Ripped Off by Enterprise Rental at Hahn Airport

I'm sorry that happened, although I have never heard that Enterprise does this on a regular basis as a "tactic." Regardless, I think you made a mistake in not having the car inspected while you were there. It doesn't give you much leverage now. I'm sure that any solicitor is going to pass on this; the attorney fees alone would be more than any potential damages you might receive, and I would think you would not want to lose even more money.

I'll be honest—if it were me, I would chalk it up to experience and put it out of my mind. It's not worth getting stressed about $285.

You could dispute the charge with your credit card company. They will ask for
information and do their own investigation.

The problem with taking pictures when you return it is that you don't know the
condition of the car when you got it. If the fault they are insisting is there was
there when you got the car, you have no way to prove it. Taking pictures before
you drive the car off the lot is the way to avoid that issue. If the lot is unattended
when you return the car, then taking pictures at that time is a good practice.

Sorry this happened to you.

Actually, to provide the greatest degree of protection, one needs to take photos/videos of the car both before you drive it off AND after you have returned it. Good quality photos (and possibly videos) showing every inch of the car's exterior (interior, too - and don't forget all the glass, mirrors, wheels and parts underneath that are just barely out of sight unless you stoop down and look), documenting all the existing damage (every little scratch/dent or spot that MIGHT be a scratch/dent). Note the spare tire, jack and any other required safety equipment supplied in the trunk/boot.

They should give you a paper form with a diagram showing all sides of the car (if they don't, draw your own, write the date and time on it). You mark a location for every single scratch you see and photograph it. Ideally you do both the pre- and post-rental inspection with an employee of the agency walking around with you and witnessing your inspection and validating your observations on their own copy of the same form. If they have a name badge, write it down. Bring a good flashlight with you (bright, working, charged, and available), it's often very helpful to reveal the details, as sometimes when you pick up your car it may be in a big parking structure where the lighting is not great.

This takes some time (allow up to an hour for this - it's easy to spend a good 30 minutes or more going over the car if you are going to be very thorough, and one needs to be). Many people can't be bothered with this, they're late for their flight or tired on arrival, or don't think it's worth their time. We ALWAYS do this (sometimes though the agency staff won't do the walk-around with you when you return the car, that's when you really need to document its condition well).

If you inspect the car like this, and an employee watches you do it, they'll see - and remember - how thorough (and obsessive) you were, that you kept good notes about the car's condition and took lots of photos. If they're looking for someone to scam, they're going to skip the guy who took 100 photos and has a paper showing every tiny scratch or squashed bug on every spot on the car, and they'll pick a different victim (one who wasn't so obsessive about documenting things). Like any thief, they want an easy mark, not someone who is prepared to fight and win a dispute, so they'll skip someone who they see is ready to defend themselves - same as with pickpockets and other opportunistic thieves (they're lazy and don't want to have trouble).

This is the best way to keep them honest. If all else fails, you can provide your documentation to your credit card company if you ever have to dispute the charges, and your records make it much more likely your card company will side with you. Without good documentation, it's just your word against theirs.

I've rented a LOT of cars overseas (probably well over 100 times, all around the world), and I do this inspection/documentation process every single time. I've never had any after-the-fact damage claims. Maybe I've just been lucky with the places I rent cars, but I'm pretty sure my routine has effectively communicated that they should probably pick some other guy to scam.

Hope some of this is helpful. Good luck.

I had the same experience with Avis. The car was returned after hours at the return facility at the Glasgow airport. I did in fact take a video of the entire car. As we were boarding our flight the following morning, I rec'd a text from Avis stating that a tire & rim were damaged. They billed an additional $275. I thought ..... no worries I'll turn it over to my American Express CC. I quickly learned wheels & tires are excluded from their insurance coverage. I felt as if Avis knew this ...... knowing that they wouldn't have an insurance company fighting their claim. Lesson learned .......... never lease from Avis.

As has been suggested by others responding ........ I paid it & moved on. Not worth stressing over.

Enterprise franchise locations here in the US are notorious for this tactic as well. If you paid in cash, you can pretty much say good bye to your deposit.

If you paid by credit card, then dispute the deposit with your credit card company. Call your CC company and tell them you have photos of the car returned with no damage. Send them all the photos in an email with an explanation. Let the CC company fight it out with Enterprise. I can guarantee this isn't the first time the CC company has dealt with an Enterprise location on this subject.

This is how some unscrupulous franchise locations generate additional revenue. I have known a couple managers that worked for Enterprise who verify this approach. You will get nowhere with any other method except the CC company.

I had this happen to me in Slovenia with Sixt with an after hours drop off. I had checked the car, but did not take photos. I fought it with the CC company and the charge was refunded. Now I do as David above does. Probably not as thorough as he is, but I think staff seeing you taking pictures and noting damages before and after is a deterrent.

Threadwear, renting cars is like getting food through the drive through ...

I think Threadwear is right, this has come up on the forum several times. It's a low margin business and this is how they make up for it, EVERY car is damaged. Which is also a reason to bite the bullet and take the insurance when they upsell it, since at least then you have some leverage - this is YOUR insurance on YOUR car, you handle it.

Enterprise at Denver airport did this to me over 20 years ago. I wasn't at my best (I was in Denver to make arrangements to get my son's remains back home after his sudden death) and undoubtedly didn't check as thoroughly as I should have. Upon returning the car, the young man pointed to the smallest (less than 1" long/1/4" wide) slight discoloration low on one of the fenders, not even a scratch, really. He made a big deal about how much the repair would be, they'd have to take the car out of rotation to get it fixed, so I might get hit with a charge for that as well, "lost revenue" he called it. I did not respond well at the time--my flight was leaving soon, and my last nerve had long since been used up. Told him--undoubtedly too angrily--why I was there and how ridiculous I found what he was telling me. He didn't give a rip.

When I got home, I emailed their corporate office the details of my visit, including the police report number, as well as a brief description of my interaction with their employee. Either through compassion or guilt or a reevaluation of damage--I'll let you decide--the credit card hold magically disappeared the next day without a word from them in reply. Haven't rented from them sense, and never will. I'd rather walk.