DEAR TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER: I want your assist with an insurance coverage declare. I just lately broken a automotive I had rented by way of Enterprise whereas I used to be in Germany. In a nutshell, my automotive insurance coverage firm has been requesting a restore bill from Enterprise for the previous two months as a way to shut the declare and decide how a lot to pay them.
Christopher Elliott, the Journey Troubleshooter
Enterprise wrote that they won’t share extra documentation as requested by my automotive insurance coverage and as an alternative calls for rapid cost.
My insurance coverage firm is giving me two months to get these paperwork from Enterprise. If I don’t acquire them, the declare will likely be closed, and the insurance coverage firm could not pay for it. Are you able to assist me?
— Michael Roehricht, Austin, Texas
ANSWER: I usually deal with complaints from automotive rental prospects who declare that they’ve been falsely accused of damaging a rental automotive. It’s good to listen to from somebody who desires to come clean with the harm and is attempting to do the appropriate factor.
And once I acquired your case, I questioned why Enterprise wasn’t serving to you. In spite of everything, isn’t it within the firm’s greatest pursuits to get you to file a profitable insurance coverage declare? (I’ll have the reply in a second.)
Primarily based on the declare data you despatched me, it seems to be such as you totaled your rental automotive. Enterprise initially wished to invoice you for the total worth of the automobile ($31,309), however then agreed to accept about half ($15,654).
The supply was contingent in your paying rapidly. The truth is, by the point you reached out to me, Enterprise’s supply had expired, and it had been prolonged for one more 10 days. If you happen to didn’t pay, you’d be answerable for the total $31,309.
Enterprise says it doesn’t must give you a restore bill below German regulation. It says that it has the appropriate to decide on to obtain the sum of money that may be required to return the automotive to working order below the regulation. “This is also a case of restitution in kind, since the value of the money is also intended for the recreation of the hypothetical undamaged state,” Enterprise stated. In different phrases, it doesn’t have to point out your insurance coverage firm a restore bill.
There’s one other twist: Your automotive insurance coverage is definitely lined below your journey insurance coverage. Automotive insurance coverage corporations are well-versed in harm guidelines and rules, however journey insurance coverage corporations reply to completely different underwriters and have completely different necessities. And I might see that your journey insurance coverage firm wouldn’t pay up with out the required documentation.
So, why wouldn’t Enterprise ship you the bill rapidly? Studying between the traces, it seems to be as if the corporate negotiated a settlement with you and anticipated you to pay the declare out of pocket. Automotive rental corporations typically choose to deal immediately with prospects as a result of they’re much less prone to query costs like administrative charges, lack of use, and diminution of worth.
As soon as an insurance coverage firm will get concerned, there’s typically a negotiation that leads to the automotive rental firm being answerable for extra harm. Maybe that is what Enterprise was attempting to keep away from on this case.
I contacted Enterprise in your behalf. Your insurance coverage firm contacted you shortly afterward and advised you that it agreed to pay $17,552, which is about half the declare. You’re proud of this decision, and Enterprise has accepted the insurance coverage firm’s supply.
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Initially Printed: October 7, 2024 at 4:15 a.m.
