“It really only takes under 1 minute to video around the car and zoom in on anything that you may be charged for after the fact when a rental company says ‘you’ did this to the car. The only mistake I made was not panning the camera up to show I was still at the airport and the slot the car was in (will make sure I do that next time).”
Stupid Tip of the Day: Have Vehicle Damage Officially Recorded Before Leaving the Rental Car Facility
You can indeed potentially save yourself time and trouble with this advice which was imparted by René deLambert of René’s Points earlier today; but that in and of itself is not enough: spend a few extra minutes with the agent at the rental car facility to actually officially record any anomalies by writing and initialing them into your contract, as doing so may potentially become costly issues — in terms of both time and money — upon returning the vehicle.
Also, gently rub your finger or use a cloth against a small anomaly, as sometimes a simple spot of dirt or dried mud can emulate a chip in the paint. Officially reporting something which is not a problem after all makes no sense.
Summary
This quick word of advice is merely a reminder of one of 13 tips on what you can do to prevent yourself from being scammed by a rental car company, with which you can find additional information on saving yourself from potentially significant hassles with renting a vehicle.
Keep in mind that some car rental companies are more stringent than others. I find renting from Hertz, Avis or National Car Rental — although you can certainly have problems with them as well — to be a significantly more pleasant experience than Thrifty Car Rental, Alamo Rent a Car or Dollar Rent A Car, which I attempt to avoid…
…as well as more pleasant than my experience with Enterprise Rent-A-Car, with which I learned not to return a vehicle after hours — especially during a weekend.
Your car rental experience will be uneventful most of the time; and if you are asked to pay more than you should, it will most likely be due to an honest mistake on the part of the employee of the rental car company. However, all it takes is one time to be scammed — and if that happens to you, the cost in terms of time, effort and money can potentially be enormous. Do yourself a favor and be fully prepared before your rent your next vehicle, as with renting from any rental car company, caveat emptor.
Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.
