Lease car returned- demand for extra money
Discussion
hora said:
Friends problem, can you help???
I returned a lease car about a month ago. It was inspected, and no problems were found by the guy picking it up. It was signed in 'good' condition and on the form where you can mark damage, nothing was flagged. He signed for the service book, the spare key and full service history.
Anyway, yesterday we got a demand for £871 for damage repair to the car for one thing I know was there on the door panel, which I accept, but then two more scratches which weren't there when collected, a 'soiled' roof panel (where I missed it with the sponge when I cleaned it), and then the service manual, spare key and service history being missing.
I've disputed the claim and sent the copies of the form where he signed for service history, manual and spare key (which they incidentally had sent me initially).
Anyone had a lease company try this with them? Are they just trying to pull a fast one and hope that we don't spot it so they get the Direct Debit claim?
We've cancelled that in preparation
Yes I had this with a Subaru I retrurned. I left it at Subaru UK Head office in West Bromwich with no damage, and which we both signed the paperwork for. About a month later they sent me a bill for a grand for damage. I told them to sod off or take me to court. I never heard from them again.I returned a lease car about a month ago. It was inspected, and no problems were found by the guy picking it up. It was signed in 'good' condition and on the form where you can mark damage, nothing was flagged. He signed for the service book, the spare key and full service history.
Anyway, yesterday we got a demand for £871 for damage repair to the car for one thing I know was there on the door panel, which I accept, but then two more scratches which weren't there when collected, a 'soiled' roof panel (where I missed it with the sponge when I cleaned it), and then the service manual, spare key and service history being missing.
I've disputed the claim and sent the copies of the form where he signed for service history, manual and spare key (which they incidentally had sent me initially).
Anyone had a lease company try this with them? Are they just trying to pull a fast one and hope that we don't spot it so they get the Direct Debit claim?
We've cancelled that in preparation
Invite them to issue proceedings, and advise them that you seek an affadavit to be provided from their manager to detail the extent of the damage which was on the vehicle whereupon you will invite the court to instigate PCoJ charges. Furthermore, advise that you will reserve the right to disclose this communication to the court wherein any proceedings are issued. It's amazing how quickly companies STFU when you ask them to put theur money where their mouths are.
It is worth noting that the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association has guidence on the levels of acceptable wear and tear for vehicles. Many returns are being charged for even when they fall within these levels.
Summary and links to guide book are here - http://www.bvrla.co.uk/Advice_and_Guidance/Fair_we...
Summary and links to guide book are here - http://www.bvrla.co.uk/Advice_and_Guidance/Fair_we...
sim16v said:
Don't all lease companies try this?
Hertz & Europcar certainly do. Hertz charged me a £6 "cleaning charge" to remove a couple of bits of sand from a mat that would have taken about 30 secs with a hoover, despite having an all-damage waiver on it. (Parked the car in the beach car park at Weston - inevitably got sand on my shoes going back to it)
Europcar charged me a fuelling charge when I returned a car 2/3rds full, even though they'd supplied it half full (marked on their paperwork) and told me to return it with about half a tank left. Europcar also kept refunding and re-charging my credit card for different amounts every time they changed their mind about what I owed. This is on top of them agreeing to rent me an MGF, then on the day of the hire phoning up and telling me they didn't have any convertibles in their fleet at all and even if they did, they wouldn't rent it to me because I was 24 at the time, even though their website said minimum age 21!!!
Never, ever, ever again.
hora said:
Friends problem, can you help???
I returned a lease car about a month ago. It was inspected, and no problems were found by the guy picking it up. It was signed in 'good' condition and on the form where you can mark damage, nothing was flagged. He signed for the service book, the spare key and full service history.
Anyway, yesterday we got a demand for £871 for damage repair to the car for one thing I know was there on the door panel, which I accept, but then two more scratches which weren't there when collected, a 'soiled' roof panel (where I missed it with the sponge when I cleaned it), and then the service manual, spare key and service history being missing.
I've disputed the claim and sent the copies of the form where he signed for service history, manual and spare key (which they incidentally had sent me initially).
Anyone had a lease company try this with them? Are they just trying to pull a fast one and hope that we don't spot it so they get the Direct Debit claim?
We've cancelled that in preparation
Is it a Merc by any chance? Lots of complaints about handing cars back to them.I returned a lease car about a month ago. It was inspected, and no problems were found by the guy picking it up. It was signed in 'good' condition and on the form where you can mark damage, nothing was flagged. He signed for the service book, the spare key and full service history.
Anyway, yesterday we got a demand for £871 for damage repair to the car for one thing I know was there on the door panel, which I accept, but then two more scratches which weren't there when collected, a 'soiled' roof panel (where I missed it with the sponge when I cleaned it), and then the service manual, spare key and service history being missing.
I've disputed the claim and sent the copies of the form where he signed for service history, manual and spare key (which they incidentally had sent me initially).
Anyone had a lease company try this with them? Are they just trying to pull a fast one and hope that we don't spot it so they get the Direct Debit claim?
We've cancelled that in preparation
Years ago when I worked for a very large and well known satellite TV provider I had the duty of returning all the branch engineers vans to the lease company when required.
Myself and the lease rep would do the standard check around the van for damage each time, agree on a result and each keep a copy of the form.
I had a call from head office regarding extensive damage to one vehicle being charged for upon return and so checked my copy for what they meant. There was nothing indicated so had HO fax me over the version sent with the charges. The differences were incredible. Basically the lease company just changed what they wanted, sent it to our head office who just paid out of a matter of course.
I faxed all the vehicle details up to HO from the last 12 months for them to compare to the charge versions and the differences ran into a five figure sum. When queried, the lease company refunded all the charges without any sort of fuss or apology.
It was obviously just another part of the job for them.
Myself and the lease rep would do the standard check around the van for damage each time, agree on a result and each keep a copy of the form.
I had a call from head office regarding extensive damage to one vehicle being charged for upon return and so checked my copy for what they meant. There was nothing indicated so had HO fax me over the version sent with the charges. The differences were incredible. Basically the lease company just changed what they wanted, sent it to our head office who just paid out of a matter of course.
I faxed all the vehicle details up to HO from the last 12 months for them to compare to the charge versions and the differences ran into a five figure sum. When queried, the lease company refunded all the charges without any sort of fuss or apology.
It was obviously just another part of the job for them.
sim16v said:
Don't all lease companies try this?
It was only when I got promoted and had to sign off charges for my division that I found we were routinely paying just under £750ish on the return of every lease car. I looked back and they'd done the same for mine even though it was absolutely unmarked. Finance just shrugged and said it was part of the game!There's a recent story on the HonestJohn forum from a guy who spent quite a bit of money getting his daughter's leased VW Polo cleaned up, and was still hit with a bill for £1700.
In the OP's case, where they've clearly got some things wrong, I would use that against them and say they've got the whole thing wrong and tell them to sod off.
Edited by Deva Link on Tuesday 9th November 15:09
It seems to be more common at the moment that the lease co's send a bill. The car i had 2 years ago was returned looking like someone had shot at the front with a 12 bore with the amount of stone chips on it and nothing was said. My last car was returned a couple of months ago had a few stone chips on the bonnet which they immediately sent a bill for. Speaking to a bodyshop near me about lease co's he said they do alot of work for companies with leased cars as they want them back in A1 condition ready for resale - even at the auctions.
Edited by Ozone on Tuesday 9th November 15:45
Same in Europe.
Handed back a Saab Conv.
This car had spent more time in the Dealership than on the road in the time we had it.
(Also didn't help that the OH insisted it was narrower than it actually was)
Handed back, signed off then they tried it on with a €1,000 bill for tyres/wheels.
The car was handed back via low-loader as the front suspension collapsed as I was driving it in the last week of the lease (snapped spring) - everything was buggered at the front end as a result.
The Lease company had just sent out the bill without finding out the story behind it.
They didn't even have the grace to be embarrassed.
Handed back a Saab Conv.
This car had spent more time in the Dealership than on the road in the time we had it.
(Also didn't help that the OH insisted it was narrower than it actually was)
Handed back, signed off then they tried it on with a €1,000 bill for tyres/wheels.
The car was handed back via low-loader as the front suspension collapsed as I was driving it in the last week of the lease (snapped spring) - everything was buggered at the front end as a result.
The Lease company had just sent out the bill without finding out the story behind it.
They didn't even have the grace to be embarrassed.
When I handed back a Mitsubishi Warrior Sport it had a few dents that I knew about, however I too got a bil for..............£1240!!
The company tried to claim for extra scrathches and dents and a cracked front fog light (£200 !!).
In my case when the car was picked up it was taken away on a flatbed, usual paperwork but oddly no sheet for the condition of the car which I didn't even think about at the time. Anyway when I got the paperwork with the bill I noticed the car had an extra 87 miles on it, the depot for return was only 6 niles away and it had gone on a lorry, the cheeky tw*ts had gone for a joyride in it over the weekend and sent me the bill.
One angry letter pointing this out and I got an apology and cancellation of the bill in 3 days flat!!
Lesson is ALWAYS read ALL of the paperwork, could also go on about the same company and a couple of my vans that ended up with the Financial Ombudsman,another apology and over 7 grand being wiped out haha.
The company tried to claim for extra scrathches and dents and a cracked front fog light (£200 !!).
In my case when the car was picked up it was taken away on a flatbed, usual paperwork but oddly no sheet for the condition of the car which I didn't even think about at the time. Anyway when I got the paperwork with the bill I noticed the car had an extra 87 miles on it, the depot for return was only 6 niles away and it had gone on a lorry, the cheeky tw*ts had gone for a joyride in it over the weekend and sent me the bill.
One angry letter pointing this out and I got an apology and cancellation of the bill in 3 days flat!!
Lesson is ALWAYS read ALL of the paperwork, could also go on about the same company and a couple of my vans that ended up with the Financial Ombudsman,another apology and over 7 grand being wiped out haha.
The reason is simple, they set up lease deals with a guessed final value they would realsie on the cars whne sold. They are not getting the value they thought they would and as a result they try to claim it back via spurious methods.
If you send one back always take photographs and read every bit of paperwork. Hire cars are even worse, take photos when it arrives and when you take it back. It doesn't sound a lot but five pounds extra for cleaning on every other rental makes a huge extra profit.
If you send one back always take photographs and read every bit of paperwork. Hire cars are even worse, take photos when it arrives and when you take it back. It doesn't sound a lot but five pounds extra for cleaning on every other rental makes a huge extra profit.
I have had this problem with nearly every lease car the company has had. They even tried to claim for damage and as evidence sent a photo of an entirely different car! The last car we returned they sent an email saying please ensure the car has at least half a tank of fuel. As they dropped it off with the vehicle in the red I said no. "how is our driver going to get that to the depot?" I was asked. Er fuel station, money etc, etc.
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff