Don’t forget to request full inspection when you return your rental car

This is a very important rule to remember when you return your rental car. It happens many times that the car rental employees don’t want to check your rental car because they are either too busy or just don’t want to bother with it. Always request a full inspection no matter how hurry you’re in because it could save you a lot of money and you don’t want to end up like the following car hire customer in California.

He rented a pickup truck and when he returned the car he found everything fine. There was no damage, not even a scratch on the car. When he returned the key the car hire employee said that everything is fine without checking the vehicle.

However a few months later he got a bill for $750 and he was completely shocked. The car hire company – National Rent-a-Car – sent him the documents where they showed that there were massive damage to the truck’s back gate and left rear side.

He refused to pay for the damage because he didn’t do anything to the car and the car hire company wanted to send the bill to collections.

A couple of mistakes have been made here:

Always take a photo of your rental car – before and after the rental – never forget it.
Always request a full inspection of your rental car – it’s really important not to forget it.
The car hire company should have sent the customer a time stamped picture that shows the damage.
They also should have sent repair estimate and an invoice from the body shop.

At the end the car hire company acknowledged that proper procedure hadn’t been followed and they dropped the claim against the customer.

But you may not be so lucky next time and always expect the unexpected.

Car hire excess insurance >>