Blockbuster had late fees. Apparently, Hertz (the car rental company) has damage fees – turbo-charged by AI.
Hertz, the “we try harder” folks, started to deploy an AI-powered scanner for vehicle inspections (the thing you do when you return your rental, and, in the old days, a human walks around the car to see if you have any dings on it). The scanners reportedly identify slight dings (the stuff a human would just ignore) and immediately send you a bill:
“If you followed our last story involving the wheel scuff, you know that UVeye—the firm that produces and operates the scanners—and Hertz like to secure payment of these fees as quickly as possible. They do this by discounting the charge if the customer admits fault and pays within seven days. Foley said that Hertz offered to knock $65 off the bill if he paid immediately. Furthermore, we’ve heard that contacting a human agent at the company to discuss or contest the charges is very difficult, and not possible within the web portal where customers can view and pay for damages. You have to call a separate support line instead, though Hertz doesn’t seem to make that very clear.”
There might be a good reason for Hertz to act like this:
“I suspect the math of investing in such expensive technology indicated they needed to go to extortive levels to get a [return on investment].”
