Holiday Luggage in Car Trunk
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and truth depends on our perspective, as cute young couple Leonard and Siobhan Foley discovered when they booked their rental car at Luton Airport, England two weeks ago. Night was falling as they made their way to the car park to receive their vehicle. They were relaxed. They were on holiday to attend a friend’s wedding.
They had no reason to suspect a scam was coming up. The rental company’s advert popped up on the Ryan Air website after they confirmed, and they decided that was as good a recommendation as any other one. However, they did begin to wonder when the clerk told them the car they booked had damage, and offered them an upgrade they accepted instead. Please check the vehicle body for damage, they said.
The Foleys followed the clerk’s advice to a tee, and checked the auto body for scratches and dents after they located it in the car park in the early evening gloom. Then they drove the thirty miles to the hotel where they were overnighting. The cabin was dark except for the warming lights on the dashboard. However, their reverie was about to end.
When the Wedding Was Over, Their Problems Began
When the wedding was over, they drove the thirty miles back to return the car. “As soon as we arrived at the car park there was an employee who went directly to the boot and opened the boot and pointed out scuff and scratches which he claimed we were responsible for,” Leonard Foley told Brinkwire.
“He then entered the back of the car to point out more damage which he also said we were responsible for. He held £1,205 ($1,600) for scratches that were not caused by us. There was damage to the plastic panel in the boot and he said that our bags must have caused it, which is ridiculous. We were not asked to examine the inside of the car. It ruined the whole weekend.”
“We Did Everything According to Our Normal Terms and Conditions”
Leonard and Siobhan Foley’s disaster began when they accepted - equals paid a lot of money for - a collision and damage waiver from their rental car company. This gave the rental company total discretion over what would happen if the car returned damaged. The company did eventually yield and give the money back, but not all.
A company spokesperson told Brinkwire, “When the vehicle was returned, our normal inspection process was carried out again by our staff, and it was found that there was significant damage to the plastic trim and lining in the boot of the vehicle. We handled everything in accordance with our internal processes and terms and conditions.”
They sure did, but not in accordance with decency and morality, it seems. “It’s not even about the money, it’s the principle as we did not cause that damage,” Leonard and Siobhan Foley believe. Now if the Foleys had taken our Bonzah accident insurance instead of the waiver, their weekend away could have been a pleasure throughout.
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Holiday Luggage in Car Trunk: State Farm BY CC 2.0