Complaint Review: Enterprise Rent-A-Car - Pawtucket Rhode Island

We're listening & would like to discuss this further. Please email care[at]enterprise.com with your full name, the 6-digit rental agreement number and the "DX" or damage claim number.

When emailing please list reference #110329-001981 in the subject line.

- Elizabeth with Enterprise Rent-A-Car

The only mistake that I made here was to not focus on the initial inspection of the Jeep before taking possession of the vehicle. No other mistakes were made by me; I did not crash the vehicle or park it illegally or in an otherwise exposed position.

I am well within my rights to question the narrative that has been imposed on these events by the personnel at Enterprise Rent-A-Car. While it is certainly possible that the Jeep was hit during one of the few times it was briefly parked away from my home, I am having a hard time believing that there would be absolutely no evidence of the Jeep having been struck at any time: No witnesses, no security footage, no note on my windshield, no debris lying on the pavement. Nothing.

Just because the alternate narrative which I propose for these events involves questioning the integrity of the personnel at Enterprise Rent-A-Car does not mean that my view should not be seriously considered. Let us recall that, when the damage was discovered on the Jeep, it was my integrity which was being questioned. I had to work to convince my insurer that I was not responsible for this damage. If my integrity can be so lightly brought into question, then I say so can the integrity of the other players in this story.

The problem here is not that I made a mistake and should just accept this fact. Rather the problem is this charade of a vehicle inspection prior to taking responsibility for such a massive piece of property. I shall never permit myself to be put in that position againwhich means I shall never accept a car from Enterprise Rent-A-Car again.

but my insurer has ruled that I was "zero percent liable" for the damage.

Reaching this conclusion was made easy for the insurer by the fact that I had plenty of property damage coverage on my policy. The insurer basically decided, "The guy's covered for this type of problem anyway, so why argue over it. We value our relationship with Enterprise, so we'll just pay now and figure it all out later. Chill down, everyone's going to get paid."

The insurer concluded that it does not really matter whether the loathsome Jeep was struck by a hit-and-run driver in one of the tiny windows of opportunity that it was exposed to or whether the damage preexisted my taking responsibility for the behemoth. They told me that plenty of clowns try to avoid responsibility for damage they cause to rented vehicles, and therefore they need to be cautious about what they agree to cover. They had a meeting this morning and ruled that I had not caused the damage. And soI shall be covered for whatever Enterprise Rent-A-Car seeks in damages. Amazing!

"You signed for it, you pay.  Move on and admit you made a mistake."

This comment is often put forth by people who work for the car rental agencies.  I wonder if they ever read their own contract.  The myth is that if you missed identifying something something on the original diagram displayed on the contract then you have to pay for it even if the damage was not caused while you had possession of the vehicle.  The contract I received (Yes, I actually read it more than once) does not reference the diagram at all.  I asked several people who worked for enterprise when I disagreed with this to quote the section of the contract that backs up what they were saying.  They were unable to.  All they could say was that there was a diagram.  If the diagram is not referenced in the legal wording of the contract then it is not part of the contract.  i.e. A picture is not a contract in and of itself.  If you disagree that it is in the contract please state the number in the section that covers this and quote it.  If you can't then obviously not part of the contract.

Obviously, it's best to get everything possible on the diagram otherwise you're going to have these types of headaches.  But the reality is, it's not hard to miss something.  Depending on angle, lighting, tired from a flight or some other factor.  It's unfortunate that the industry takes this attitude.  There are easy ways for them to check previous contracts.  They have no incentive to do this if they can bully you into paying.  I would suggest trying to work with them on looking at those other contracts.  If they are unwilling to work with you, you should contact your state attorney general and file a complaint.

You signed for it, you pay.  Move on and admit you made a mistake.