Earlier in the month, a TikToker sparked discussion after claiming that one should thoroughly inspect a rental car before taking it off the lot.
Now, another TikToker went viral after revealing the worst-case scenario that can happen if a car rental company does not properly inspect its vehicle before renting it out to them.
In a slideshow with over 201,000 views, TikTok user Allie Bellair (@alliebellair) declared that the rental company Hertz owes her $700. Here’s how it happened.
A nightmare car rental experience
In her TikTok, Bellair said she was driving her rental car from Hertz when she was prompted with a message that said that the engine was overheating.
Upon pulling over in Blandford, Massachusetts, she said she discovered the car’s coolant was empty. She included a photo of an empty coolant reservoir In her TikTok slideshow. “And this is what the coolant reservoir looks like !” she exclaimed. “She’s BONE DRY.”
Unfazed, Bellair said she refilled the car’s coolant. She included a photo of said coolant at the store. “Me being the mechanic that I am, I bought some coolant,” she said.
She also contacted Hertz so that it could tow the car.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned.
“Hertz told me they’d get a tow truck out to me and never did and marked my request as complete,” Bellair wrote in the text overlaying the image, which shows a text message she received from Hertz.
“Hertz Roadside: Hello ALEXANDRA BELLAIR, your request for Tow has been received,” the first message read. “Estimated arrival is 114 minutes.”
The second message informed Bellair that her request was marked “complete.” “Your road service is complete,” it read before directing Bellair to a helpline she could call if she needed further help.
In the next slide, Bellair said Hertz informed her that the company could not send someone out. Instead, she said the company told her the police would have to be sent to remedy her situation.
Finally, a tow truck driver arrived. However, Bellair said the driver only took her about 10 minutes away from where her car was stalled, charging her over $504 in the process.
When she reached back out to Hertz to resolve the problem, she said she was informed Hertz would be calling her a Lyft but ended up being unable to do so. “We’re finding a driver for you and will send details soon,” a text from Hertz read.
Bellair said Hertz was unable to find her a Lyft, Uber, or Taxi.
“I sat in the car with no working heat, in 30° weather from 6:40pm-10:30pm. Constantly on/off the phone with Hertz and nobody helped me,” she wrote.
“My family came to pick me up since Hertz couldn’t find anyone to get me home,” she continued. “They also told me that Id be liable if anything were to happen to the car since I was leaving it unattended!”
Bellair claimed in the caption that Hertz further attempted to resolve the situation by sending her an “expired money voucher.”
Commenters sound off
In the comments section, users offered thoughts on how Bellair could apply additional pressure on Hertz to make things right, as well as what she should expect from a resolution.
“File a complaint with the better business bureau. it seems to get these issues resolved more quickly,” wrote a user.
“Oh noooo a full refund needs to be issued along with a lot of credit!” declared another.
Others simply shared their own Hertz experiences and are tagging Hertz in the post to “make things right” for Bellair.
“I will never use hertz again. I got their insurance and got a car stuck in snow. They kept marking my tow as complete. Took three days for them to get the car and they billed me for $2,000,” one user similarly recounted. “I locked the card and told them I wasn’t paying it.”
“You guys need to fix this. No excuses,” another said, tagging the company in the comment.
Update 11:31am CT, May 1: In an email to the Daily Dot, a Hertz spokesperson shared the following: “Customer service is our priority at Hertz, and we deeply regret that this customer’s experience did not meet our service standards. We are providing a full reimbursement for the rental and all related expenses.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Hertz via email and Bellair via TikTok comment.
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