Photo: Hertz
This spring, Hertz’s image was tainted after several horror stories surfaced about people being falsely accused of car theft and arrested at gunpoint. Investigation revealed that Hertz filed thousands of bogus stolen car reports, and many of those affected sued the company. Now Hertz agreed to pay $168 million to settle most of these lawsuits.
The payout will settle 364 claims, accounting for more than 95% of the pending claims related to accusations of false theft reports. Nevertheless, the company revealed in court documents earlier this year that it files roughly 3,400 police reports annually for car thefts. Nonetheless, it is not clear how many of these reports are false. The company is expected to pay the full settlement amount by the end of the year.
Reports of the false theft claims lawsuits emerged in February when a Colorado man told CBS News that he was arrested at an airport after Hertz wrongly reported to police that he failed to return a car in Georgia. Not only has he never been to Georgia in his life, but he has never rented a car from Hertz. The man, whose name is Drew Seaser, according to BBC, had to spend 24 hours in jail following his arrest.
In many other cases, the customers said they returned the cars they were accused of stealing and had paid for them in full. Although the cases started to appear earlier this year, the first reports of people being falsely accused of stealing rented cars from Hertz surfaced as early as 2018. In a case revealed by ABC, one Hertz customer spent seven months in jail before being released. Those affected sued Hertz, and hundreds of cases were soon opened all over the country.
In June, Hertz sent settlement offers to about three dozen individuals, with checks as fat as $100,000. It took another six months before Hertz announced it had settled most cases opened against it with a $168 million paycheck. The rental company said it believes it will recover a “meaningful portion” of the money from its insurance carriers.
Reports of the false theft claims lawsuits emerged in February when a Colorado man told CBS News that he was arrested at an airport after Hertz wrongly reported to police that he failed to return a car in Georgia. Not only has he never been to Georgia in his life, but he has never rented a car from Hertz. The man, whose name is Drew Seaser, according to BBC, had to spend 24 hours in jail following his arrest.
In many other cases, the customers said they returned the cars they were accused of stealing and had paid for them in full. Although the cases started to appear earlier this year, the first reports of people being falsely accused of stealing rented cars from Hertz surfaced as early as 2018. In a case revealed by ABC, one Hertz customer spent seven months in jail before being released. Those affected sued Hertz, and hundreds of cases were soon opened all over the country.
In June, Hertz sent settlement offers to about three dozen individuals, with checks as fat as $100,000. It took another six months before Hertz announced it had settled most cases opened against it with a $168 million paycheck. The rental company said it believes it will recover a “meaningful portion” of the money from its insurance carriers.
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