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A California woman says Thrifty charged her a whopping $500 to clean a rental car that she never even drove. Anna Fair says she was just doing a good deed when she rented the vehicle for her friend, Jeanette. But as the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished.
Thrifty doesn’t permit third-party rentals and says Fair must pay the car rental’s cleaning fee no matter who drove it.
For her part, Jeanette says she returned the rental car in the same condition as she received it: dirty. However, Thrifty’s report indicates that after she drove the vehicle, it smelled of cigarettes and urine and needed extensive cleaning.
Now Fair is asking for Consumer Rescue’s help. She says Jeanette has never smoked and finds the urine-smell accusation bizarre. The friends believe the only plausible explanation is that they are the target of a car rental cleaning fee scam. And they hope I can prove it.
But is that something I can do? Let’s find out.
A friend in need of a rental car after an emergency
Last April, Jeanette’s daughter suffered a stroke and was hospitalized about 45 miles from her home. She needed to get to the hospital right away, but her car was in the shop. It would be several days before the repairs would be complete.
Of course Jeanette couldn’t wait several days. She needed to get to her daughter immediately. But after calling several local car rental companies she faced an insurmountable roadblock.
“Jeanette doesn’t have a credit card in her name,” Fair told me. “Every car rental company requires the primary driver to have a credit card in their name.”
And that’s how Fair became the renter of this vehicle by proxy.
The two friends hatched a plan: They would go to the Thrifty location together. Fair would rent the car in her name and list Jeanette as the additional driver. After the contract was signed, the pair would go their separate ways. Jeanette would soon be with her daughter and Fair would go back home.
The next morning, they did exactly that.
A covert and unorthodox plan: renting a car for a friend
As soon as the contract was signed and the keys were handed over, the ladies said their goodbyes. Fair hopped in her own car and went back home, while Jeanette found the rental vehicle in the lot.
“I noticed right away that the rental car had not been cleaned,” Jeanette recalled. “It smelled musty and the outside of the vehicle was dirty. I figured someone must have just returned it.”
Jeanette should have gone back to the rental counter to report the unclean nature of the rental car. But she didn’t.
“I needed to get to my daughter,” Jeanette explained. “I didn’t think the car’s condition was a big problem.”
Unfortunately, the rental car’s condition would turn out to be a big problem — a $500 problem — for Fair.
A $500 cleaning fee: The rental car smells of smoke and urine
Jeanette spent the next two days with her daughter before returning the rental car. She says the Thrifty agent who took the vehicle from her, looked it over and said “everything was in order.”
A few days later, Fair received the final invoice. She expected it to be right around $280. Instead, she was shocked to find that her card had been charged nearly $800.
There among the myriad of taxes and other fees was something called “outside washing.”
“I thought that charge must be a mistake,” Fair told me. “It seemed like I was being billed for a $500 car wash!”
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But she was about to find out that there was no mistake.
Thrifty: The rental car smells of smoke and urine
When Fair called Thrifty to have the charge removed an agent said that wouldn’t be possible. He explained that despite the outside washing description, the fee was actually to clean the interior of the rental car.
Related: Royal Caribbean sues the cruise line over a $405 car wash
The Thrifty representative went on to say that there was evidence of smoking in the vehicle. But that wasn’t the worst of it. Next, he explained that the driver’s seat had a urine stain. According to him, the inside of the car smelled as one might expect with that problem.
“Jean doesn’t smoke — she has never smoked,” Fair told me. “The rest of the accusations were just embarrassing and I’m sure untrue. I told Thrifty I would not pay that $500 cleaning fee.”
But Fair now faced an uncomfortable reality. She had no firsthand knowledge of the condition of the rental car — before or after the rental. And Thrifty had already charged her credit card the full amount and had no intention of refunding the fee.
Filing a credit card dispute against this car rental cleaning fee
After multiple attempts to get Thrifty to return her $500, Fair turned to her credit card company for help.
“I filed a credit card dispute,” Fair explained. “I won. My credit card company found in my favor and got my money back for me. I was relieved.”
That relief though was short lived.
Related: What you need to know about a credit card dispute — before you file one
Fair was about to find out what many consumers before her have learned the hard way: Winning a credit card chargeback, doesn’t always mean the battle is over. All it means for certain is that the credit card company’s involvement in the dispute is over. The merchant is free to pursue the debt on their own, through a collection agency… or other means.
Related: Here’s how a credit card dispute can end with you in jail (My report for Fodor’s Travel)
Car rental companies often ignore credit card disputes. The customer wins by default and mistakenly believes the decision is legally binding. However, when a collection agency starts hounding them and they find themselves on the Do Not Rent list, they realize their error.
That’s the situation that Fair was in when she reached out to Consumer Rescue and asked me for help. She had won her credit card dispute, but Hertz, Thrifty’s parent company, was pursuing her for the $500.
Asking Consumer Rescue to investigate: Is this a valid charge?
“Can you help me?” Fair asked. “I have no photos, and Thrifty did not provide any photos or other proof. In addition, I was not driving the vehicle and I don’t smoke. I rented the car for my friend, Jeanette.”
Yikes!
When Fair told me that she had rented a car for her friend, I instantly thought of all the worst case scenarios. Had Jeanette been in an accident or the vehicle stolen, the liability would also have been on Fair. The $500 cleaning fee was the most mild of all the things that came to mind.
The problem for Fair (and for me) was that she was a third-party in this situation. She could not definitely say what the rental car smelled like when it was returned. And since Jeanette didn’t report or document the unclean condition of the vehicle at pick-up, I had literally nothing to defend Fair with.
“I understand your heart was in the right place, but this was a bad idea,” I explained to Fair. “It has left you with a $500 cleaning fee and probably earned you a place on the Do Not Rent list.”
After talking to Fair, it was clear to me that neither she nor Jeanette had realized that their plan wasn’t kosher. No rental car company allows customers to rent vehicles on behalf of someone else. But…
Despite this ill-advised plan that violated Thrifty’s terms and conditions and despite Fair having no proof that I could use to defend Jeanette, I noticed something in the paper trail: Thrifty also had no proof of the state of the car. If it was dirty, with stained seats, there should have been some photos.
Not only that, but the $500 charge was one of the highest car rental cleaning fees I’ve ever seen. The location certainly should have some evidence to support it.
Related: Help! Dollar charged me $1,900 in airport fees at a location 25 miles from the airport
The good news: Thrifty will refund the $500 cleaning fee
I sent Fair’s case over to my executive contact at Hertz to see what she and her team made of the situation.
Here’s a little excerpt of my message:
…Could your team have a look at this case and see if there is supporting documentation for the $500 cleaning fee? If Jeanette returned the car messy, then I think she owes her friend $500, but if there is no concrete evidence, maybe this location should adjust this bill?
Thanks for having a look!🚗😊 Michelle
The Hertz executive team did a little digging with the Thrifty branch. As I suspected, the location had nothing to support the $500.
Fair soon received the good news that Hertz had approved the $500 refund — as a goodwill gesture. But that refund came with a warning and reminder.
After reviewing your inquiry, we contacted the location manager for clarification. They confirmed that the vehicle required cleaning due to visible dirt and a moisture stain on the seat, which necessitated detailing.
Unfortunately, no photographs were taken to document the condition.
As a gesture of goodwill and in the interest of providing excellent customer service, we have issued a refund of $500.00.
We sincerely apologize for any confusion regarding Hertz’s Additional Driver policy. To clarify, rentals must be made by the individual who will be driving the vehicle, as we are unable to authorize rentals on behalf of another party. As outlined in our Terms & Conditions, the primary renter is responsible for all final charges related to the rental.
Hertz executive customer service
Fair has learned an important lesson in this fiasco and won’t be renting cars for friends in the future. She is just happy to be able to end this fight.
Hello Michelle,
You’re the BEST! Thank you so much for all your help to get this resolved for me with Hertz and for sending me their email as well.
Have a wonderful week!
Anna
You’re very welcome, Anna. I’m happy I could help you navigate your way out of this good-deed-gone-wrong fiasco!
Related: Here’s why you should never return a rental car looking like this
How to avoid car rental cleaning fees
I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating: Car rental cleaning fees are out of control. Based on my case files, I can confidently say that many locations seem to be padding their bottom line with these extra charges.
Here’s how to make sure you aren’t an easy target for a car rental cleaning fee.
1. Never rent a car for a friend
Renting a car for a friend violates the terms and conditions of every car rental company I know of. It also puts the renter in a precarious situation.
In this case, Anna had no firsthand knowledge of what Jean had done during the rental. She had no photos to prove the condition of the vehicle at return. That left her on the hook for the $500 cleaning fee.
Even so, she got lucky. Had Jean been in an accident or damaged the rental car or someone else’s property, Anna could have been paying for this mistake for years to come.
Related: You are not paranoid. Someone is watching you — it’s Thrifty Car Rental
2. Do not accept a rental car that has any odors
Your rental car should have a neutral smell. Do not drive away from the lot with a vehicle that has any odor — good or bad.
Remember, the moment you drive away with a rental car, its condition becomes your problem if you haven’t reported any abnormalities. Your best defense is to reject any vehicle that isn’t clean, odor-free and undamaged.
3. Take photos and videos of the rental car’s condition
One of the biggest mistakes a car rental customer can make is failing to thoroughly inspect and document the vehicle’s condition — both before and after the rental.
To help you protect yourself, I created Consumer Rescue’s free car rental inspection checklists. Download them, print them out or simply use the forms as a guide — just make sure to use them!
4. Clean up your rental car before you return it
You don’t have to wash and detail your rental car before returning it. But you should bring it back in relatively the same condition as when you drove away.
That means removing all your trash and vacuuming if there are obvious signs of sand, dirt or other debris. Running the vehicle through a car wash may also be a good idea if you’ve driven through muddy or road salt-covered areas.
These extra steps aren’t necessarily required by your rental agreement, but they can help you avoid being targeted for a cleaning fee.
After all, spending $10 to $15 on a car wash and vacuum could save you $500 in the end.
The bottom line
Car rental cleaning fees can be expensive, and disputing them after the fact isn’t always easy. The best way to protect yourself is to document the vehicle’s condition before and after your rental and return it clean. And never put your name on a rental agreement for someone else’s exclusive use. As Fair’s case shows, a favor for a friend can quickly turn into a costly mistake. (Michelle Couch-Friedman, Chief fiasco fixer and founder of Consumer Rescue)
