I travel a great deal for business and so deal with a lot of rental car companies, the worst, and one I will never use again is Dollar Rent a Car.
Recently I rented a vehicle from them in Phoenix, AZ when I went there on a business trip. When I landed at Skyharbor airport they did not have the type of car I'd reserved, I wanted a full-size car, so they gave me something else that I wasn't happy with. It was late at night, this can happen, although a reservation should mean just that, and it that was all that happened I wouldn't be writing this right now.
The following morning I drove BACK to the airport to exchange the vehilce they had given me for the type I'd originally reserved. I was in a hurry as I had a business meeting that morning. They gave me a Dodge Magnum and I was on my way. When I got back to my hotel and got out of the vehicle I saw that there were deep scratches down the drivers side including the initial "W". Someone had obviously "keyed" the car. I hadn't noticed it when I picked up the car because it was in a dimly lit garage, it was parked between two other cars, and I was in a hurry.
There were also two co-workers present who saw me pull up and observed the damage too. Note; I had driven directly from the airport to my hotel, I hadn't stopped anywhere.
I turned the car in three days later and explained to the person at Dollar that the scratches had already been there when I got the car but I hadn't noticed them until later and so didn't mark them on the inspeciton sheet of my contract. And here comes lie number one;
He stated that I had to fill out a report on the damage and sign it. I stated again that the damage had already been there and I wasn't signing anything that admitted responsibility because I was not responsible. He told me, three times, that it was not an admission of responsibilty, that he just needed to document the damage. Foolishly I believed him and filled out the form and signed it. This form was later included in Dollar's claim against me as an admission that the damage occurred while I had the vehicle. So, I was induced to complete and sign this form under false pretenses, as in, I was lied to, three times.
Weeks later I recieved a telephone call from Dollar's subrogation department about the damage. I explained what had happened to the woman on the phone but at the time coudln't recall the exact details, it hadn't been something I thought important, I've rented cars with minor damage hundreds of times in the past, I've never had a rental car company extort me to foot the bill for the damages.
The woman stated that they had no record of the damage until I picked up the vehicle and that means it must have occurred while I had it. She also stated to me that "she lived in Phoenix and this kind of thing happens all the time". I realized later that this woman works in Dollar's subro department in Tulsa, Oklahoma... Phoenix to Tulsa, that is one hell of a commute! So, bald faced lie number two.
I later called the woman back and left her a voice mail message stating that i did recall what had happened and that the scratches had already been there, and that I had two witnesses. Yeah, yeah, I know how lame that sounds but it happens to be the truth.
She never returned my call but instead sent me a packet with a demand for payment for repairing the damage to the vehicle. She stated that it was my responsibility to check the vehicle before leaving the facility with it. Isn't it their responsibility not to provide me an inspeciton sheet with my contract that stated, incorrectly, that there was no damage to the vehicle?
The damand also stated that, in addition to the repairs I was repsonsible for four days rental that the vehicle would be out of service for repairs; four days to buff out some scratches? I've checked with several body shops in my area and they've all laughed at that. Not to mention the fact that they're assuming the vehicle would have been rented for all four of those days... Lets just pad the bill a little folks.
What this comes down to is they had a brand new car, a Dodge Magnum, that someone, probably one of their own employees, keyed, and they want someone else to pay for it. Since I was stupid enough to take the car without examining it from bumper to bumper (something you can believe I do now), then I'm the chump they're sticking with the bill.
I rented the car on my AMEX card so I do have insurance to cover the cost of the repairs but that's not the point. Dollar Rent a Car lied to me, several times, pretty much called me a lier for not believing what I told them, and extorted 700 dollars out of me for repairs that I was not responsible for.
I will never do business with them again and I suggest that no one else does either. There are plenty of other rental car companies out there.
If you are silly enough to though, examine the car you rent with a magnifying glass before you leave their garage, and other than you rental conract do not sign ANYTHING, no matter what lies they tell you.
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