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Renting a car
By Jeff Lakie
There are many horror stories out there about people who have
returned vehicles to a car rental location only to hear later that they are
being accused of damage that they are not aware of. While many
people think that the "car rental company is out to get them" when this
happens, it is usually an unfortunate clerical error rather then any
maliciousness. However, at times, many renters returned vehicles that
have been damaged while they were on rent even though they did not
know it occurred. So keep in mind that the possibility exists.
Here are some things you can do if you find out that you have been
accused of car rental damage.
1. Remain calm. Nothing infuriates car rental counter agents more
than an enraged customer who makes all kinds of threat that
they cannot follow up on. If you remain calm, it is more likely
that the agents will help you.
2. Get your facts straight. Know exactly when you picked up the
car and when you returned it. A rental agent could accidentally
put in the wrong time and end up assigning damage to you that
was really caused by someone who had the car after you. Or
they could be doing a damage report on another person's car
and miss-type the rental contract number and it gets assigned
to you. It's an innocent mistake by simply pressing the wrong
number and you'll be surprised how often it happens. To
eliminate this as a possibility, asked to see the "computer
version" of your contract. This would probably be a printout of
the information input by the counter agent on your contract.
This is where you will determine if there are any facts out of
line, such as an accidental discrepancy in checkout times, type
of car, or contract number.
3. Most car rental contracts have some kind of area on them that
indicates damage either with a drawing of the car that gets
marked up or an area in which damage is listed. Ask to see a
copy of the contract if you do not have yours handy, and ask
to see a copy of five or ten contracts before yours and after
yours because sometimes damage can be missed if the car was
inspected in the dark or in the rain.
Be aware that you may be held responsible for the car until the office
gets the keys. So, if you leave the car in your driveway and drop off
the keys at the rental office on your way to work, you will still be held
responsible if the car is damaged before the rental company can pick it
up.
If it is proven that the car rental damage is yours, you will likely be
surprised at how expensive it is to repair. Car rental companies do not
make money on car repairs but car repairs are very, very expensive
and most people are unaware at how pricey it can be. You may
however be charged "downtime" to cover for the amount of time that
your car was not rentable.
If the damage was not yours, however, using these ideas should help
you solve the issue quickly.
About the Author
Jeff Lakie is the founder of Car rental Resources a website providing information on Car rental
Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/10397.html
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