An expensive experience with Enterprise Rental

I rented a car for a day-and-half from Enterprise Car Rental Sealand Industrial Estate, Chester, UK). While completing the paperwork required to collect the vehicle, they tried to persuade me that the excess insurance I had taken out with a third party was invalid (‘probably not applicable to our cars’). This was clearly a falsehood, and I now understand that it is a standard tactic used by car rental agencies to sow the seeds of doubt in the customer’s mind in order to persuade them to take out the dealer’s (more expensive) insurance.

Upon returning the vehicle, it was pointed out to me that a rear panel was slightly misaligned, which resulted in my being charged £1000 excess. I had inspected the vehicle immediately before returning it and had not noticed it – which was unsurprising since the misalignment was slight (2-3 mm) and inconspicuous. No impact occurred while I was driving the vehicle and moreover it had been parked in a relatively secure area. There was no visible impact damage and I am confident that the misalignment did not occur while the car was in my possession. I am uncertain whether or not this was a deliberate scheme, but I note that Enterprise has a track record of misdemeanours: it was recently forced to repay tens of thousands of pounds to a government agency regarding fuel charges. In addition, an internet review of the Enterprise Car Rental Chester outlet is clearly bogus.

Conclusions: Carefully check for and document any damage to your rental car before driving off. Failure to do so can be expensive – even if you do not damage the vehicle yourself. There is considerable evidence for Enterprise being subject to an ethical deficit at both senior management and lower level. Avoid them.