How Should Rental Companies Assess Damage With AI In The Mix?

For years, returning a rental car involved a slightly nerve-wracking moment: the handoff. Parking it for the last time sometimes comes with crossing fingers and praying to deities that the rental car company doesn’t charge you for damage you didn’t cause. Now, Hertz is trying to tackle that issue with the use of AI cameras.

Surprisingly, the system seems to be performing better than Hertz executives had predicted, though not necessarily in a way that reassures customers.

The Promise of Objectivity

At select airport locations, for now at least, Hertz uses UVEye, a system that automatically scans vehicles for damage during drop off. In theory, it’s a step forward. AI and cameras promise objectivity, consistency, and a verifiable record of damage between each rental. The company says that it only flags marks over one inch in length, and that 97 percent of rentals return damage-free.

More: Hertz AI Complaints Are Spreading Faster Than The Damage It Flags

Sadly, some renters say that the tech isn’t living up to the promise. One long-time customer says they’ll never return after the system allegedly detected damage that wasn’t really there. They even recorded a video of the alleged damage after the system detected it. That didn’t matter. Staff on-site blamed the scanner, said they couldn’t override it, and directed the customer to the helpline that reportedly didn’t help at all.

That kind of scenario is raising a bigger question: How should rental companies assess damage fairly? AI sounds appealing and is unquestionably powerful, but it’s imperfect. Human inspections are even more subjective at times. Not only do they likely miss more damage, but at times they detect it long after it actually happened.

The Balance Between Trust and Accountability

Hertz, and every other rental company, rightly want to only hold accountable those who are actually responsible for damage. After all, each of us would want our car repaired by the responsible party if we lent it out and it came back with a ding, a broken windshield, or something worse. But how can they do that in the best way possible?

Rental cars are going to end up with rock chips, unintentional door dings, and other random bits of tiny damage. Even if a brand doesn’t repair every ding and dent, those blemishes do affect value when it’s time to resell the car. If you were in charge of a rental car company and had to pay for that damage one way or another, how would you make it fair for the customer? Let us know in the comments below!

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