Hertz rents cars, like many of its competitors do. What separates Hertz from the rental car pack is its willingness to let law enforcement perform its collection work by filing criminal charges against people. Maybe some people prefer a tough-on-crime rental agency, but it’s unlikely any of Hertz’s falsely accused customers choose Hertz for its unique ability to have renters imprisoned.
After years of false allegations, the company is being sued by the people it has helped wrongfully imprison. Late last year, a class action suit representing about 100 renters was filed. Since then, more allegations have surfaced and more plaintiffs have been added to the suit.
The company has been ordered to tell the court how many times it accuses renters of theft. It has responded with a low ball estimate of around 3,500 police reports a year: 0.014% of its customer base. Those suing say it’s likely double the reported amount, which would still be a very small percentage of renters.
But a percentage that looks like a rounding error still means the company possibly falsely forwards theft allegations to law enforcement that affect thousands of people every year. And even if it’s a very small percentage (roughly 0.030% of renters, if we believe the plaintiffs), its still thousands more than are generated by any of Hertz’s competitors.
And Hertz has been less than contrite about the lives it has destroyed by ...
The visual verification might not be accessible to you. We recommend you to use the audio verification instead. Important: after clicking play, you will hear 6 digits. Please wait until the audio f...