Could a rental car company charge you for damage two years after you last laid eyes on the vehicle? A Budget Rent a Car customer discovered the answer to that $2,324 question is, bizarrely, “Yes.”
Now, that broadsided rental car customer is asking Consumer Rescue for help. He hopes we can appeal to Avis (the parent company of Budget) and get this mysterious damage fee erased.
Can we do it? Let’s find out.
A business trip using a Budget rental car
In January 2023, Michael Ament was in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on a one day business trip. He picked up a rental car at the Budget airport location and headed to his meeting.
“It was very uneventful,” Ament recalled. “I used my corporate credit card to pay for the rental car and it included full insurance coverage. If there had been a problem, I would have certainly reported it.”
But there was no problem during the rental, so there was nothing to report at the end of the day.
“I returned the vehicle to the airport and hopped on my flight home,” Ament told me. “At the time, Budget emailed me a receipt and closed the car rental contract. I assumed that was the end of it.”
And it was the end of it… until nearly two years later. That’s when Budget discovered some damage to the rental car – $2,324 worth of damage. And the Pittsburgh International Airport location had strangely determined Ament should pay for it.
Budget: “Remember that rental car you drove two years ago?”
Not surprisingly, Ament hadn’t spent any time in the last 22 months thinking about that rental car out in Pittsburgh. He hadn’t been to the Steel City again since that day — January 30, 2023.
So when a text arrived on December 2, 2024, thanking him for using Budget in Pittsburgh, he thought it was a mistake or a scam.
“Thank you for renting with Budget,” read the mostly anonymous text. “Please contact us at 844-859-7291 and reference claim number ******* to follow up.”
Because Ament assumed the text was a mistake, he didn’t call the number. Had he dialed it, he would have discovered that it belonged to Sedgwick Claims Management Services. That company is the third-party claims administrator that handles car rental damage claims for the Avis Budget Group.
Ament would soon find out that Sedgwick didn’t send the text by mistake. It was attempting to collect payment for damage to the rental car he had driven all those months ago.
Sedgwick will handle this rental car accident claim
The following day, Ament received an email from Sedgwick, a company he had never heard of before.
“Dear MICHAEL AMENT,
Thank you for renting from Budget. Sedgwick has been enlisted by Budget to provide accident claims administration services. We are writing to let you know that there has been a vehicle damage report associated with your rental on 1/30/2023 at PITTSBURGH INTL APO LANDSIDE TERMINAL, # 4000 PITTSBURGH INTL AIRPORT PITTSBURGH PA 15231.
Based on the terms of your rental contract, it has been determined you are responsible for the following costs: $2,324.
Sedgwick Claims Management Service to the Budget customer (Dec. 4, 2024)
Ament says he couldn’t believe what he was reading. He hadn’t damaged that rental car, but even if he had, surely there was a statute of limitations?
He called the number in the email, and the agent reiterated that he was responsible for the cost of the repairs to the rental car. She did not explain what caused the two-year delay in the notification but recommended that Ament contact his insurance company immediately.
Of course, there was a giant problem with that recommendation: Insurance companies have strict time limits for claims to be filed. The deadline for filing a claim from an “accident” that purportedly happened in January 2023 had long since passed.
Finding other Budget customers hit with strange damage charges
Feeling like he was being bamboozled, Ament started searching through the internet for help. That’s when he came across the story of another Budget Rent a Car customer also hit with unusual damage claims.
And when I say unusual, I’m using the term loosely to describe what happened to that Budget customer. Some might use the word fraud or scam instead.
In that case, a franchised Budget location accused a customer of shattering the driver’s side window of his rental car. An employee said he somehow missed the broken glass when the vehicle was returned — and gave the customer the all-clear. But less than an hour later, he reported noticing the car had significant damage to the window.
These statements were easily proven to be untrue, but not until the Budget customer was forced to ask Consumer Rescue to defend him.
The stakes were much higher in Ament’s case – with thousands of dollars on the line. But after reading about the other rental car customer, he was hopeful we could help him too.
Avis Budget Group’s typical timeline for processing damage claims
When Ament’s request for help hit the Consumer Rescue hotline, I thought there must be some mistake. After all, the Avis Budget Group’s FAQs indicate that their typical timeline for processing car rental damage claims is in the 30 to 60-day range.
Ament had received a notification of damage 665 days after his rental car contract was closed. That’s far, far beyond the Avis Budget Group’s typical timeline for processing damage charges.
Since 665 days astronomically exceeds the typical window for Avis to alert a customer of vehicle damage, I couldn’t imagine that the car rental company could really expect Ament to pay for the repair.
So what was going on?
Initially, I assumed that the likely explanation was that Ament had received a notification of damage back in 2023 — and ignored it.
I know from our files that many car rental customers receive notifications of damage and figure the problem will disappear if they don’t respond. But what happens instead is a few months later, they’re surprised by a notification that they’ve been placed on the car rental company’s Do Not Rent list, and the bill is in collections. Additionally, their credit rating is at risk.
The correct way to fix a billing error or to make a rental car repair bill go away (assuming you didn’t cause the damage) is through the proper channels. Neither a credit card dispute nor ignoring the bill will fix the problem. In fact, both of those options will only make the situation worse.
But in Ament’s case, a damage claim arriving two years after his car rental seemed impossible to defend via normal channels.
This consumer needed to be rescued.
And that’s exactly why Consumer Rescue exists: to help consumers stuck in difficult and unusual battles with companies. He had come to the right place.
Asking Avis and Sedgwick: What’s going on here?
After Ament assured me that he had scoured his emails and could confirm that Avis never sent him any previous indication of a problem with the January 30, 2023 rental, I sent this case to our executive contact at Avis. This is not a customer-facing person but rather an executive problem-solver I’ve sent cases to for many years. He has a solid history of fixing difficult issues for Avis customers.
Hi **** ,
How are you? Happy Holidays! 🎉
I have a Budget customer here (Michael Ament, reservation # *****) who returned a car after a one-day rental back in January 2023. This was a business trip. He returned the car as scheduled and that was the end of it, he assumed.
But a few days ago, he got a demand for over $2,300 in damage and administrative charges for the rental that ended on January 30, 2023.
Something seems very odd about this. I’ve never heard of a location being able to wait almost two years to spring a car rental damage charge on a customer.
Could you see if your team could figure out what went wrong here? Thank you! 😊🚗 Michelle
Sedgwick gives the good news for this Budget car rental customer
Because of the holidays, this case took a bit longer than usual. The Avis team worked directly with the claims administrator (Sedgwick), and the good news came just in time for Christmas.
Hi Michelle, This claim was sent to us as an unknown renter, after some investigation we found an AR filled out by the location linking this claim to the renter Michael Ament. Mr. Ament did not sign or complete the AR but the location did. I have determined that Mr. Ament was unaware of these damages, therefore I have closed this claim.
Thank you.
****** *** | Claims Manager
Sedgwick Claims Management Services, Inc.
And with that, the $2,324 bill instantly evaporated. Ament and his family were able to enjoy the holidays without the dark cloud of that giant invoice looming overhead.
How to avoid car rental damage scams and mistakes (Consumer Rescue’s checklist)
Wow-Wee! In the past several months, Consumer Rescue has received many requests from car rental customers with bizarre (and expensive) problems. From a Hertz customer being billed for damage on a car he never drove to Turo customers being charged to fix pre-existing damage, we’ve been tackling a lot of shenanigans across the car rental industry.
What’s clear to me is that car rental customers must be more vigilant than ever protecting themselves against these “billing errors” and outright scams.
Here’s a checklist for you to use before, during, and after your next car rental. Using it will significantly decrease your chances of being hit by surprise charges.
1. Always take before and after photos and videos of the rental car
It’s critical for car rental customers today to take an in-depth photoshoot of the vehicle they’re about to drive away with. Don’t be shy. In a well-lit area, take as many snapshots and videos as you need to document the entire condition of the vehicle. If you don’t, you could be on the hook for damage someone else caused.
It’s important to note that many of the recent car rental incident reports I’ve reviewed include a section from the agency that says, “Does the customer have time-stamped photographic evidence of the vehicle’s condition?” This makes me think that pursuing claims against customers may hinge on the answer to that question.
So always let it be known that you’ve thoroughly documented the condition of the vehicle that you drove – before and at return.
2. Get a return receipt for your rental car
Always give yourself enough time so that you’re not rushed when you return the car. You want to talk to an employee who should sign off on the vehicle’s condition and give you a receipt.
Being rushed on the return can lead you to make mistakes that can be very expensive. In fact, some car rental customers have, in their haste, returned their rental car to the wrong company or incorrect location. Don’t give the company an easy reason to slam you with extra charges.
Always give yourself plenty of time on the day you intend to return your rental car. That way, you won’t be prone to making a mistake that can leave you vulnerable.
3. Take employee names
So what if you’re about to miss your flight – and you can’t wait for a receipt? Minimally, ensure you’ve thoroughly photographed the car in a well-lit area with close-ups and panned-out views. Be sure to clearly document the location where you left the vehicle. Then, get the name of the nearest employee and point the car out to that person, explaining that you’re about to miss your flight.
The final step in this process is to inform the named employee that you’ve photographed the vehicle from top to bottom, inside and out, and confirmed a full gas tank. If you haven’t caused any damage to that rental car, you will be infinitely less likely to be targeted for fraudulent damage charges if you let the attendant know you have photographic evidence.
4. Keep your photographic evidence… forever
Most people have nearly endless storage on their mobile devices in modern times. The one thing you don’t want to do is to delete those photos you’ve taken of your rental vehicle.
My case files show that many, if not all, car rental companies are actively auditing their vehicle records six months and beyond the date the contract closed. This may be by design because, without photographic evidence, car rental customers have very little ability to prove they didn’t cause the damage they’re accused of. Some of these car rental locations are likely hoping that you’ve deleted your photos by that time.
Never delete the photographic evidence of the condition of your rental car. Remember, a few photos hold minimal space on your phone, but deleting them could heavily impact your wallet. If your device has limited space, consider moving the images to an external hard drive for safekeeping.
The bottom line
Car rental customers need to stay on guard before, during, and after their reservation is complete – sometimes long, long after. By following the steps in Consumer Rescue’s Car Rental Checklist, you’ll greatly reduce your chances of getting burdened with charges you shouldn’t owe.
Of course, if, despite your best efforts, you get sent a bill to repair a vehicle you know you didn’t damage, send your request to our advocacy team. We’ll investigate, and if the facts are on your side, we can help you, too.
Consumer Rescue’s mediation services are always fast, friendly – and, don’t forget, free! (Michelle Couch-Friedman, Consumer Rescue)
Good work, Michelle.
I would think that a claim such as this would be covered by the renter’s personal auto policy in effect at the time so long as the renter reported the claim promptly, that is, relatively soon after the renter knows of the claim. Most policies promise to defend and indemnify false and fraudulent claims.
I don’t know how you investigate a claim like this two years after the fact. I’ve not seen any car insurance companies accept claims that far after the fact…
They won’t because every insurance contract includes a requirement that the insured person report the damage to the insurance company as soon as possible after the damage occurs, or within 30 days or whatever. This is separate from the report from the car rental company. OP didn’t do that so they’ll deny him for that.
If the OP instead claims he didn’t damage the car then the insurance company will not cover it either because they only cover claims when the insured person causes the damage.
I can’t thank Michelle enough. I don’t think too many insurance companies will pay claims on incidents from 22 months ago where they can’t inspect the vehicle. She is a GODSEND!!!
You’re very welcome, Michael. I’m glad this got resolved before the holidays were in full swing.
The other fix, although it is costly, is to get the rental car’s insurance. No need to worry about preexisting damage or damage that occurs while you have the car. You just walk away.
Agreed, and it saves the headache. There are plenty of credit card rental coverages that act as secondary insurance, meaning they kick in after your primary covers whatever it does. That’s not exactly helpful to keeping a claim off of your personal auto policy.
Michelle,
Did your contact explain how it took so long for the accident report to be sent to the renter? Was there real damage or was the report ginned up months later?
There was never any incident report attached to the request for payment and no explanation as to what was wrong with the car — or why this bill appeared two years after the rental…
This story makes it sound like the car Mr. Ament rented was never rented again until recently; that is, it sat in the lot for about 665 days. Did it have an inch or two of dust on it? Was it a ’74 Ford Pinto?
I think that is the reason this charge was bogus–that I can’t imagine a car for rent at an airport location would not be rented for 665 days.
My thoughts exactly. The evidence they would have needed against Ament would have had to be significant and indisputable.
In this case, there’s a 0% chance that there’s any video footage from the airport garage from two years ago, let alone any documentation of damage from two years ago.
Am I naive, or are the car rental companies A to Z falling apart administratively? At least Budget didn’t just charge Ament’s credit card and make him figure it out. Perhaps the car companies think they can increase their revenue stream by cheating the customers? I would imagine a huge percentage of car rentals are paid for by company credit cards, so perhaps the renter himself will never notice extra charges on the card after the fact? It seems like an epidemic … not just little stuff, but claims of thousands of dollars. “Every time you turn around you see another example” as my mother would say. Great work with this puzzling case, Michelle.
I don’t understand how it’s even legal for a car rental company to hit you up for damage months after the fact. If there’s a problem with the car, the renter should be notified when the car is returned, or the next day if the car was returned after hours when no personnel was available to inspect it. Because of these kinds of outrageous incidents, I really try to avoid renting cars at all.
Sadly, they will just try to scam someone else. Someone should have been fired over this!
Great job getting this dropped Michelle!
Excellent work as always, Michelle and team. I’m genuinely surprised by this claim. It seems like the statute of limitations in PA defaults to two years as well, so I’m even more surprised that the claim was persued at all.
As a former claims adjuster, I’ve seen claims filed for worse timelines.
It’s not that the insured didn’t report the claim in time, it’s that the insured has a responsibility to report claims to their insurer once notified of one within a certain time. Ament could have notified his insurance company (whichever he had effective at the time) of the claim and they would have had to defend him.