I’m not sure whether this is good news or bad news. Given that we’re talking about something involving Hertz, it’s probably bad news (thanks to View from the Wing for flagging this).
In this post:
Hertz partners with UVeye to document vehicle condition
One of the potentially frustrating aspects of renting a car involves the process of assessing a vehicle’s condition. Currently, the process of documenting vehicle damage at pick-up and drop-off is highly manual, and there’s no denying that some rental car companies get a bit aggressive with accusing customers of damaging cars. So that’s where Hertz’s new technology comes into play.
Hertz has announced that it’s partnering with UVeye to transform its “vehicle maintenance process.” UVeye is a company with AI-driven vehicle inspection systems.
The idea is that the UVeye system can carefully document the condition of vehicles both upon pick-up and drop-off, and easily determine if there’s any damage without it being a manual process. As you exit and enter the facility, you’ll drive through the UVeye system, which has a bunch of cameras, and you’ll be given a report about the vehicle’s condition.
This is also supposed to be about helping with general vehicle maintenance, though I suspect the primary reason Hertz is investing in this opportunity is because of the additional revenue opportunities. 😉
Here’s how Hertz describes this technology:
With more than half a million vehicles around the globe, keeping vehicles in well maintained condition before, during, and after rentals is a critical priority for Hertz. Vehicle assessments in the rental industry have always relied heavily on manual inspections conducted in varying conditions. By implementing UVeye’s advanced AI-driven inspection technology, Hertz can significantly enhance the frequency, accuracy, and efficiency of its vehicle maintenance processes, ensuring reliable service, improved vehicle availability and transparency for its customers.
UVeye’s AI-powered camera systems and machine learning algorithms enable real-time, automated inspections of a vehicle’s body, glass, tires, and undercarriage. The technology enables improvements in safety and vehicle availability by detecting maintenance issues with unprecedented speed and precision. UVeye’s tire treadwear system captures high-resolution images that are instantly analyzed to determine whether a tire needs replacement, reducing the need for manual checks and ensuring timely, proactive service. By complementing manual checks with UVeye’s technology, customers will enjoy more efficient and transparent automated checks when picking up and dropping off their vehicles.
Atlanta Airport (ATL) is the first Hertz facility to be equipped with this technology, though the plan is to roll this out at all major US airport locations by the end of the year.
This technology is a double-edged sword
I’m of two minds when it comes to this new technology that Hertz is deploying.
On the one hand, I appreciate that the process is being streamlined, and this system adds a good amount of transparency. Assessing vehicle condition manually is just such an inefficient process, and the burden is really on the person renting the car to prove a lack of damage. For such a big industry, it’s incredible that there hasn’t been more widespread technology like this up until now.
On the other hand, expect that this new system will also detect any little scratch or dent, so don’t expect that you’ll be able to get away with any damage, when that might’ve previously been possible. One wonders just how much of an increase we’ll see in customers being charged for damage. This makes it more important than ever before to pay for your rental car with a credit card offering coverage.
Bottom line
Hertz is partnering with UVeye to introduce technology that will determine a vehicle’s condition without it being a manual process. Cars will be driven through the UVeye system both upon pick-up and drop-off, and then customers will get a report with any damage.
This is good for transparency, though probably not good in terms of the number of times that customers will be charged for damage.
What do you make of Hertz’s new vehicle damage technology?
I’m sure it will generate additional revenue for Hertz, but I’ve been through the ATL scanners three times already (once in a brand new Yukon Denali, once in a somewhat beat-up Yukon, and once in a Volvo XC90) and had no issues what so ever. As long as they scan the vehicles both when you enter and exit, I’m okay with it. Currently driving another brand new Yukon Denail from Hertz LAX - fingers crossed ;)
Enterprise already has a similar system, for pickup anyway, at multiple points.
I rented from a Hertz downtown location in Chicago yesterday and and prior to leaving the office and seeing the car that I would rent, I was asked if I wanted to see pictures of it that had just been taken.
I was sent a file with 18 photos of the car in a structured package from “[email protected]”. I didn’t know if I should check the car and make my own photos or what...
I rented from a Hertz downtown location in Chicago yesterday and and prior to leaving the office and seeing the car that I would rent, I was asked if I wanted to see pictures of it that had just been taken.
I was sent a file with 18 photos of the car in a structured package from “[email protected]”. I didn’t know if I should check the car and make my own photos or what to do with them, but recognized that it was a way to document “before” and “after” physical status of the car.
When I got in the car, the screen indicated the car needed an oil change. I felt it would’ve been better if they took care of normal maintenance of the car than taking the pictures they shared with me.
Well I’ll tell ya what — my Chevy dealer, Carl Black, uses this tech and I gotta say, it’s mighty impressive. Real clear, real honest. Folks around here been grumblin’ about AI, but if you actually take a look at the photos the dealer shares, you’ll see this system gives you sharp images before and after you take the car.
Now listen — if you dinged your door after pickin’ up that rental and ain’t...
Well I’ll tell ya what — my Chevy dealer, Carl Black, uses this tech and I gotta say, it’s mighty impressive. Real clear, real honest. Folks around here been grumblin’ about AI, but if you actually take a look at the photos the dealer shares, you’ll see this system gives you sharp images before and after you take the car.
Now listen — if you dinged your door after pickin’ up that rental and ain’t got insurance, well shoot, that’s on you. Makes sense, don’t it? What I like is it cuts down all that dang waitin’ in line and gets you in your car quicker. No more walk-arounds with someone scribblin’ notes on a clipboard.
So instead of all the bellyachin’, maybe let’s give it a fair shot and bring a little optimism to the table. Sure beats standin’ around gripin’ in the heat.
It’s a just a matter of time before cc companies eliminate the coverage as a benefit. One needs to pick one of those companies and boycott them for good or even bankrupt them to get power back to consumer. The problem is there is no recourse ever, they can manipulate the data, the repair costs and then also use the depreciation as a tax benefit. Overall that whole industry has been become the crooks of travel. Only topped by jet ski rental outfits.
In my experience, *ertz is effing evil. But at least they didn't have me arrested, like they did to others.
It's always been subjective. I've rented at locations where they only inspect the driver's half of the car. They didn't walk around to the pax side during the return, and as such, didn't have the means to check that side.
Another location actually got a flashlight out and walked around the car. Of course they didn't find the two small paint spots which were only sometimes documented on the inspection slip. My slip had...
It's always been subjective. I've rented at locations where they only inspect the driver's half of the car. They didn't walk around to the pax side during the return, and as such, didn't have the means to check that side.
Another location actually got a flashlight out and walked around the car. Of course they didn't find the two small paint spots which were only sometimes documented on the inspection slip. My slip had neither spot flagged, and the rental agent said it would be fine. A slip I found in the car from a previous rental had both spots circled.
Sixt already has this at LHR Terminal 5 (the only LHR option to avoid bus to car park)
They claimed I had damage in December.
There had been no contact with anything, although I had driven through a storm so a twig blown onto the panel could have caused a scratch.
Looking at the very odd shape of the "scratch" (it doubled back on itself) I deduced that it was probably a...
Sixt already has this at LHR Terminal 5 (the only LHR option to avoid bus to car park)
They claimed I had damage in December.
There had been no contact with anything, although I had driven through a storm so a twig blown onto the panel could have caused a scratch.
Looking at the very odd shape of the "scratch" (it doubled back on itself) I deduced that it was probably a hair blown onto the car by the wind.
When I suggested that, they backed down, so perhaps I was right.
Two things that would reduce the opportunity for AI errors/cheating:
1) They should provide the photos of Leaving as well as Returning - in fact they should provide this as an electronic file for the customer immediately after one drives through.
2) They should make the photos available while one is there, so one can inspect manually with the staff - E.g. in my case we could have brushed off the hair, or seen that it was really a scratch.
I just completed a Hertz rental at Newark (NJ) Airport and was scammed by Hertz's new UVeye system. I had no issues or collisions during the rental. I had purchased a third party insurance plan for the rental through Expedia. Upon driving into the return area I passed through a brightly lit scanner, returned the car and was given my receipt. Done!...until standing in line for TSA, I serendipitously checked email and found a notification...
I just completed a Hertz rental at Newark (NJ) Airport and was scammed by Hertz's new UVeye system. I had no issues or collisions during the rental. I had purchased a third party insurance plan for the rental through Expedia. Upon driving into the return area I passed through a brightly lit scanner, returned the car and was given my receipt. Done!...until standing in line for TSA, I serendipitously checked email and found a notification from Hertz that I had collision damage and had to take action immediately (same day). The email opened to an automated system that showed a tiny "ding" above the driver's side rear tire and stated the cost of repair was $221--but that if I paid today it would be $130. WTF? I got out of line (fortunately having arrived early as it's a long line), walked all the way back to the Hertz rental counter (different building), asked to speak to the manager to inspect the vehicle and dispute this claim. who informed me 'it's all automated' and that he couldn't do anything. I walked back to the gate and now had limited time before boarding and my flights would not get me home until the next day. I attempted to dispute the charge through the app and got nowhere--no human contact, no options, no explanations. Already on the defense, I took screen shots of the various screens I would have no documentation to submit to the third party insurer. Utterly frustrated and stressed out, I succumbed and made the payment. Hertz did not even email me a receipt. Ultimately the stress continued after I arrived home having to take around 2 hours to submit all the documentation (including all my screenshots) to the insurer. Would an insurer even accept this? Stress, stress, stress and time, time, time--thank you, Hertz, may I have another? The insurer ultimately accepted the claim within 48 hours and reimbursed me promptly--the saving grace.
This is a total scam, and yet another example of technology and AI gone awry. I will never rent from Hertz again, nor any other company that uses this technology. Even if I was at fault, I had no recourse and no due process.
(I tried to write this review on Expedia but their site has no way to create a review :(
Usually in US airports the employees don't care at all if you return a car with dings or scratches etc. Given the annual turnover of the rental cars it has never really mattered
So this can only be bad news if you start getting penalized for minor issues that AI will automatically pick up
Here's why you should be afraid: the company has a big incentive to charge you for every little damage. For example, let's take a small quarter-inch nick in the urethane rear bumper. You miss it when renting and they find it when you return. they charge you $180 because that's what it would cost to fix that one problem. I worked for a local car rental company that always aggressively charged customers for these, but...
Here's why you should be afraid: the company has a big incentive to charge you for every little damage. For example, let's take a small quarter-inch nick in the urethane rear bumper. You miss it when renting and they find it when you return. they charge you $180 because that's what it would cost to fix that one problem. I worked for a local car rental company that always aggressively charged customers for these, but didn't do the repairs until four more customers returned that car with four more damages on the rear bumper. Now they've collected $720 from customers for damages to rear bumper. Only now do we go to the bodyshop.
So Yes, you may have to use a flashlight, but go over the car carefully, wipe off any mud that might cover damage, and note it all on the inspection sheet and get the rep to look at it and initial the sheet, of which you keep a copy. A thorough inspection and video record of the car will take 3 minutes. If the video includes the convo with the rep, acknowledging existing damage, so much the better.
I've never had this kind of scam treatment from Hertz, which is my preferred brand. But I'm deeply suspicious of the whole industry.
The big issue is that when you pick up a car (specifically from an airport location) you may be in a dark garage and unless you pull out of flashlight you might not see prior scratches. And if you're like me I just want to get going where I need to be.
Is there no place or circumstance in life that does not require you to be constantly in a state of hyper-vigilance to ensure you don't get screwed big "activist investors" and megacorps?
If everyone wants to wait and see the report after returning it to an airport this could greatly increase the time it takes to return a vehicle.
Side note: I just dealt with Sixt and the return manual inspection at a Porto city location was certainly more comprehensive than whoever did it at the Lisbon airport where I picked it up. The guy was crawling under the car with a flashlight and ruler taking photos....
If everyone wants to wait and see the report after returning it to an airport this could greatly increase the time it takes to return a vehicle.
Side note: I just dealt with Sixt and the return manual inspection at a Porto city location was certainly more comprehensive than whoever did it at the Lisbon airport where I picked it up. The guy was crawling under the car with a flashlight and ruler taking photos. It took about 10 minutes. He found and photo documented many minor items like a 3cm scratch on a wheel and some not some minor like a loose bumper and dangling reverse sensor.
Luckily, they fooled me into buying full coverage when I rented by quoting me for 2 days and not the 2.5 I needed. It seemed like a deal, so I took the coverage. Then Sixt charges a full extra day for returning a car more than 30 min late. I returned it 2hrs late, but thought I had rented it for 3 days, so returned 22 hrs early. They also have a 10 euro processing fee for a late return.
Sixt in CLT already has something similar and another important thing to take note is for one-way rentals between a location without the system the system and a location with the system. I experienced that, getting a car in RDU that doesn't have the system and returning in CLT. After the return, a few days later I got the email about damages that the system detected (which you can see by the photos that were...
Sixt in CLT already has something similar and another important thing to take note is for one-way rentals between a location without the system the system and a location with the system. I experienced that, getting a car in RDU that doesn't have the system and returning in CLT. After the return, a few days later I got the email about damages that the system detected (which you can see by the photos that were actual small scratches).
The damage was not made by me, but it was not properly documented by the Sixt RDU team (I was also not cautious to video the car on the pickup, since I "trusted" for being in US and for big car rental comapny, situation that I never had problems before). I had to escalate inside Sixt executive team to have the damage dropped, but it was a painful experience.
As other said, always record, if you are picking up in places with or without the system, US or OUS.
Same here, but in Europe. Took a SIXT at an outstation with no electronic check, then returned it at an airport station with the drive thru system. For the first time in dozens and dozens of SIXT rentals I got a $2,500 charge for some dents and scratches. I’m very certain I didn’t cause these damages. Eventually I got this reimbursed by Chase SR insurance but it was just annoying.
How do they address false-positives? No damage but the AI says there is. we all know the favorite words of service industry - "The computer says...."
That's what worries me. In Fairbanks I reported a windshield crack when I got my rental (only car available), and still got charged for it at the end and had to push back.
You’d be surprised how little major car rental agencies care about minor scratches and dings. It costs the agency more to take the car out of service to get such a minor blemish repaired than it does the resale value, so I don’t expect this to suddenly result in renters getting dinged a whole lot more for damage. If anything, this is going to help catch more major damage before it leaves the lot, protecting the renter that doesn’t inspect the car before leaving.
My experience is that they care about scratches a lot. Of course they don't take the car out of service to repair it - but they will sure as hell charge you for the damage you caused. If anything, I found smaller independent car rentals to be much more "forgiving" about minor stuff. At least on our side of the pond.
In Europe you will get charged for even the most minor scratch or ding. They go over the notice with a fine toothcomb when you drop off,
Hertz should be more focused on car safety and not appearances. Any body damage or otherwise should be specifically disclosed to renters at the time of rental. Any safety issues should be enough to take the car out of circulation.
I would hope that Hertz would have employees manually checking the system to make sure it doesn’t start charging for things that are no fault of the customer. while technology is rapidly improving every day, we’re still not at the point where I would trust a computer to start automatically charging people for things like this. While it works well for obvious damage, I wouldn’t be surprised if the computer simply starts nitpicking.
On a serious note, I would probably make a video of the car before picking it up in locations with this technology. In theory good idea, in reality there will need to be a few teething pains to get through.
Would the customer get a record of the scan result when picking up the car?
You should always be doing this, AI or not. I always take a full video walk around at pickup and right before drop-off. Silvercar once claimed I cracked the windshield of an SUV but I immediately emailed them the video time-stamped right before drop-off and boom, allegation withdrawn.
Ben says "the burden is really on the person renting the car to prove a lack of damage" but I'd say the biggest priority for us is to detect and document all the damage we can find...before taking the car. The whole problem in this area is Hertz failing to detect damage from a previous customer, then blaming it on you. @Klaus_S is right: failed detection of real damage is a threat to you, the...
Ben says "the burden is really on the person renting the car to prove a lack of damage" but I'd say the biggest priority for us is to detect and document all the damage we can find...before taking the car. The whole problem in this area is Hertz failing to detect damage from a previous customer, then blaming it on you. @Klaus_S is right: failed detection of real damage is a threat to you, the renter, just as much as "false positives" when you return the vehicle. I'm not convinced Hertz will be happy with this innovation.
Will Hertz issue arrest warrants for those who return a car with a blemish?
Amazon already uses the same technology:
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/transportation/amazon-automated-vehicle-inspection
Alamo at SJU uses the same or a similar system. Photos and videos done at exit gate, email a few minutes later detailing damages to vehicle. More efficient than human notes.
What happens if I return the car with plenty of mudspots…or if i specifically cover a scratch with mud…
This will spell the end for credit card insurance; there will be way too many claims for a small scrape or ding that previously all went unnoticed. Publicly traded company has to maximize profits.
What if the insurance has an excess?
UVeye should develop technology to assess carry on for size, that would be fun.
That is actually a great idea.
Not a great idea. My carry on case is less than an inch taller than the smallest cary on regulations dictate, but substantially slimmer and narrower and a hardbody and always fits in overhead bins, even in little E175 overhead bins. If they get all legalistic on the dimensions I'm effed - and I am not one of the problem people with massively oversized bags.