly aggressive about “dinging” customers for even small dings in the car’s finish. It also seems that “The Customer is Always Wrong” (meaning at fault) in these situations and has to pay up unless he or she can prove that the damage existence prior to the rental. It would be interesting to know whether more customers are now opting for CDW to avoid having to avoid potential wrangling over vehicle damage.

  • Chuck

    I have been renting from Enterprise for over 20 years now from same local shop in Bath Beach Bensonhurst, Brooklyn 11214. This past weekend I returned a rental with a couple of real bad scratches which were there before my rental. When I picked up the car I noticed them and told the employee and noted it on the contract. But when I returned it the employee was a different person and when he saw the scratches he immediately said what happened here. I told him it had been noted but said it had been noted on the wrong side of the car. He didn’t make a big deal out of it and let it go. I really have no complaints these people know me so well when I call they already know who they’re talking to over the phone. They are all very pleasant, and friendly at least thats what I’ve experienced. I do check my vehicles very well and when ever I’ve had any problems the manager has always gone out of his way to resolve what ever problem.

  • Angie

    I rented a car from Alamo at PHX last year. I returned the car in the exact same condition it was in when I picked it up. The person checking me in looked the car over, handed me my receipt, and went about my business. Two weeks later I received a letter from Alamo stating that I owed them several hundred dollars to replace the windshield of the car I rented because I returned it with a “shattered” windshield. This was absolutely not true, so I contacted Alamo and asked for proof that I returned the car with a shattered windshield. I informed them that I had photos taken from inside the car moments before I pulled into the garage, and that absent evidence to the contrary, I would not pay for a new windshield. They had no proof, of course, and said the claim would be dropped. Six months later I received another letter from them demanding that I pay for the windshield. I again called, explained that the claim was to have been dropped six months prior, and asked for proof that the damage was present when I returned the car. The claim was finally dropped and I received a letter from them stating such.

    I discussed this with a friend who is an insurance agent. She said that companies make these sorts of claims often when customers use their own insurance, or insurance provided by a credit card, as opposed to paying extra for the company’s insurance.

  • Erika

    A friend of mine rented from a small local company recently and was told she would be charged $500 if they found even 1 (yes, one) dog hair in the car. Made for some interesting conversations – if a dog never traveled in the car but you happen to be around a dog and pick up a stray hair which then transfers to the car do you get dinged? What about cat hair? Or, even human hair (since we all “shed”)? We made sure to scour the car before my friend returned it just to be on the safe side. Good thing too since I’ve since learned that this company literally does the same when a car is returned – it’s a revenue generator for them because people can rarely prove that they didn’t transport a dog in the car.

  • Erika

    Sorry – hit “submit” before I finished. The point of the dog hair story being that I can completely believe some companies purposefully searching for dents, scratches etc. and providing a bonus for employees who find them. After all, insurance claims or charges to the renter can bring in even more revenue – especially since the chances of a renter being able to prove they didn’t cause the damage is often slim. Is it ethical? No; Plausible? You bet.

  • Carver

    @Steve

    Determining the value of damage is fairly easy. Just get a couple estimates from a few local shop. As long as those estimates are not greater than the value of the car, case closed.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    @ Chris in NC – “As I have said before, most of my problems with car rentals occur at franchise locations, and never at corporate owned locations.”
    - – - – - – - – - – - – - -
    I agree.

  • Bithi

    I’m pretty sure Buchbinder Rent-A-Car engages in these unethical practices. We returned a car to the Vienna airport, only to have an agent immediately go to the windshield, as though he knew something were there. It was winter time, and wouldn’t you know it, there were a few, very tiny and shallow nicks in the windshield. The car was dirty from the weather conditions, and we didn’t even see these until he pointed them out. Buchbinder charges E400 for every “incident” of damage (no matter how large or small), and the zeal with which this was noted and pursued was remarkable. They even forged an estimate for the damage, and it was useless to email and speak with the damage department, headed by Mr. Vorhofer. We disputed the charge and won, but we ended up paying anyway, since they threatened to sue my brother-in-law in Austria. We won’t rent from them again.

  • Ed

    OK…officially, I believe that *NONE* of the major car rental brands reward their employees with monetary rewards for finding damage to their vehicles…
    That being said, there are other incentives that companies can give their employees that aren’t monetary and aren’t “officially sanctioned” by the corporate, yet allowed to proceed because it generated revenue. Like how police say that they don’t have a quota system for end of month tickets. Sure, I believe them…they don’t, but they do have other incentives whether it’s locker-room banter or a sheet posted showing the ticket stats between the officers…it’s still an incentive…and it still causes one to perform an act that they would not normally…this happens in all companies…and I’m sure that employees who generate the most revenue for a car rental company, whether it’s by renting more cars, getting more add-ons, or damage reports, gets some kind of reward or recognition from an un-official standpoint for their ability to generate revenue. And this competition can indeed cause an employee to “fudge” a little, especially if they are very near a tiered reward level!

  • Ed Wood

    I have personal experience with Enterprise I would like to relay. Like the other victims, the employee checking me in accused me of making a cigarette burn on the seat. Nevermine that I don’t smoke. He told me that for $50 CASH, he had a friend at the bodyshop who could repair it for them. I declined and threatened to call the manager of the Enterprise location. He let me leave without paying and I did call the manager who poo-pooed the incident. I will NEVER rent from Enterprise or Thrifty again.

  • Drew

    Unfortunately, our company has Enterprise as one of our primary rental vendors, so I’m sometimes forced to use them (Avis/Budget are the other “two”)…

    Just the other day, I rented in Missouri from Enterprise, and returned the car two days later (rented on Monday, returned on Wednesday morning). Total elapsed mileage? Eighteen (18!) miles. The fuel needle didn’t even move. Just to be on the safe side, I stopped and put a whole $2.00 worth of gas in the car.

    The Enterprise location was closed when I flew out (6am flight). I got my bill via email on Thursday morning, and not only was there a charge for $8 for fuel, they also said that I drove the vehicle almost 100 miles! I offered to send them pictures of the car’s odometer before and after along with a copy of my fuel credit card charge, and they removed the charge for fuel (and it took over a week to get it removed!)… The agent actually made a point of saying that the needle was “only on 7/8 when he got back”… I wanted to ask him where he drove the extra 80 miles…

  • Former rental car employee

    Here’s the inside scoop:
    I worked for a top tier rental car company for 2 months after graduating college. I was so upset with the business ethics that I quit.

    Basically each branch has one manager, an assistant manager, and then anywhere from 1 to 15 “manager trainees”. Because there are thousands of manager trainees all competing for very limited assistant manager and manager promotions, performance can get very very very competitive.
    Performance evaluations are all based on statistical marks on earning the company more money (how much money did you collect for added gas, how many damage waivers and limited liability insurance did you sell, how many car upgrades did you get, charges for added drivers, how many customers did you get to buy a car from the used lot, etc). What put me over the edge is when my manager hosted a game to see who could oversell a rental car to a customer at the highest price over the accepted corporate charges (as that added money goes directly to the individual branch, which in turn a precentage goes to the manager). Each region has a huge dinner party for the best performing employees. You are not considered for a promotion unless you make one of those dinners (it’s in the promotion handbook). So, while there are no actual monitary commisions for charging for dings, scratches, etc., there absolutely are career incentives.
    I hated working at the rental car company!

  • Aaron

    Last time I rented a car, I noticed that the LDW carries a $500 deductible. (Didn’t there used to be no deductible?) So even the LDW won’t protect us from the dings and dents scam.

  • Randy B

    This is why whenever I rent a car I take pictures or videos of the entire car. That way if there is any dispute I can pull the pictures or video out and say ‘Excuse me…’

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  • https://pacificcarrentals.com Pacific Vancouver Car Rental

    Small car rental companies can’t last very long if they engage in these unethical tricks. To compete with the large well known companies a small company needs to offer excellent service and value to retain repeat local business and gain word of mouth. You simply can’t do that and stay in business long.

  • Bella

    I hadn’t rented a car in several years, and I was unaware how sleazy the business has become. In my recent Enterprise rental, I was remiss in the walkaround (they used to rent good-condition cars to begin with) and they seemed to ENJOY trying to stick me for two repairs. One agent concocted a story how it happened and another woman in the office laughed at me. Never mind I’d only driven the car a few miles, and never mind checking loss recovery or damage records on the car.

    If I ever again am forced to use Enterprise because of lack of alternatives, I’ll assume them to be dishonest and predatory. I’ve never had such a bad experience with a business.

  • http://profiles.google.com/eafriel Beth Friel

    I have been fighting with Enterprise for over a year now. A few weeks after I rented a car in Philadelphia, I received a call from Enterprise legal telling me that the car I rented had been damaged and that I owed $800. I asked for evidence such as dated pictures and invoices. I received nothing and my account was turned over to a collection agency.

    I then reported the incident to the Better Business Bureau. They got Enterprise to produce pictures of damage (with no dates) and a repair estimate for $650 but no invoice or proof that any repair had been made. Based on this response, the BBB marked the case ‘Closed and Resolved’. Enterprise refuses to retract the charges and I am at a loss as to what to do. My credit score has been ruined and there seems to be nowhere to turn for help.

    DON’T EVER RENT FROM ENTERPRISE OR THEIR AFFILIATES ALAMO, THRIFTY OR NATIONAL.

  • Robfinslc

    I work for a car rental company and damage is “big bussiness”. When renting a car LOOK the car over carefully and NEVER assume anything. If you don’t inspect your car you risk being charged for damage EVEN if you did not do it. If you get blamed for damage odds are the car rental company wins since they can always report you to a collection agency if you refuse payment. Employees don’t care about your “I did not do it excuse” all they know is damage is found on your car and you was the LAST renter. BOTTOM LINE… LOOK THE CAR OVER BEFORE LEAVING OR GET THE OFFERED COVERAGES!!!

  • shall remain nameless

    lol i have worked at multiple car rental companies and wel my current one does not pratce this “damage for profit system however my last job in this field…welll lets just say… they try harder ;) at this policy

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