Rental Car Liability

[missmys]

What is the name of your state? Washington

We rented a car in South Dakota. My mom rented and paid for the vehicle. My fiance did the actual driving and both he and I were listed as alternate drivers. There was no inspection performed when we rented the car. My fiance and I returned the car at 6:30 in the morning to a drop box as no one was at the desk. My mom had a flight 12 hours later and completed the check-in of the vehicle. At that time there was no mention of any vehicle damage and we were not aware of any damage.

A week after we were back home in Washington we received notice that there was damage to the car and we were responsibe. They said they inspected the car when it was returned and that no damage was reported by customer.

We did not see the damage when we returned the car and my mom was not told of any 12 hours later when her flight left. Our insurance companies are telling us differing stories. We don't feel we should have to pay for rental agency's negligence regarding proper inspection.

Any thoughts would be great.

Thank you.

 

[JETX]

Presuming that they have actual proof of its condition when THEY accepted it (not when you dropped it off), you would be liable for that damage. This is one of the problems of 'dropping and running' without the process of being there for the inspection.

 

[missmys]

reply about rental liability

When we dropped off the keys no one was working at the counter so we left a note. 12 hours later they checked out the car with my mom and reported no damage at that time. They even credited her with wnother day because we returned the car early. I believe the check in date is listed as 6:30 in the morning when we first dropped it off and not when my mom was there. They had ample time to chekc the car and speak to her when she was there. Why did they wait so long?

Oh and thank you for your reply!

 

[JETX]

"they checked out the car with my mom and reported no damage at that time."
*** Your original post wasn't clear about that. So, presumably, she received a copy of the receipt and condition statement. And that should be sufficient to show that the claimed damage did not occur during your rental period.
Present a copy of those documents to the rental agency and demand that they remove any claims.