Beware National Van Rental

nobby24

I hired a van from National Van Rental yesterday, I booked it online £37.77 fully inc, sounded a good deal to me. When I went to pick the van up the girl behind the counter said, can I have your credit card, she was going to put an excess deposit of £550 and a fuel deposit of £90 total £640 which are refundable all being well. She said you can pay £14.99 and remove the excess. I thought well that would make the rental £52 so why should I, so I didn’t. I took the van and after arriving at my destination approx 2 miles I noticed a crack had appeared on the windscreen, it seemed to come from a little chip. I took the van back and they said well it was ok when you took it so I’m afraid you’re responsible and they have charged me £209 for a new windscreen for a crack that ‘just appeared’ I didn’t have an accident and had only driven 2 miles. So it cost me approx £250 for a morning van hire from National Van Rental.

BTW, I would have been even sicker if I’d paid the £14.99 excess waiver because that doesn’t cover windscreen or tyres, that would have been an extra insurance I wasn’t even told about.

mchale

Was the initial little "chip" noted on the damage report form they gave you to check & sign ?? if it was I would argue the case it was pre existing damage and you should not be held liable

nobby24

No, there was no mention of the windscreen but afterwards I did notice similar little chips, but in any case when you book a van fully inc. you don't expect to have to replace their windscreen for them. I've never in 40 years had a windscreen go before.

Premier_2

nobby24 wrote: »

No, there was no mention of the windscreen but afterwards I did notice similar little chips, but in any case when you book a van fully inc. you don't expect to have to replace their windscreen for them. I've never in 40 years had a windscreen go before.

You will be expected to pay for the replacement windscreen if you break it. (unless you take out extra insurance)

This is common with all rental companies, not just National.

A few years back I got through 3 windscreens in 1 year! :eek:
(Heated ones too!)


Check the vehicle before you take it away and note any damage on the form & agreed by the rental company. A chip on the windscreen will easily propogate to a full blown crack once the vehicle undergoes the stresses & strains it experiences on the road.

nexuss

nobby24 wrote: »

No, there was no mention of the windscreen but afterwards I did notice similar little chips, but in any case when you book a van fully inc. you don't expect to have to replace their windscreen for them. I've never in 40 years had a windscreen go before.

If the windscreen chip was not on the vehicle check report from before you took the van keys then you are guilty if the chip was on the van after.This is the reason they have vehicle check reports.You check the vehicle beforehand with the hire company worker and then you both sign and have a copy each.You decided to save money by not paying any excess and so paid the price.It is no fault of the companies but simply your own.You need to read the terms and conditions on their website which are very extensive.

nobby24

nexuss wrote: »

If the windscreen chip was not on the vehicle check report from before you took the van keys then you are guilty if the chip was on the van after.This is the reason they have vehicle check reports.You check the vehicle beforehand with the hire company worker and then you both sign and have a copy each.You decided to save money by not paying any excess and so paid the price.It is no fault of the companies but simply your own.You need to read the terms and conditions on their website which are very extensive.

As I said I'm glad I didn't pay the excess waiver because if I had I would have been another £14.99 worse off because it didn't cover Windscreens and Tyres. I'm sure they are correct, I just think their information is misleading. I naively thought fully inclusive meant just that. Yes I was told I could buy the excess waiver for £14.99 but that would have meant the fully inclusive £37 becomes £52 and incidentally I wasn't offered the windscreen and tyre insurance at all. OK I'm wise to them, well done National, a nice little earner for you.

LinasPilibaitisisbatman

Theres nothing misleading about it.

1) Its entirely common for deposits to be put on credit cards otherwise you could do a runner and not pay for any damage or fuel. Anyone who has ever hired a vehicle knows this. Furthermore it will be in the terms somewere

2) If you damage any sort of hire vehicle you pay unless you got the insurance. Its your responsibility to ensure you point out damage prior to leaving

Tbh whilst we can see why you are upset, National did nothing wrong.

pinkfoot_2

I hired a car last January which was covered in ice, when it came to signing the check report I said I was not willing to as I could not clearly see the vehicle and was told I had 24 hours to report any issues.

May not help with this situation but worth remembering.

herbertthehelper

nobby24 wrote: »

I hired a van from National van rental yesterday, I booked it online £37.77 fully inc, sounded a good deal to me. When I went to pick the van up the girl behind the counter said, can I have your credit card, she was going to put an excess deposit of £550 and a fuel deposit of £90 total £640 which are refundable all being well. She said you can pay £14.99 and remove the excess. I thought well that would make the rental £52 so why should I, so I didn’t. I took the van and after arriving at my destination approx 2 miles I noticed a crack had appeared on the windscreen, it seemed to come from a little chip. I took the van back and they said well it was ok when you took it so I’m afraid you’re responsible and they have charged me £209 for a new windscreen for a crack that ‘just appeared’ I didn’t have an accident and had only driven 2 miles. So it cost me approx £250 for a morning van hire from National Van Rental.

BTW, I would have been even sicker if I’d paid the £14.99 excess waiver because that doesn’t cover windscreen or tyres, that would have been an extra insurance I wasn’t even told about.

This sounds awful! I hope it gets sorted out for you

mikey72

All hire companies are as bad.
You should have offered to get it fixed, or get a comparable quote if you feel the price is too steep. I know I had one replaced recently, admittedly it only cost £60 as I went through the insurance, but the cost on the insurance forms I signed was about £100 dearer than I had been quoted privately.
I also hired a Luton type van a while ago. The insurance didn’t cover the windscreen , tyres, or the Luton bodywork. Any damage I had to pay fully, not just the excess. It was scuffed, holed and patched, all over, so it took ages to mark them all down. Having said that, the form was so covered I reckon anything I could have done short of tearing the body off already had a mark on the form to cover it.

ZootHornRollo

i think cases like this are very unfair.

Realistically, the hire should include reasonable wear & tear. Stone chips, windscreen chips/cracks and small dings caused by others in car parks are all reasonable wear & tear. They are part and parcel of normal road use. I'm surprised there has not be a publicised legal case regarding this.