Completely frustrated w/ERAC

[rseitelman]

I don't know if anyone can help me since this happened so long ago:

My girlfriend and I rented a car to drive to my mother for Labor Day weekend. On the way, at about midnight, my right front tire blew out for no reason, there was nothing in the road, no other cars having issues. I was in the middle lane surrounded by big-rigs, so it was a hairy situation and I was glad that my driving skills were sufficient to get me to the shoulder. A car behind us pulled over as well to see if we were ok and said that the tire just blew. We said we were and they went on their way.

I called ERAC's roadside assistance, they were very nice, very apologetic, said that they'd cover our hotel cost for the night and send out a tow right away.

What arrived was not a tow truck, but an emergency repair vehicle. The man driving it had to cut away the plastic wheel splash guard in order to get the old tire off (my guess is that the plastic had been bent or something and caused the blow out). He put on the donut, we went to the closest hotel and returned the car to the nearest office that next morning for a replacement.

All seemed fine and dandy. The office where we replaced the vehicle was kind to us, when we returned the replacement vehicle, everything sounded good and I left the paperwork from our hotel visit and the accident report with that office.

About a month later I got a call demanding payment for the damages, some of which weren't even present on the accident report and had nothing to do with the tire blow out. The loss control rep. advised me to "just have my credit card's auto rental insurance pay for it." It all sounded fishy to me, so I had an attorney look into it.

After months of going back and forth through my attorney, the best they are willing to do is cut the cost in half. I spoke with my credit card company about filing a claim and found out that all claims have to be started within 20 days of the incident, but I didn't even know there was going to be an incident for over a month!

Enterprise has not only "lost" my accident report and my hotel bill, but they claim that while I did call roadside assistance, they never sent out anyone to fix the tire, claiming that I did it myself, which is absurd. I don't have the ability to change a flat tire under any conditions, much less cut away plastic.

I could go to small claims court and fight this, but the rental contract seems fairly air-tight in that I am responsible for any damage regardless of fault while the car is in my control.

I must claim stupidity for not getting copies of this material, but I really thought I was in good hands and that all of this would be taken care of by an understanding, customer-oriented company.

Does anyone have any advice? Should I fight? Should I give in?

"The man driving it had to cut away the plastic wheel splash guard in order to get the old tire off (my guess is that the plastic had been bent or something and caused the blow out)."

How did you make it as far as you did with the guard rubbing against the tire the whole time?

[rseitelman]

I don't know that it did...it's just a theory that might explain why the tire blew, since the car had only 3000 miles on it. The emergency service guy said that he sees this sort of thing all the time, but since ERAC lost my report and has no record of dispatching him to our car, I have no way of finding him to call him as a witness.

[EX24VV'er]

rst off where did you rent the car, that has not much to do with the issue but I still have a few friends in loss control that might be able to help you.

To explain possibly how Enterprise Roadside was never sent out is that I know from living in NJ major roads like the Parkway and Turnpike are patrolled by these emergency vehicles to help stranded motorists. So in fact you may have been helped by someone who Enterprise did not even send out. Which is issue number 1, what if they never sent someone out you would have been there a lot longer use the fact they said they didn't send anyone out to your advantage.

As for cutting off the hubcap there may be a few reasons for that. First a lot of cars need a special type of KEY to remove the hubcap. If you don't have this then you need to cut it off. Or like many ERAC cars that people tend to abuse a curb might have been hit damaging the hubcap and tire to the point where it is not easy to remove the tire and cause the tire to eventually blow.

Now as far as the damage, did they give you pictures of this damage? When you rented the car did you thoroughly perform a walk around? Was there anything on the car when you rented that would cause you to miss anything, like rain,? When you went to switch out the vehicle did they check it in before giving you a new car noticing any of this alleged damage?

Now you said you have an attorney for this, and they never sent him a copy of the accident report? Did they send him prior contracts showing that there was no damage on the vehicle? Ok that should give enough information for right now. Looking forward to helping.

[rseitelman]

I rented the car in Northern New Jersey, but was on Route 78 near Clinton when this went down, so not the turnpike or the GSP, and the emergency technician said he was called by Enterprise Roadside Assistance through AAA. He did not accept money for his services, so I doubt he was on his own.

It wasn't actually the hubcap we had to cut off. It was a plastic splash guard normally on the inside of the wheel well that we found wrapped around the tire, which he could not push back into place and had to be cut away. Without a tow truck, we had no other option.

They did finally send us pictures of the damage, including the tire. Their tire "expert" claims that the damage was caused by me driving for too long on a flat and not a blowout, but I pulled over as soon as I could immediately after I felt the car suddenly drop and heard the unmistakable sound of the rims on the road. Even at 65 mph in the center lane, we could not have gone more than a tenth of a mile before finally pulling over.

The information coming from ERAC has been incredibly sparse. In the walkaround, we did discuss some previous damage to the vehicle, including a piece of rubber lining on the rear left door that was coming off, which they are now trying to charge me for. However, ERAC has "lost" all of that paperwork and now just has my signature on a contract.

They had just washed the car when we did the walk around, and I realize I should have more thoroughly checked the car, but this scenario was seriously the last thing on my mind when I rented because I bought the customer service rep that Enterprise doles out, hook, line, and sinker.

Originally Posted by EX24VV'er

rst off where did you rent the car, that has not much to do with the issue but I still have a few friends in loss control that might be able to help you.

To explain possibly how Enterprise Roadside was never sent out is that I know from living in NJ major roads like the Parkway and Turnpike are patrolled by these emergency vehicles to help stranded motorists. So in fact you may have been helped by someone who Enterprise did not even send out. Which is issue number 1, what if they never sent someone out you would have been there a lot longer use the fact they said they didn't send anyone out to your advantage.

As for cutting off the hubcap there may be a few reasons for that. First a lot of cars need a special type of KEY to remove the hubcap. If you don't have this then you need to cut it off. Or like many ERAC cars that people tend to abuse a curb might have been hit damaging the hubcap and tire to the point where it is not easy to remove the tire and cause the tire to eventually blow.

Now as far as the damage, did they give you pictures of this damage? When you rented the car did you thoroughly perform a walk around? Was there anything on the car when you rented that would cause you to miss anything, like rain,? When you went to switch out the vehicle did they check it in before giving you a new car noticing any of this alleged damage?

Now you said you have an attorney for this, and they never sent him a copy of the accident report? Did they send him prior contracts showing that there was no damage on the vehicle? Ok that should give enough information for right now. Looking forward to helping.

[EX24VV'er]

Great you rented in NJ this is where I worked, more than likely I know the manager, and Loass Control person. I am going to private message you on this board and ask some more questions so that I can help you, be sure to check your private messages on this site.

[ExLossControl]

Your roadside assistance ticket should still be in the system. Call the 800 rent a car number, get through to Roadside and get your ticket pulled. You'll need the date/time you called and your contract number (and loss control should be able to give you the contract number). Roadside should be able to help you track down the tow company that was called.

Call the hotel, give them your name and get a reprint of your receipt if you don't have a record of it.

Look on your contract and you should have the inspection diagram on the top left hand side- any prior damage should be noted on there when you inspected the car. That should take care of the door damage.

Another probability: the car had a prior collision that was fixed by an unscrupulous renter, or improperly by an ERAC shop. If the damage was not repaired properly, it's possible the splash guard was damaged as well. Also- there could have been a curb hit that bent the rim or another portion of the suspension, causing uneven wear and stress on the tire, which caused it to pop.

Either way, you shouldn't be responsible for the damage. It's either prior or caused by Roadside...and the tire popped due to circumstances beyond your control.

If none of this works, send all your documentation and a lengthy letter to Corporate, and cc the RVP, Loss Control Manager, Vehicle Repair Manager, and the branch manager where you rented. If you do have an attorney, have them send the letter. You'll get answers.

The only other thing I can tell you is to go ahead and file a claim with your insurance company- if you get them in on this, it may be resolved much quicker than if you do it yourself. I would first get on the horn with the claims adjuster and make your case. And then I'd tell them why this doesn't need to be paid by you.

Good luck- keep us informed of what happens.

[rseitelman]

Thank you for your advice. I will definitely get the receipt from the hotel.

Unfortunately, ERAC doesn't have my roadside assistance ticket. They "lost" it along with my original contract.

I will try writing that letter if all else fails and have been speaking with my insurance, but it feels wrong to pass this off to my insurance. Maybe I'm being overly ethical, but it wasn't my fault, you know?

Originally Posted by ExLossControl

Your roadside assistance ticket should still be in the system. Call the 800 rent a car number, get through to Roadside and get your ticket pulled. You'll need the date/time you called and your contract number (and loss control should be able to give you the contract number). Roadside should be able to help you track down the tow company that was called.

Call the hotel, give them your name and get a reprint of your receipt if you don't have a record of it.

Look on your contract and you should have the inspection diagram on the top left hand side- any prior damage should be noted on there when you inspected the car. That should take care of the door damage.

Another probability: the car had a prior collision that was fixed by an unscrupulous renter, or improperly by an ERAC shop. If the damage was not repaired properly, it's possible the splash guard was damaged as well. Also- there could have been a curb hit that bent the rim or another portion of the suspension, causing uneven wear and stress on the tire, which caused it to pop.

Either way, you shouldn't be responsible for the damage. It's either prior or caused by Roadside...and the tire popped due to circumstances beyond your control.

If none of this works, send all your documentation and a lengthy letter to Corporate, and cc the RVP, Loss Control Manager, Vehicle Repair Manager, and the branch manager where you rented. If you do have an attorney, have them send the letter. You'll get answers.

The only other thing I can tell you is to go ahead and file a claim with your insurance company- if you get them in on this, it may be resolved much quicker than if you do it yourself. I would first get on the horn with the claims adjuster and make your case. And then I'd tell them why this doesn't need to be paid by you.

Good luck- keep us informed of what happens.

Originally Posted by rseitelman

Thank you for your advice. I will definitely get the receipt from the hotel.

Unfortunately, ERAC doesn't have my roadside assistance ticket. They "lost" it along with my original contract.

I will try writing that letter if all else fails and have been speaking with my insurance, but it feels wrong to pass this off to my insurance. Maybe I'm being overly ethical, but it wasn't my fault, you know?

If they really "lost" your original contract then they have no right to go after you for damages. I work in Southern California so it might be different though. A renter at the branch I worked with returned the car with major damage that was obviously caused during the rental, but unfortunately we lost his contract, so there was no way of us saying the damage was not there when he drove off in the car. He got away free and clear. If they truly don't have the original, then they have no right to go after you.

[rseitelman]

Thank you for the advice. I will look into it. I really appreciate your help.