Al
Fayetteville,#2Consumer Suggestion
Fri, February 15, 2002
I work for an automotive repair facility and the most common problem I run in to when trying to provide quality service young soldiers and airmen is Rental Car requests. Most national rental car companies have a cut off age of 25(!), and independent car rental companies have a cut off age of 22. We used to offer 'loaner cars' from a small fleet we had, but our rental insurance policy limited our rental age to 23 and up (that loaner car program lasted 4 months, after all of those cars were totalled by customers!). Sometimes it isn't a matter of bad service, but a matter of playing by the rules to minimize liability. It's a reflection of statistical responsibility reflected by the insurance companies (who end up paying for other's errors). I don't like it when I have to tell a customer I can't help them with a rental car because of age requirements, but the matter is really out of the hands of all parties involved, except the insurance companies. As far as any type of compensation for other expenses, most (if not all) repair warranties explictly state that only parts and labor are covered, and generally no other expenses (hotel, rental, meals, etc) are not covered. In most cases if I put a any customer in a rental car, it is at the customer's expense with a low rate. By the Way, if you were not under any warranty, you are not required to take your car to the dealer for any repair work or service, If you find a good local mechanic, you can save a lot of hassle, and get quality work done in REAL TIME, not DEALER TIME.