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Dollar Rent a Car Signature Scam Class Action Lawsuit Print Email
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Tuesday, 28 August 2012 11:43
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Dollar Rent a Car Signature Scam Class Action Lawsuit

By Sarah Pierce

 

Dollar Rent a CarA federal class action lawsuit claims Dollar Rent a Car cheated customers out of millions of dollars by signing them up for insurance and other services they declined. “Consumers now demand their money back,” the Plaintiff says.

“Over the last four years Dollar has implemented a systematic program nationwide through which its employees and agents illegally dupe customers into signing up for collision damage waiver (‘CDW’), car insurance and other added services that consumers have specifically declined. This is not an isolated incident with one consumer, but rather a systematic pattern of conduct that has occurred at a number of Dollar locations located throughout the United States,” the Dollar Rent a Car class action lawsuit says.

The Dollar Rent a Car scam is simple, the class action lawsuit says: At the rental counter, customers who decline additional insurance are asked to sign an electronic pad acknowledging the rental on a signature screen, and are told that signing the screen will indicate they declined the added services. This signature is then transferred to an electronic contract falsely indicating they accepted the insurance. When the duped customer tries to dispute the charges – which can amount to hundreds of dollars – they are ignored or blamed for making a mistake.

“How can Dollar continue to blame consumers if consumers around the country are all saying they were tricked in the same way? Either all the consumers are lying or Dollar has sanctioned and approved a company-wide conspiracy to trick and defraud consumers,” the class action lawsuit says.

So how does Dollar Rent a Car get its employees to obtain signatures through “trickery, fraud or outright forgery?” According to the class action lawsuit, the company provides incentives of up to 12% commission on the sales of collision damage waiver, insurance and other products. As a result, Dollar representatives that are paid minimum wage can take home up to $6,000 per month in additional compensation through such practices.

“Dollar has received multiple complaints about these issues but incentivizes its employees to make such sales, even by illegal means. If employees fail to obtain an average 30 per day upsales of additional options for three months they may be terminated and not eligible for unemployment,” the Dollar Rent a Car class action lawsuit claims. “Employees are thus incentivized to take advantage of the customers’ irritation, long lines, and misleading or high pressure sales tactics, by just telling them to tap certain lines to decline coverage when it may have the opposite result, or simply forge their signature.”
 
The Dollar Rent a Car signature scam class action lawsuit is brought on behalf of Dollar customers who paid for CDW, insurance and other products from Dollar that they specifically declined or did not authorize during the past four years. It is seeking actual, compensatory, statutory and exemplary damages and an injunction barring Dollar from continuing this alleged scheme.

A copy of the Dollar Rent a Car Signature Scam Class Action Lawsuit can be read here.

The case is Sandra McKinnon v. Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc. d/b/a Dollar Rent a Car, et al., Case No. 12-cv-4457, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, Oakland Courthouse. The Plaintiff is represented by the law firm Whatley Kallas, Inc.
 

 

Updated August 28th, 2012

 

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Last Updated on Thursday, 27 December 2012 11:09

Comments   

 
#3 Sheldon Katz 2013-04-09 08:21
My flight was three hours late and we came up to NY on a family emergency, my 101 year old mother had fractured her femur and we were in a hurry to get to the hospital. I never take insurance or roadside assistance. I'm covered by my auto insurance and AMOCO motor club
 
 
#2 Sheldon Katz 2013-04-09 08:18
Aug 13 through Aug 20 2012. rented acar from Dollar. I declined everything however when signing for the rental, I found on returning the car a $230 charge for insurance and roadside assistance. The charge was disputed through AMEX. The company showed AMEX that I signed a contract for the insurance.
 
 
#1 John Omara 2013-04-08 15:04
I rented a Dollar Rental in Fort Myers, Fl for March 20 - 29, 2013. The Dollar contract is for $275.96. However, when I picked up the car I was told that because I did not have a "BP card" there would be an additional charge of $88. On the receipt the $88.charged is listed as "upgrade". However, I specifically said I did not want nor did I receive an upgrade.
 

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