What a scare I got from this rental experience!

I am a seasoned car renter for the last 4 years renting cars at different parts of the world but this time I had the worst experience towards the end of the rental process after returning the car as I was accused of damaging the car tyre by Budget’s staff the next day after returning the car. It was disheartening to find that the accusations came without clarification with the client and proper checking by the check-in staff. It impressed upon me that Budget is only trying to punish their clients who did not purchase a Zero-Excess Insurance from them and they would use dirty tricks to cheat money by falsely accusing the driver of damaging their car AFTER they return the car. The odds are always against the Drivers as the rental Company could easily find thousand and one reason to penalise the driver on any car system error anytime they want. For my case, when I return the car it was in good condition but the Next morning my rental company received an email that I was being charged almost 3 times the car rental for damaging their front tyre. That is so absurd as the car was alright all the while as i drove from Manchester to and fro Edinburgh without any issues at all. If the tyre was damaged I would surely noticed it and reported straight away and it wouldn’t be possible to drive back safely over few hundred miles journey. Through this experience, I became very sceptical of car rental companies and initially I was planning of renting another car however that incident changed my mind. Unless car rental companies start stepping up on their integrity, all renters would be wary whenever they rent a car. I hope they reflect on this incident, especially Budget.

Thankfully I have Wendy Chen assisting me to follow up with the case, coordinating both with the rental company (Budget) and my Insurance company (AXA). Without her help, I would have been penalised another £150 innocently. She is amazing.