Complaint Review: U-Haul

My first advice – inspect and take pictures of the truck before you leave the lot.  Buy the insurance - If I did, it would have saved me a lot of headaches.

So, my ripoff issue is that U-Haul charged me a damage charge that I absolutely believe was not caused by myself.  U-Haul claimed that the truck hit some low clearance thing and “smashed” the passenger corner cap on the top of the truck.  I drove strictly on highways and major roadways and made it a point to avoid any routes that had low clearing overpasses and trees.  It’s a small charge ($75) but it’s the principle and it's understandable that I wouldn’t want to pay for something for which I’m not responsible.

I returned the truck Sunday night at 7 pm after the location closed and received the email reports the next day and saw the equipment damage attachment.  I went to the location in Quincy Monday afternoon around 5 pm and was shown the truck.  I saw the exterior of the cap and it was dented in – THAT I’m not disputing.  I’m no expert but to my eyes, such a dent would be caused by a significant impact – something that would be noticeable to the driver.  And as I mentioned, I stayed on highways and major roadways and did not encounter any low clearance items that would have caused such a dent.

When I mentioned I inspected the truck to the manager in the Quincy Ave location, he said it was not possible as he fixed it that morning when he checked it (Monday morning.)  I then countered that I saw it with my own eyes and the truck was ID’d by an employee.  The manager then said that he fixed underneath the cap and that’s where the damage was and he used a water test.  My response was “What!?!”  First of all, why would someone fix underneath the cap and not replace the exterior cap with an undented one??  I then asked for more details of the repair job so that I can have an idea of what the damage was and also just in case I needed to describe it to customer service.  He hedged and hawed and refused to provide specifics – “I fixed the corner cap” was what was repeated.  I then pressed for more details a couple more times and he only added that the cap was pressed in (in his words, “it doesn’t take much” which I highly doubt as it appears to be metal and if so, then U-Haul uses really soft and worrisome materials for its trucks) and that there was dirt on the cap.  Mind you this is the corner at the TOP of the truck.

Plus, to make matters worse the manager I spoke with said “If you bought the insurance then we wouldn’t even be here” with a tone that made it seem like my waiver of the insurance gave him the right to charge me for any repair job he deems necessary.  Even one that may have been pre-existing.  Now, I know it’s easy for me to say this here but this is true.  I am a responsible person and I will own up to my mistakes.  If I damaged that truck in any way – for example, if I scraped the side or dented the bumper or whatever – I will offer my apology and pay the charges.  But at the same time, if I am to pay for something like damages I as a consumer am entitled to the specifics and should know all details of what I am being charged for.  I shouldn’t have to pay for something vague or a patch job (again it’s only $25 parts/$50 labor) that U-Haul should have done on its own.  Something like this (damage with the interior structure of a truck), a consumer would never know or be aware of when renting and we should not be penalized for not paying extra for the insurance coverage.

I may forego U-Haul the next time I need a truck.  At the very least, not use this unscrupulous location.