Hire car damage - bugger.

[gaz_l]

Well, here I am in sunny Corsica, enjoying the spectacular scenery & the sun, but not really the abysmal roads. Go onto some of the back roads (as I did today) and they barely merit the description of tarmac. 1st and 2nd gear in my lovely (not) Citroen C3 automatic rental.

So anyway, I get back onto the D81, which just about rates as a Cornish B road, but with several hundred foot drops off the side, and get up to the heady heights of about 30 mph. Come round yet another hairpin, rock sticking out in the road, thump, bang, NSF tyre goes down in a matter of a few hundred metres.

Stopping places are few and far between, so had to take a judgement call as to where to pull over. Found a place with a little bit of gravel on the side of the road, decided it would have to do. Hazards on, opened the boot, evacuated suitcases, fortunately it has a spare, albeit a space saver.

It's been years since I had to change a tyre by the side of the road, and doing it on a blind corner on a twisty road half way up a mountain doesn't add to the fun, let me tell you. And it was about 28 degrees too, so with that and the jack creaking ominously due to the slope/camber and the fact that it was clearly made from steel so thin I probably could have bent it with my bare hands, trust me when I say I had a sweat on.

Managed to get he tyre changed, set off again only for the car to throw a wobbler, with the ESC light coming on, and what little power there is cutting in/out. Possibly due to different rolling radii on the tyres? Anyway, I pulled over when I found somewhere suitable and found out how to switch off the ESC, the car's driving OK again now although the service light's come on.

What a day. A 50 mile journey took 3 hours, excluding the coffee stop and the time to change the tyre. As I didn't take out the super insurance (I've never damaged a hire car in 25+ years of renting) I'll be getting a bill for a new tyre, and probably the scuff on the alloy as well - although the tyre took the brunt of the impact so the scuff is small. Bugger.

Having settled in at our hotel, I'm now sinking my second well deserved beer. Heading to Ajaccio (the capital) tomorrow, so will get a new tyre there and then press on. Do come to Corsica - it's lovely - but don't underestimate the roads!!

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[st13phil]

Sorry to hear the trip didn't start well

Enjoy Ajaccio tomorrow - you'll never work out that a certain Msr Bonaparte had anything to do with the place

 

[gaz_l]

Expensive lesson learned today. Emailed Hertz to 'fess that I'd fubared the tyre, no problem they say, bring it back and we'll give you another car. Well, they did, and charged me €306 for the tyre! C***s! I could have had a brand new Michelin fitted in town for €89.

So if you knacker a hire car tyre, get one fitted yourself and don't own up to it. In fact, just get a cheap Chinese brand fitted, and challenge them to prove it wasn't on there when you took it out..

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[Howard]

We pretty much wrote off a brand new ( 600 kilometres on clock ) Kia Picanto in Marbella a few years back.

Parked it up in the Eroski to get some shopping , came back out , forgot about the big metal pillar holding up the sun awning in the car park.

Goodbye side of car , door was bent , you could get your hand through the gap at the top of the door with it closed. Car was made from baked bean tins, wing looked like a T Rex had been at it.

Phoned the rental place ( little family business ) who luckily we had taken out full insurance with and told them to audible signs and groans at the other end of the line.

Next year we went and they gave us a proper old ****ter !

 

[m0ff]

On a recent trip to Germany, I swerved into the kerb to avoid an oncoming truck and cracked a plastic wheel trim. On returning the car, Hertz told me not to worry and the damage wouldn't be charged for. I returned home to a letter informing me my credit card was now €100 lighter.

 

[Spinal]

I know it's too late now, but you can get rental excess insurance.

Mine costs £40 or so for 12 months, and they'll refund me for any charges rental companies take for damage (alleged) to their cars...

 

[Simon_M]

Always get the zero excess - you can get annual policies for less than £50 that cover all you hire car excesses, well worth it. I use them a lot and most companies try it on at some point.

S

 

[Rory]

Always get the zero excess - you can get annual policies for less than £50 that cover all you hire car excesses, well worth it. I use them a lot and most companies try it on at some point.

S

Who do you use, and, if you've claimed, do they pay out OK?

I looked at one for my daughter's forthcoming trip to Spain as she asked me to sort out a hire car. However the claim form looked onerous and asked for a lot of detail.