Just like everything else from groceries to apartments these days, car rentals are much more expensive then they used to be.
In the last decade, the price of a car rental has gone up by 29.2%, per data from Nerdwallet. Although they’re not as high as they were in 2021, the year after the pandemic, you can still expect to fork out a chunk of cash if you’re in need of a rental.
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Where you rent the car also matters when it comes to how much you’ll have to spend. Miami was the best deal as of 2024 ($377.07 for a week-long rental) among cities with large, heavily traveled airports, while New York, Chicago, and Seattle had the highest rates ($590-$624).
Consumers who are used to renting cars on work trips or who travel frequently for leisure will be all too familiar with the process of having the vehicle photographed before and after to document its condition in case it’s damaged during the rental duration.
Related: Hertz absorbed a massive loss after electric vehicle fire sale
Now, Hertz (HTZ) is introducing a new documentation process that will be less time-consuming, which seems like a boon for the consumer and the rental company alike. But according to some customers, it can also come with an unexpected new fee that could add hundreds to your bill.
The legacy rental company is embracing new tech, but it comes with some bumps.
Image source: Shutterstock
Hertz’s new scanner system
Earlier this year, Hertz partnered with an Israeli tech company called UVeye to introduce a new way to check the condition of car rentals when they depart and return to the rental lot.
The system is called Digital Vehicle Inspection (DVI) and uses AI technology to capture the data. Hertz says it enhances the rental experience by providing clear, detailed documentation of the vehicle condition. The customer is then able to view before and after photos taken via an app.
That all sounds like it would be a time-saver — but some Hertz customers report being charged additional fees for small defects that they deem unfair.
According to a customer who rented a car from Hertz at the Atlanta airport and spoke with The Drive, the DVI detected a one-inch scuff on the driver’s side rear wheel when he returned the vehicle.
Within minutes, the customer was slapped with a charge: $250 for the repair, $125 for processing, and another $65 administrative fee, totaling $440.
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The customer was also notified that he could get a $52 discount on the fee if he agreed to the terms and paid within two days, or a $32.50 discount if he paid within a week. When he tried to speak to a customer service agent, he was redirected to a chatbot.
While Hertz gave a statement to The Drive saying that “the vast majority of rentals are incident-free,” the company did not answer when asked whether damage-related fees are higher when renting vehicles from Hertz stores that use UVeye scanners versus ones that don’t.
Will other rental companies use the system?
Hertz is aiming to implement the scanners at 100 of its roughly 1,600 U.S. airport locations by the end of 2025.
Hertz also owns several other rental car companies, including Thrifty, Dollar, and Firefly. TheStreet has reached out to Hertz to find out if the DVI will be used at these as well.
UVeye revealed the partnership with Hertz in April 2025, saying, “Hertz is setting a new standard for vehicle maintenance and fleet management in the rental industry, and we’re thrilled to partner with them,” said UVeye CEO Amir Hever.
Hertz has also drawn past customer criticism for its practices. In 2022, the rental car company faced claims that it falsely accused 364 people of stealing its vehicles. Some of the accused were arrested, charged with felony, and in some cases served time in prison.
In December 2022, Hertz announced it would pay $168 million to settle the claims.
Hertz has also faced other struggles. In the last four years, the car rental company has been through five different CEOs. It also filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2020, but re-emerged in June 2021 after a restructuring process.