Green motion scam (I know)

daniel1971_2

Long story shortish I needed a car quick and as these are close to me I fell for the cheapish prices. I ordered a small car (fiesta or similar) and on the day  they say to me ‘it’s your lucky day’ and give me a BMW with only 1000 mls on the clock. I opted for the bronze level of extra cover as I knew I had a very short journey. I had a good look around the car beforehand and did not spot the subtle bend in the one of the doors at the bottom. If you did not know where to look or to compare the two sides you just would not know that this was not meant to be like this.  Of course they spotted it on return and of course I didn’t do it and obviously they charged me nearly £600 for something I could have fixed in 10 seconds had I caused it. Strange how this dent could only have been caused by me opening the door with considerable force onto a kerb that was positioned at exactly the same angle as the door. The kerb would have had be made of a sound deadening material as would the door and also when striking painted metal it would leave no mark scratch or scuff. If one person reads this and does not use them it would be a start but if anyone here has any ideas take on these scammers please PM me. Likewise if any of the countless people who have been scammed want to send me any ammo from  similar experience feel free. Also does anyone know about the success of chargebacks in cases like this cos I would love to get the 600 back and them take me to court. Thanks. In case anyone missed it Green Motion are still scamming customers even after the countless complaints and BBC, papers etc

AdrianC

Sorry, let's translate this...

You hired a car.
You didn't notice or flag any pre-existing damage when you collected it.
They did notice damage when you dropped it off.

It's on you. There's zero proof you didn't do it. ALWAYS check hire cars carefully when you collect them.

Supersonos

daniel1971_2 said:

DoaM said:

Please also locate this button:

It also exists on mobile devices.

Haha.
Good one.

He found it.

Dr_Crypto

Can’t see how a change back would be accepted. You’ve got no proof it was pre-existing damage. They’ll refuse the chargeback.
Your only option would be to take them to court for the return of your money. But I wouldn’t fancy your chances. 

fred246

I despair at this forum. Green Motion are known scammers. Even car hire excess insurers specifically exclude Green Motion. The authorities can't or won't act and so the only way round it is to publicize them so they can be avoided. The other company that falls into this category is Viagogo. So someone publicizes them and all they get is a load of silly abuse.

Goudy

I've dealt with countless hire companies and something like this isn't always a scam, though I do admit Green Motion will charge for every nick, chip and scratch when some others won't bother if it's not through the paint.

The damage might have existed and was missed when the car was booked in last, after all you say it was hard to spot.
(It seems odd that they would purposely sting you for something they could have stung the last hirer for)
Then when you've returned it, they noticed it.
They, as you have, make mistakes. 
Theirs was missing the damage when it was last booked in, your's for not spotting it before you took delivery.

The proof you needed was the pre handover condition check and report and unfortunately the weight of failing this falls on you, not them. You signed for it's condition without that particular damage.
With that pre condition report signed by you, a court will almost certainly consider it probably you caused the damage.

It's a bit late in the day now, but always check carefully for damage, if they say it's not something they mark down, insist it's marked. I have even marked damage on the form myself when they've handed it over for me to sign so it shows on there carbon copy.
It's not always possible, but try and get the condition report signed off when you return it. Some busy places have key drops where you leave the car and drop the keys in a box, then I would take photos of the sides, corners and major panels, with an image of it parked in one of their return bays. I did this recently in Cyprus when the lockdowns started as there was no one there for returns, I even emailed then the images when I got home.

Some companies will hold a fuel deposit along with the excess deposit.
If so, when you fill up before returning it, keep or take a image of the receipt.

Consider excess insurance.
Buying from the hire company is often expensive, but it means you don't always need to leave a large deposit, but you can buy it elsewhere and you can often get a policy for a fraction of the cost.
You will need to make the deposit and if any damage charges are made, claim it back from the excess insurance.
I buy a yearly UK & Europe policy for around £40 and every year without claim I get a discount, think it only cost me £32 this year, well worth it considering I hire around 10 cars a year.

fred246

The silliness continues. The answer is AVOID GREEN MOTION.

AdrianC

fred246 said:

I despair at this forum. Green Motion are known scammers. Even car hire excess insurers specifically exclude Green Motion.

Do they? Care to show your working?

Here's the three top providers from a google search for "car hire excess insurance".
https://www.carhireexcess.co.uk/Documents/
https://www.questor-insurance.co.uk/car-hire-insurance
https://www.zurich.co.uk/insurance/car-hire-excess-insurance/buy-car-hire-excess-insurance

I've looked through their actual policy docs, and not one mentions any kind of list of eligible and ineligible rental companies, let alone explicitly naming any one company.

The other company that falls into this category is Viagogo.

Viagogo don't rent cars.
They aren't even a portal to find cars rented by other companies.
They're a concert/sport/theatre ticket reseller.

So someone publicizes them and all they get is a load of silly abuse.

No, they've just had the reality pointed out to them - they signed a document saying "no damage" at the start of the rental, and then they returned a damaged car at the end.

GreenMotion may or may not have a reputation for being over-eager in charging for damage. That's beside the point - because the documentation the OP signed says the damage occurred during the time the car was in their care.

Anyway, if they do have such a well-known reputation, why did the OP use them? And why not check the car even more carefully on collection?

Dr_Crypto

Green Motion maybe conmen but that doesn’t mean the OP can get a chargeback. 

They’re well known for doing this and I’d never use them. Same with Goldcar in Spain/Portugal. Maybe there’s something about having a colour in the company name that makes them crooks? 

Goudy

AdrianC said:

fred246 said:

I despair at this forum. Green Motion are known scammers. Even car hire excess insurers specifically exclude Green Motion.

Do they? Care to show your working?

Bettersafe don't cover Green Motion but only in the UK, I think a few other do as well now.
https://www.bettersafe.com/faqs

DoaM

Goudy said:

The damage might have existed and was missed when the car was booked in last, after all you say it was hard to spot.
(It seems odd that they would purposely sting you for something they could have stung the last hirer for)

You're naively assuming that they didn't.