A $387 bill for a cracked windshield? You’ve gotta be kidding

Debbie Vinton saw a star on her recent vacation in Los Angeles, but it isn’t the kind that you’d want an autograph from. Instead, her car rental company asked to sign a form agreeing to cover the damage for a cracked windshield “star” on her front windshield.

It’s a decision she now regrets. The bill came to $387, not including a $50 “administrative fee” for a repair that should have cost just $50.

Vinton’s case is a reminder that you ask questions before, not after, signing a release — and always, always check the windshield.

Here’s what happened to Vinton:

I rented a car through an online service which directed me to Discovery Rent a Car. I got a great rate, kind of a crappy car, but it got us around.

I walked around with the associate before getting in and pointed out every scratch, ding etc before signing off on it. However, he never looked at the windows, nor did I.

Upon returning the car the associate — a different one — informed me I got a “star” in the window. I told him I never got hit by anything and had no idea what he was talking about. He had me come look at the windshield. I had to remove the dirt with my finger to see a small star located way at the top that could not be seen from the inside because of the rearview mirror.

After thinking about the incident I realized when I wiped the dirt off I wondered one, how did he see it if I had to move the dirt to see it and two, the glass was smooth so the ding was on the inside.

He noted that it was a star on the windshield and had me sign that I acknowledged damage but said they would look to see if the previous driver had done it. Again, if that were the case, why are they driving this car?

Last week I received an email stating I had to pay for the scratch on the windshield which would cost me $387. Are you kidding me? Now it is a scratch?

I called a window repair shop and they said that was a $50 to $75 dollar fix. My deductible is $500 and what is worse I used a debit card to pay, so I can’t protest through a credit card company. They told me I have 7 days to send them a check or they would charge my credit card. I don’t have this kind of money. What do I do?

Looking back at her rental experience, the first thing she could have done was to make sure she inspected the windshield. Cracks to the windshield are probably the single-biggest source of damage claims, legitimate and otherwise, to a rental car.

She protested the bill, asking Discovery to substantiate its claims. That resulted in the following email:

When [you] rented our Gray KIA Rondo on March 29th, 2010 a properly documented vehicle check out slip, which you signed, showed that it was no damage on the front windshield of the rental vehicle. Upon return and inspection crack was found on the front windshield of the rental vehicle. Since you declined our offer of CDW you are fully responsible for any damages to our vehicle while it is in your possession.

Enclosed please find an estimate of repair bill in amount of $337. This case is subject of administrative fee in amount of $50. Please mail us a check inn the amount of $387. If we don’t receive the funds within 7 business days we will charge credit card you used for the rental. You may be able to recover your loss by filing a claim with your insurance carrier or your credit card company.

Your prompt attention to this matter will be greatly appreciated.

Discovery also showed her what appeared to be a legitimate repair bill after she began copying the California attorney general on her correspondence. But it insisted on being paid immediately.

There’s not much I can do in a case like Vinton’s, unfortunately. She signed the form agreeing to pay for the damage. The car rental company showed her an invoice.

I believe its administrative fee is unnecessary, but it isn’t out of line with what other car rental companies charge. The repair bill may be inflated, or not. It’s hard to say.

I can only offer Vinton this advice: Next time, inspect your rental car’s windshield carefully and don’t sign anything you’re not prepared to pay for.

(Photo: croanoke/Flickr Creative Commons)

  • Liz

    Call your bank and tell them your debit card was lost/stolen.

    You know, I always look at body damage but this article makes me realize I don’t examine the windows nearly enough. Thanks for the cautionary tale.

  • Cosmos Human

    Close out your bank account. Switch banks.

  • Rich

    You really have to focus more on the windshield and lights areas of the car and the alloy wheels than on the body. Body damage is easy to see, a small crack in a tail lamp not so much. With margins tight in the car rental business I am sure a lot of outlets make money renting a car with the same hard to see damage to a number of different people and then charging them hundreds of dollars for a repair, which never gets done.

  • Roxie

    Freeze your card. You can tell your bank to decline charges to it by naming a certain vendor as fraudulent.

  • jayne52

    I used to have this sort of problem when I used General rent a car in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami. It seemed every car we rented had “hidden damage”
    I started asking the rental office to sign a form saying that the car was in perfect order when we returned, and I always either took a photo of any damage I saw. I noted even small scratches on the rental agreement before I drove off their lot. I have never had a problem like this with a larger company, like National or Hertz.

  • J C

    Another important componant is the credit card you use. One that gives you PRIMARY insurance would protect you from dealing with your insurance co. and the deductable. DINERS CLUB / MasterCard offers Primary C/D insurance. They handle everything. Most others are SECONDARY. I think rental companies would think twice before persuing a bogus claim if every dollar is coming from them and not you.

    I agree. go over the car with a fine tooth comb and take pictures if you can.

  • Carver

    The OP could send a letter back threatening to sue in small claims if the company charges her credit card. She might also call the local television station consumer line.

  • Brian C

    Is it unreasonable to ask to see the check-in forms from the previous driver too? Or for that matter all recent drivers.

  • J C

    I also agree with jayne52. I have never had a problem with the larger companies like National, Hertz and Avis. I check Enterprise cars with that fine tooth comb though.

  • Jesse

    Pay with an AMEX. The regular old basic car rental coverage that comes with every AMEX card would cover this without a problem and with minimal paperwork. I’ve had to use it in the past and it worked like a charm.

  • J C

    @ Jesse – The regular AMEX card is secondary insurance. You still have to deal with your Insurance CO. and the deductable. I know – I also have AMEX. They do have a PREMIUM add on with an additional cost which you can enroll in, but the basic card coverage is Secondary. I have checked.

    The only card that I know of that offers PRIMARY C/D Ins. is DINERS CLUB.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    The rates starts at $ 6.99 per day at Discovery Rent a Car. My question is how can they make money unless they engage in practices of charging $ 387 for a $ 50 repair. I need a quick Google search and it seems like this is a common practice of charging their customers for extra things (one customer was charged for the car to be wash).

  • J C

    Jesse – I should have added, that Premium add on is about $25.00 per rental and it will then give you PRIMARY COVERAGE. You must enroll for it.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    @ Jesse – “Pay with an AMEX. The regular old basic car rental coverage that comes with every AMEX card would cover this without a problem and with minimal paperwork.”

    Premium Car Rental Protection from American Express, https://www152.americanexpress.com/premium/car-rental-insurance-coverage/home.do?source=CCSG, covers the following:

    Up to $100,000 of primary coverage for damage or theft of a Rental Car.
    Up to $100,000 of Accidental Death or Dismemberment coverage.
    Up to $15,000 for excess medical expenses.

    It does NOT cover loss of use (if it takes three weeks to fix and the daily rental is $ 40 a day…you are on the hook for $ 840 assuming if your personal auto policy doesn’t cover this), administrative fees (can be as high as $ 200 or $ 300) and liabilities.

    On the AMEX website, it states that you can decline the collision damage waiver (CDW) from a rental company but you still need Liability Insurance Supplement (LIS). Depending upon your personal auto insurance policy or company insurance policy, you can probably waive CDW or LDW (Loss Damage Waiver is similar to CDW but includes loss of use and adminstrative costs); LIS and PAI\PEC (Personal Accident Insurance / Personal Effects Coverage) since these items are covered by your policy.

    Depending upon what type of card that you have with American Express, some cards may have more features\benefits than other cards.

  • Chris in NC

    A word of caution on credit card coverage of rental cars. As JC says, Diners club Mastercard is the only CC I am aware of that offers PRIMARY protection. Every other card including American Express only offers SECONDARY protection. That means if you use an Am EX, you are required to file a claim with your auto insurance first.

    While DC MC offers PRIMARY protection, there are exclusions that renters may not be aware of. First, DC does not cover ANY pickup truck, excludes some SUVs and has rental length restrictions. The exclusions won’t affect most people, but its better to check. We recently rented a 4WD vehicle for our ski vacation that was NOT covered by our CC, but was covered by our personal auto insurance.

    While sympathetic to the OP, as Chris (Elliott) wrote, she accepted and agreed to the liability. I too think the repair bill is over inflated, but keep in mind, that rental car companies aren’t looking for the most competative rate, they are looking at the easiest way out. Look at it this way, if your car’s headlight burns out, most drivers would go to the auto parts store, buy a spare bulb and put it in themselves. If you took the same car to a dealer, you will get hit with a $50 labor bill + an inflated price for the bulb. Yes, that happened to a friend once (who didn’t know better)

    Reporting your card as lost or stolen when it wasn’t to avoid a potential charge is unethical in my books. Doing so may jeopardize other transactions, automatic drafts and payments. At best, it delays the collection process, but ultimately in this situation, the OP is still legally liable. Carver’s suggestion to call the local TV station sounds like a good one.

    While I won’t go as far as to say the larger car companies are innocent of this practice, I am extremely wary of the “locally owned franchised locations.” Nearly all of my problems with rental car companies occur at these locations.

  • Bill

    Many years ago, I had a rental car which had no damage to the windshield. All of a sudden, while sitting in a parking lot, the windshield pretty much cracked all the way across – the car was not even moving.

    The car rental company charged me for the windshield and sent it off immediately, before I could even talk to a manager the next morning – so the evidence was gone. Apparently, it was a “pressure crack” which is mostly caused by an improper windshield installation.

    I believe my credit card covered it, but I never rented from that company again. I also never dealt with the auto dealership in town that owned the franchise – just last year, I bought a brand new Ford without even looking at GM primarliy because it was a GM dealer that owned this car rental franchise.

    I rent from Hertz all the time now, and although I photograph and document everything, I’ve never had a problem with them.

  • judy

    I rented a care in Seattle and as luck would have it a truck on the freeway kicked up a pebble that made a star on the windshield. I immediately went to a shop and had the star crack fixed. I showed it to the agent when I returned the car and even supplied a copy of the repair invoice. When I got home I did receive a letter stating I was responsible for the repairnand the cost was some outrageous amount that I don’t remember. Luckily I had copies of the repair invoice. After much back and forth haggling the rental company (Enterprise) backed off and agreed- in writing- that the windshield was repaired appropriately already. The repair cost was about $50

  • Jesse

    @ Arizona Road Warrior and J C

    I guess I got lucky. I had Avis send me a claim for a few hundred dollars + an administration fee + a loss of use fee. I filed it with the basic AMEX insurance. I did have to show evidence to AMEX that my personal auto insurance policy’s deductible was above the claim Avis sent me but after I did that they took over completely from there.

    They refused to pay the administration fee and AMEX notified Avis that in order for them to pay the loss of use fee Avis would have to provide a Fleet Utilization Log that proves they could have rented that car during those days if they wanted to.

    Avis soon caved and closed the claim without pushing for the administration fee or providing a fleet log. They got paid for the damage and that was that.

    It cost me nothing and very minimal time.

    FWIW – I have the Starwood Preferred Guest AMEX and I don’t have any sort of premium coverage … just the kind that comes with the card.

  • Rich

    Demand to have the rental car company provide receipts for the work done.

  • Steve

    Unless the invoice shows that the work done involved only mending the star, I suspect the $387 represented not what it cost to repair a star on the windshield but replacement of the entire unit. In most cases, appearance of a star on the windshield prefaces the glass developing a significant crack. By hitting the client with a full replacement, the rental company made its eventual problem go away.

  • Steve

    Sorry for double dipping, but you say that she got a copy of what appeared to be a legitimate invoice, which makes my conspiracy theory (the rental company soaked her for replacing not repairing the windshield) moot. Were I in her place I would have contacted a local competitor for that repair shop (preferably a company with a national reputation) to get an estimate for the same work. Next, with that information in hand, I’d call the firm that did the work, and without saying I was an aggrieved rental car client, ask for an estimate to repair a star. Presuming the competitor’s price was $50-$75, either she would be told, yeah, we do it for $50-75 or that they really do charge $387. The next question would be whether the rental car company’s local manager has some sort of collusive arrangement with the repair shop?
    As you can see, to pursue this jihad you either need to be compulsive about getting treated fairly or love to play games. A touch of paranoia also helps.

  • Joe Farrell

    What was the date on the repair invoice?

    Call the company and ask them if they did a repair, you have a question about it – then ask when they did it – say you work for Bob Johnson Insurance Services [who cares?] and are auditing the invoice. Folks are real nice to auditors for the most part, just doing your job. Its amazing what they will tell you.

    I’m sure they fixed it – but was a replacement necessary? They are NOT entitled to replacement cost for something that would have been fixed with some clear plastic filler.

    I would make them sue you. Its easier. And yeah, cancel your card so they cannot charge it. You lost it right? You’ll get a new number and new card in a couple days and that’s that. Now they have to come to you.

    make sure you send a letter which states:

    a. Their repair was not appropriate for the damage;
    b. you only owe them $50;
    c. You are invoking all rights under the fair credit billing and collections act and
    d. you were coerced on the spot into executing the agreement to pay.

    Let them think it all over for a while. You are not refusing to pay; you are refusing to pay for THEIR choice of repair. Remember – how old was car? The damage was to the windshield was less than the replacement cost of a windshield. . . . it was used windshield, thats what they are entitled to receive.

  • Brian Lochen

    Write a letter saying you did not cause the crack, that it clearly could have been fixed for $50, rather than replacing the windshield, and tell them you will not pay it. Tell your credit card not to accept any charges from the rental place.

    I did this with Alamo, and also informed them that I was aware that all auto owners in Florida are required to have insurance covering windshields with no deductible. I never heard from them again. Good luck!

  • DN

    I didn’t know that the same company that owns Alamo and National also owns Enterprise (or they use the same Damage Claims agency).

    I just received a bill in the mail for a damaged body part on my rental 7 months ago in Providence, RI. The front windshield panel was loose and vibrated like crazy above 50 mph (speed limits in RI are 50 mph and when I hit Massachusetts with 60 mph, that’s when I heard the noise). They included the repair bill from Safelite and asked me to pay $250.

    I called Emerald Club (Emerald Executive Elite member) and verified that I had a valid RA number and that the body panel rattling problem was still noted on my rental and that was why I was exchanging the Ford Flex for a Nissan Altima. I also have AmEx Premium Car Rental (which has been great for me).

    I called the number on the letter and the CSR nicely informed me that her manager had closed the claim. I said “thank you, but I still need a reference number or your employee # to show that I made this call and that someone said the claim is closed”. I did get an employee number and kept all of the documents in a file to see if they come back to me 6 month later. I’ll let you know.

  • Jim Powell

    I ALWAYS use my iPhone to shoot a thorough video of the entire card before renting… I also start the car and film the odometer reading and fuel level

    I hope this helps

  • Steven

    I rent frequently through HERTZ. As a GOLD member, they “forgive” small scratches and “dings.” However, that policy only applies at COMPANY OWNED locations. I had a bad experience in Duluth MN at a franchise location which took several weeks to “discover” scratches on the bumper and notify me (through a 3rd party claims agency in Utah) of their claim. Now a rental car with over 20,000 miles on it is going to have scratches on the bumper as people take luggage in/out of the trunk. They wanted over $1,000 for the repair, loss of use, etc.

    It was snowing when I returned the car, had no one to check the car in (you park it in the general public parking lot), and did not see any significant damage throughout the rental.

    I agree with others: document (photograph with cell phone) any damage.

  • RaeA

    I replaced the entire windshield on my SUV for less than that a few months ago.

  • http://www.theroadforks.com Akila

    I have a story similar to the OPs in Australia but ours had a happy ending because we have an awesome credit card company. We rented a car through Europcar and drove from Adelaide to Melbourne. The car was new and nice and we didn’t have any problems driving it.

    When we dropped the car off in Melbourne, the inspector thoroughly walked around the entire car and checked it out, found nothing, and signed us out. Frankly, there was nothing to find except that the car was quite dirty from the dusty roads. About three weeks later, we received a letter in the mail claiming that there was an 8 inch scratch on the back of the car that they noticed after we had left the premises and while they were washing the car. They charged us $5000, which was the “standard” coverage amount, to repair the gash. I, of course, raised he** and after spending significant time calling and emailing them, they said that they would reimburse us $4042 and they would charge us for $968 for the repair of a non-existent scratch that we never saw.

    Luckily for us, we had rented the car using our Capital One No Hassle Miles card. I would honestly go and be an advertising spokesperson for Capital One because they treated us so well in this incident and helped us through the entire thing. They agreed with us that the charge seemed inappropriate and Capital One refunded us $968 so that, at the end of the day, we didn’t pay anything for this issue. (We also had Platinum Mastercard protection but did not need to invoke it since Capital One handled the issue for us.)

    We also have an Amex card which we use when we are traveling within the U.S. b/c as others said, Amex car rental coverage is excellent. But, when abroad, Amex includes a convenience fee and a high exchange rate in order to pay in a foreign currency. Capital One No Hassle Miles, on the other hand, does not charge a convenience fee and its exchange rate is very reasonable so we use it for all our world travels (and we are currently traveling around the world so that means we use it a lot).

  • Mike

    Local places here tell me that my windshield on my 04 GMC full size pickup costs $150 give or take and that is a factory replacement. A fixed chip would have run somewhere around $75 or $100 here. Charging someone $400 for a repair is crazy and I would start calling around to shops. Remember, they don’t have to use the cheapest shop in town, but they also aren’t entitled to choose the very highest one they find and bill you either. And honestly, I would also tell them that they will be in court with you because if you had to remove the dirt, the chances are that the chip was there and that they knew about it and were going to get someone who wasn’t paying attention when they rented. (I have a chip in my widshield and while easy to see if in the field of vision, are harder to see from the outside and especially hard to see if the part that the chip is on is dirty.)

  • KennyG

    @Liz – you are what is wrong with so many people in America today. If you dont like to take responsibilty for your own actions (she did sign the release, and Discovery did present her with an invoice showing what they paid), then simply lie, cheat or steal and blame someone else for your own mistakes.

  • Justin

    @ Chris,

    She could try to appeal up the latter like I did with my mom’s case. Granted, my mother didn’t acknowledge damage from Enterprise. Still, this woman COULD appeal to an executive and try to get the amount reduced. I had a front windshield replaced and it was 100 dollars INCLUDING labor. I think she’s being ripped off. Matter of fact, I know she is being ripped off!

    Justin

  • J News

    What I don’t really get is the inequitable nature of inspections.

    When you pick up the rental car, you get maybe a minute, tops, to thoroughly investigate the car for every possible piece of damage, and anything you don’t see in that minute you’re required (under a great deal of pressure by an impatient clerk) to agree to pay for everything that you, an untrained member of the public, couldn’t find.

    When you return the car, they get unlimited time to have a trained professional inspect the car inside and out and you can’t verify they’re being honest about what they find. It’s their word against yours.

  • Addison

    She should ask them to send the invoice via the US mail. The penalties for fraud through the mail are high ($10,000 plus jail) for each infraction. Since they have a responsibility to get a reasonable repair or give the user the right to make repair arrangements, they really have no choice bu to reduce the price to not more than $100, cancel the administrative fee and start working on their story for the postal inspectors. She gets a chance to remedy the problem. It would be interesting to find out how many other people have paid to replace this minor crack before her and since she dropped it off. Lastly, express outrage that Discovery continues to be a partner with the other web based service. Maybe they’ll do the right thing and drop them.

  • http://www.cockam.com ajaynejr

    I beg to differ. When you pick up a rental car, you have all the time you want to inspect it for damage before driving off.

  • Carver

    @Ajay

    That’s not necessarily true. At some smaller franchise locations, the keys are not kept with the cars. An agent physically escorts you to the car with the paperwork and gives you the keys when you sign off on the documents. In that circumstance, there is pressure to quickly conclude the transaction because others are waiting. Some can resist that pressure, some cannot.

    But all the time in the world may be useless. A few years ago I rented from an off-brand company in Los Angeles because it was Christmas and no one had cars. This particular company keep the cars in an unlit dark alley. Inpecting the car before taking possession was not possible.

  • http://sacramentowindshieldreplacements.com Sacramento Windshield Replacement

    I agree that she should have inspected the cars windshield before signing…

    However thats pretty shady of the rental car place to not take into consideration it may not have occured when she was driving and that neither associate nor customer inspected it prior.

    Furthermore it was a star break which is typically easily fixed most of the time and not a complete replacement is necessary.