Hertz is installing UVeye inspection portals at its biggest U.S. airports this year. Atlanta was the first, but they expect to hit 100 airports before 2025 is over.
Now they scan cars as they’re being returned – vehicles drive through a camera‑and‑sensor tunnel and get an ‘MRI for vehicles’ to log damage in a way that rental staff never did before. It also finds hard to spot damage such as under the vehicle, uneven tire wear, hairline cracks in the windshield.
It seems that hotels may be getting ready to follow suit.
[H]otels, for instance, are already using AI-powered sensors to monitor air quality and trigger fines for smoking or vaping in rooms. But Hollander warns that sometimes the sensors trigger false positives.
“Like someone using a hairdryer or aerosol spray — and guests get hit with $500 charges without ever lighting up. It’s not hard to imagine how that could go south quickly,” Hollander said.
..“They’re using AI more to flag potential issues — like a room that smells off, linens that don’t meet standards, or maintenance problems — and then looping in a human for the final call,” Hollander said. For now, the AI is acting more like a very observant assistant than a judge and jury.
“But it’s clear that hotels are heading in the same direction,” he said. “Between computer vision that can detect damage or wear in a room, and AI that analyzes guest behavior or room conditions in real time, the tech is already there.”
The problem with Hertz AI scanning of vehicles before and after rental is:
- They take photos at different angles and in different lighting, so pre-existing damage may be missed at the start of the rental, and blamed on the customer when the car is returned
- It represents a shift from not whacking every customer for every ding (normal wear and tear) to going after 5x more customers for things that used to be too minor to bother with
- They layer on multiple sets of fees, and apply their own damage estimates, so the costs they pursue against the customer seem disproportionate and unreasonable
- And they discount the charges for customers who pay right away – while eliminating the discounts for those who argue (because getting a response to any dispute over the charges pushes the customer beyond the window for ‘discounting’ to a more reasonable charge).
The problem with hotels adopting a Hertz model of scanning rooms for damage, scuffs, furniture out of place or missing items mirrors the frustrations customers have with Hertz but goes absolutely beyond those.
- The AI scanners watch the room. How do you know they aren’t monitoring you while you are in the room? There’s a huge privacy violation in having what’s (temporarily) your personal space watched by an AI.
- The damage might be done by housekeeping, but the guest gets blamed!
Plus, there hotels are so much more competitive. There really aren’t great rental car companies. It’s a terrible business, with mostly a terrible product. You can leave Hertz (and you probably should) but Avis is only marginally better. National looks good by comparison, but there’s no real premium rental car experience at scale. Hotels, on the other hand, could actually win business by promising to respect their guests.
(HT: Gene)
Not hotels single handedly making Airbnb sound more attractive again lol
Wash the vehicle before you return the vehicle but don’t dry it. The scanner wo t be able to detect damage
People will stop renting cars and hotels they will put themselves out of business. People are no longer stupid.
It will get air bnbs more work. Not smart . Like food raise prices so much people will stop buying them they go out of business. People are sick of these greedy ass companies hungry for more cash. They will end up with none….
I was recently in Las Vegas and upon our return, my bank called about possible fraud on my card. The hotel had charged me $500 for smoking in our room. WE DO NOT SMOKE! Or vape or anything like that. They never called us or gave us an opportunity to dispute it. We had to dispute with our card and we were credited back. Ridiculous!!
Exactly why we no longer rent from Hertz! Or, Sixt in Europe – 4 stellar Sixt rentals could not outweigh the outrageous scam and harassment courtesy of the Venice Airport location.
Smokers are another aggravation, and we’ll no longer be lenient about reporting those who do. At one hotel we often frequent, we can smell the smoke but can’t see the smokers. I can, however, narrow the room down to 3 choices, which security should be able to sort out.
Having a credit card company that will always back you up in a dispute situation is worth its weight in gold!
One of the main reasons I’ve rented from Hertz is the hassle-free return and pick up of the cars. Unlike places like Enterprise that are scams waiting to ding you on something.
I’ve never had an issue with them in the last 20 years.
However if they go to this model a lot of long-time customers like myself will have to reevaluate our choice.