How to Sue Hertz Rent A Car in Small Claims Court

So you’re looking to sue Hertz Rent A Car?

At FairShake we’ve helped thousands of people ripped off by big companies like Hertz Rent A Car. And we’ve helped get millions of dollars in settlement offers…

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Tired of hitting dead ends when trying to get a refund from Hertz Rent A Car? Feeling like there’s nowhere to turn?

You’re not alone. It seems like many people have tried all the Hertz Rent A Car customer service options, but still feel unheard.

There are different ways to file a complaint against Hertz Rent A Car, but none have the same power and leverage as taking legal action.

So, if you’re thinking of suing Hertz Rent A Car, where do you even start? You might expect there to be tons of class action lawsuits against them, but it’s often more complicated than that.

What many people don’t know is that hidden clauses buried deep within their contracts frequently allow companies like Hertz Rent A Car to push legal claims into the private realm of consumer arbitration, away from conventional courts.

But here’s the thing: your Hertz Rent A Car contract doesn’t have the power to take away your right to pursue legal action by suing them.

Here’s what you can do…

Two options to Sue Hertz Rent A Car:

Consumer Arbitration: This involves accessing an official and independent dispute resolution process that is not a court. It provides an opportunity to seek compensation for your complaint without the need to appear in person. For many, this can be a preferable option.To find out if you can take Hertz Rent A Car to arbitration, you can check your contract or user agreement with them. Many companies’ standard contract are available on their websites. You can do a search for “arbitration” arbitration within the contract text — it is usually mentioned near the very top of a contract.
Learn more about the consumer arbitration process here.
Small Claims Court: If you prefer to avoid the arbitration system, you can opt for Small Claims Court. You should know that the procedures for Small Claims Court may vary depending on your jurisdiction.Taking Hertz Rent A Car to Small Claims Court will typically involve appearing in person and completing necessary forms.

If you’re ready to sue Hertz Rent A Car in Small Claims Court, read on below:

Taking Hertz Rent A Car to Small Claims Court Step-by-Step

Are you even able to sue Hertz Rent A Car in small claims court? Does your claim qualify?

Before you can sue Hertz Rent A Car, you have to make sure that your claim qualifies. Small claims courts have very specific rules regarding what cases they will accept so you have to check on two things.

The first is the type of compensation you are asking for. When you sue Hertz Rent A Car, you have to ask them for compensation and in most courts that can come in the form of monetary compensation or money, or it can come in the form of Equitable compensation which is basically anything else. However, small claims courts will generally only award compensation that is monetary. So, if you have a problem with damage to a vehicle you would need to convert that to a monetary figure before you bring your case before a judge.
The second is the amount of money you are asking for in compensation. Every state is different in terms of the monetary limits they place on small claims courts. Some can be as low as $2,500 and others as high as $10,000. You can find a list of all 50 states’ monetary limits here.

If your claim doesn’t fall within the limits of your state’s small claims court, you’ll have to arbitrate your claim instead.

Send your demand letter.

Assuming your case qualifies and it meets these two parameters, the first step to sue Hertz Rent A Car is to ask them to fix the problem voluntarily.

Small claims courts require that you do this in almost every case because they want to make sure you’ve exercised every option to resolve the problem on your own before you sue Hertz Rent A Car. This is called the demand letter. It can be very simple and straightforward, nothing more than a few sentences that explains your contact information, if you have one an account number with the company, what the problem is, and how you want them to fix it.

When you are done you need to mail a hard copy of the letter to the official address. According to our most recent research, Hertz Rent A Car is legally based in Delaware and receives mail at this address:

The Hertz Corporation
C/O THE CORPORATION TRUST COMPANY
CORPORATION TRUST CENTER 1209 ORANGE ST
WILMINGTON, DE 19801

If you would like examples of demand letters or more information about how to write them, you can find an excellent guide here.

Fill out the court forms.

If they don’t respond to this demand letter now you can sue Hertz Rent A Car in small claims court. Initiate this process by filling out the right paperwork. Every state court is different in terms of what paperwork they require. You can look up the requirements on your state court website.

There are certain counties that have additional requirements so be sure to check on that.

Also make sure you review how many copies you need for every document. It’s quite common for courts to require you bring three or four copies. If you don’t have the right copies, you won’t be able to sue Hertz Rent A Car today.

File the forms with the court.

After you have filled out the forms it’s time to bring them to the court. This is the official process called filing. When you file your documents with the court you have to first pay the small claims court filing fee before you can sue Hertz Rent A Car.

If you are a low-income plaintiff you might be able to have this fee waived.

The clerk will review the forms, stamp them, give you back your copies, and assign you a hearing date. Bear in mind that most courts require you physically come to the courthouse to deliver these documents in person. In some rare cases, you might be able to get away with mailing them into your court depending on where you live.

“Serve” your forms on Hertz.

Once you have the copies, you have to officially serve Hertz Rent A Car. This is where you notify them that they are being sued.

Every state has different parameters for how this process is to be done. It’s important that you look at your court website to figure out what the rules are and that you follow each of them.

If you fail to follow even one of these rules, it can be grounds to have your case thrown out with no compensation.

Show up for court.

Don’t forget about that court date. In order to finalize the process when you sue Hertz Rent A Car, you have to go to your court date.

Bring any evidence you have to back up why you decided to sue Hertz Rent A Car, as well as the filed court documents from earlier.

The company may or may not send someone to oppose you but in any case it’s your job to convince the judge that you have a valid claim and deserve compensation.

Ready to sue Hertz in small claims court?
If this sounds too hard and expensive, try consumer arbitration instead…

How to Sue Hertz Rent A Car