According to a news report on INC.com, Hertz is being hit by more than one hundred civil lawsuits accusing Hertz of false arrest. Many of the complainants have several months in jail for driving Hertz rental cars that they had legally rented. The news report states that some car rental customers claim that Hertz errantly reported […]
According to a news report on INC.com, Hertz is being hit by more than one hundred civil lawsuits accusing Hertz of false arrest. Many of the complainants have several months in jail for driving Hertz rental cars that they had legally rented. The news report states that some car rental customers claim that Hertz errantly reported the cars they rented as stolen to law enforcement. The issue occurred when they extended their car rental, and their credit or debit card declined Hertz’s temporary hold. Many of the claimants stated that Hertz affirmed that their rental car agreements had been extended. However, the rental car customers indicated that they were arrested for driving legally rental automobiles. The news report states that some customers who had been falsely arrested for auto theft have accepted settlements from Hertz.
In a recent hearing, the judge permitted a false arrest lawsuit against Hertz to proceed to the next step- discovery. Now Hertz will be required to turn over documents and records to the Plaintiff’s attorneys.
Hertz defense attorneys in the hearing stated that the percentage of people going to jail or filing lawsuits was “tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny.” According to the victims in these cases, they would have preferred renting cars from a company where their chance of being falsely arrested was zero and not just “tiny.”
A news article on CBSNEWS.com states that Hertz files “thousands” of auto theft reports against its customers annually. A Delaware bankruptcy court judge has decided that Hertz must make those accusations of car theft public.
According to Anna Werner, a consumer investigative correspondent with CBS News, a man from Colorado accuses Hertz of wrongly reporting to police that he failed to return his rental car in Georgia. The victim also stated that he has never visited the state of Georgia.
In Hertz’s bankruptcy filing in 2020, the company filed the information on its auto theft reports under seal. According to the legal team at CBS News, they filed a formal objection to Hertz’s endeavor to keep that information and other statistics secret. Although more data is expected to be released by Hertz, there have been approximately 230 false arrest lawsuits affirmed in the company’s bankruptcy case.
The news report estimates that approximately 3,500 customers are accused of auto theft each year. The actual number of those auto theft reports that Hertz admits were false reports have not been made public. However, that information is part of the judge’s unsealing order.
One claimant, a real estate appraiser from Colorado, reported that he was halted by airport customs officers. After the customs officers ran his passport, they informed the victim that he had an outstanding arrest warrant in Georgia. He was wanted for allegedly stealing a Hertz rental car in Georgia. However, the victim stated that he has never rented a vehicle from Hertz, and he has never even visited the state of Georgia. The man stated that he was wrongfully jailed until his attorney could prove that he was in Colorado when Hertz reported the car stolen. The prosecutors dismissed the criminal charges.
Have you or a loved one suffered false arrest? Parker Waichman LLP helps clients receive full monetary compensation for the harm they have received from large companies. Trust your case with our legal professionals. For a free consultation, contact our law firm today by using our live chat or calling 1-800-YOUR-LAWYER (1-800-968-7529).