My Finances Today – U.S. rental car companies earned $26.1 billion in revenues in 2014, according to Auto Rental News, and there’s a good chance some of it came from collecting on so-called “unrecorded” auto rental damages.
Those are damages on a rental vehicle that weren’t included on pre-rental car condition checklists, that could hold customers liable for payment, even if they weren’t responsible for those damages.
It’s a bigger problem than you might think.
According to a survey by Insuremyrentalcar.com, 23% of Americans who have rented a car, truck or SUV in the past year said they had “found damage on the car which was not highlighted on the check-out sheet.” While two-thirds of care rental consumers perform a cursory check on the vehicle’s condition before they drive away, very few take photos of the vehicle before they leave the rental lot, and about one-third check the condition of the wheels and tires, “despite the fact that these areas of the vehicle are high risk,” Insuremyrentalcar.com reports.
Any damage to a rental car, even if it isn’t your fault, can lead to you having to make a claim on your insurance, says Ernesto Suarez, founder of the the rental car insurance firm. “When you pick up a rental vehicle it’s essential to check it over thoroughly and note every mark, no matter how insignificant on the checkout sheet, including any damage and scuffs to the wheels,” he notes. “We see plenty of people getting charged for minor wheel damage or scratches on the fender which were on the car when they picked it up but unfortunately were not noted in the paperwork. Sadly in the modern world of vehicle rental this can be tantamount to writing a blank check to the rental desk.”
