BRITS are being slapped with bills of hundreds of pounds for repairs on hire cars which are never actually carried out.
The Daily Mail reports car hire firms Avis Budget and Enterprise, which also owns Alamo and National, don't always fix dents and scratches they charge customers for.
They claim they accept a lower price when they sell the car instead.
Meanwhile Europcar says it doesn't always carry out repairs until it is about to get rid of a car.
This costs much less as one job can take care of multiple problems for a lower price than individual repairs.
Hire car drivers usually pay the insurance excess of a repair bill - but it's sometimes based on hypothetical repair costs which aren't actually incurred.
Earlier this month, it was reported Brit families could face bills of more than £2,000 if they damage a hire car while travelling abroad.
A Europcar spokesman declined to comment on whether the firm sometimes fails to fix damage before resale.
And an Enterprise spokesman said in 97 per cent of cases cars are "repaired soon after" a customer is charge.
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He told the Mail: "Occasionally we charge for damage but do not repair vehicles if they are due to be sold… we would accept that they have a lower resale value."
Meanwhile a spokesman for Avis Budget said it repairs damage immediately if there is a safety issue, adding other repairs may be carried out as part of a resale or after another rental.
Sometimes, it does not repair the car and "absorbs a reduction in the sales price".
The British Vehicle Renting and Leasing Association added firms often use a price "matrix" that estimates repair costs.
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