They use predatory tactics to extract money from renters after rentals have been returned. I rented a car from here in May of 2022, and returned it without any visible damage. After returning the car, I received an email from them asking me to fill out an "incident report".
When I informed them that no incident had occurred, they told me that there were damages to the vehicle, but they refused to provide any pictures of the damage. I did not fill out the incident report, since it was unclear whether that would considered an admission of an incident, and disputed the deposit charge on my credit card.
They then filed a claim with my car insurance company, Geico. It took a few phone calls with them to discover that Rent-A-Wreck did not provide them pictures of the damage either. Geico agreed that I should not be penalized, since there was no accident, but said they were unable to do anything about the charges that Rent-A-Wreck would ask for.
Rent-A-Wreck goes through a third party claims management company, who contacted me a few months later with a claim asking for $1459.79 in damages, $385 in "loss of use", and an $150 administration fee. $1993.79 in total.
The claims agency was able to provide me a picture of the damage, which was a scratch on the *underside* of the front bumper. Before dropping the car off, I had run my hand along the underside and did not feel anything there, but did not go through the trouble of lying down on the ground to visually inspect it, as it was raining and the ground was wet.
According to Rent-A-Wreck, rather than paint and refinish the scratch, the repair that needed to be done was to replace the entire bumper. When I looked up the shop that had given the estimate, it was one located at the exact same address as Rent-A-Wreck. Meaning that the repairs were happening in house, and Rent-A-Wreck themselves were the ones giving the estimate.
I asked for more details about how they had come to that number for the repair, as I had paid for a bumper to be replaced just a few years ago, and had it cost less than half that. A few weeks later, the claims agency came back with a repair cost of only $500 (my deductible for my car insurance).
I asked for proof that Rent-A-Wreck had even had the bumper replaced, since the scratch was entirely superficial and not visible unless the car was up on a lift. The claims agency was unable to provide this, but offered to waive the admin fee and reduce the "loss of use" amount. The fact that they were able to reduce the "loss of use" amount, and there was no proof the car was in the shop, makes me think it's possible the car never had its bumper replaced at all - but obviously I don't have proof of that.
The final cost was $750, which is a very expensive lesson to learn to not rent from this company, and I'm hoping to save someone else the same trouble. If you look on Yelp, Google, the BBB, etc, you will find many other reviews for this business from people with similar experiences.
DISGUSTED with this company. I reserved my car online from a branch that says Open 24/7. Filled out all of my info and received a confirmation email and a notice saying my reservation is now complete. I ubered over to the location only to find out they were closed. I had to Uber back and wasted $55 and a couple of hours of my life and still did not have a car. I spoke to their manager and he would not reimburse me for the trouble. When I stated that I would be reporting my experience, he even went as far as to threaten me saying he has my address on file. I WILL NEVER BE USING THEM AGAIN AS LONG AS I LIVE! Customer service was equally unhelpful stating they are a privately owned branch and would not be able to assist me with anything. I guess it's okay for a company to screw over and threaten its customer base?
I rented a vehicle which was literally falling apart. Upon turning on the vehicle smelled of something burning. A woman by the name of Jessica rented me the vehicle.. I wanted it for one day only, not two of three. I was charged about $180. Included, a deposit of $100. I was supposed to pick up the vehicle at 11:30 PM after work. Jessica told me to take it earlier at approx. 2:30 free of charge. I asked are you sure it's free? Wouldn't that mean I have to bring it back at 2:30? If so I don't want it.
She said no worries it's free. I was in a rush handed over the money and left. I return the vehicle before my scheduled time. Get home and my wife looks at the receipt and tells me why were you charged for two days. I told her no just one. She shows me where it says rented for two days and plus w.e taxes and deposit they added. I called the establishment several times and was told someone would get back to me. I even called about my deposit and was told my money was not there and was in NJ.
Excuse me? What the heck is it doing in Jersey when I rented in Pennsylvania??!! The lady claimed a book keeper would get back to me. It's going on a month and nothing! When I originally rented I was told I'd have my money returned to me on a Monday or Tuesday being that I dropped it off on a Sunday and like I said earlier than the time I was supposed to.. I'm going to take this to court. I work hard for my money and not for some broken down agency to be robbing me. Don't rent from crooks!
Rent-A-Wreck Reviews
They use predatory tactics to extract money from renters after rentals have been returned. I rented a car from here in May of 2022, and returned it without any visible damage. After returning the car, I received an email from them asking me to fill out an "incident report".
When I informed them that no incident had occurred, they told me that there were damages to the vehicle, but they refused to provide any pictures of the damage. I did not fill out the incident report, since it was unclear whether that would considered an admission of an incident, and disputed the deposit charge on my credit card.
They then filed a claim with my car insurance company, Geico. It took a few phone calls with them to discover that Rent-A-Wreck did not provide them pictures of the damage either. Geico agreed that I should not be penalized, since there was no accident, but said they were unable to do anything about the charges that Rent-A-Wreck would ask for.
Rent-A-Wreck goes through a third party claims management company, who contacted me a few months later with a claim asking for $1459.79 in damages, $385 in "loss of use", and an $150 administration fee. $1993.79 in total.
The claims agency was able to provide me a picture of the damage, which was a scratch on the *underside* of the front bumper. Before dropping the car off, I had run my hand along the underside and did not feel anything there, but did not go through the trouble of lying down on the ground to visually inspect it, as it was raining and the ground was wet.
According to Rent-A-Wreck, rather than paint and refinish the scratch, the repair that needed to be done was to replace the entire bumper. When I looked up the shop that had given the estimate, it was one located at the exact same address as Rent-A-Wreck. Meaning that the repairs were happening in house, and Rent-A-Wreck themselves were the ones giving the estimate.
I asked for more details about how they had come to that number for the repair, as I had paid for a bumper to be replaced just a few years ago, and had it cost less than half that. A few weeks later, the claims agency came back with a repair cost of only $500 (my deductible for my car insurance).
I asked for proof that Rent-A-Wreck had even had the bumper replaced, since the scratch was entirely superficial and not visible unless the car was up on a lift. The claims agency was unable to provide this, but offered to waive the admin fee and reduce the "loss of use" amount. The fact that they were able to reduce the "loss of use" amount, and there was no proof the car was in the shop, makes me think it's possible the car never had its bumper replaced at all - but obviously I don't have proof of that.
The final cost was $750, which is a very expensive lesson to learn to not rent from this company, and I'm hoping to save someone else the same trouble. If you look on Yelp, Google, the BBB, etc, you will find many other reviews for this business from people with similar experiences.
DISGUSTED with this company. I reserved my car online from a branch that says Open 24/7. Filled out all of my info and received a confirmation email and a notice saying my reservation is now complete. I ubered over to the location only to find out they were closed. I had to Uber back and wasted $55 and a couple of hours of my life and still did not have a car. I spoke to their manager and he would not reimburse me for the trouble. When I stated that I would be reporting my experience, he even went as far as to threaten me saying he has my address on file. I WILL NEVER BE USING THEM AGAIN AS LONG AS I LIVE! Customer service was equally unhelpful stating they are a privately owned branch and would not be able to assist me with anything. I guess it's okay for a company to screw over and threaten its customer base?
I rented a vehicle which was literally falling apart. Upon turning on the vehicle smelled of something burning. A woman by the name of Jessica rented me the vehicle.. I wanted it for one day only, not two of three. I was charged about $180. Included, a deposit of $100. I was supposed to pick up the vehicle at 11:30 PM after work. Jessica told me to take it earlier at approx. 2:30 free of charge. I asked are you sure it's free? Wouldn't that mean I have to bring it back at 2:30? If so I don't want it.
She said no worries it's free. I was in a rush handed over the money and left. I return the vehicle before my scheduled time. Get home and my wife looks at the receipt and tells me why were you charged for two days. I told her no just one. She shows me where it says rented for two days and plus w.e taxes and deposit they added. I called the establishment several times and was told someone would get back to me. I even called about my deposit and was told my money was not there and was in NJ.
Excuse me? What the heck is it doing in Jersey when I rented in Pennsylvania??!! The lady claimed a book keeper would get back to me. It's going on a month and nothing! When I originally rented I was told I'd have my money returned to me on a Monday or Tuesday being that I dropped it off on a Sunday and like I said earlier than the time I was supposed to.. I'm going to take this to court. I work hard for my money and not for some broken down agency to be robbing me. Don't rent from crooks!