'Shocked me till my jaw dropped': GetGo car user slapped with $4,600 bill after 'small accident'

How much can one bad turn cost you? More than $4,600, according to the experience of one user of local car-sharing platform, GetGo.

In a post shared to the SG Road Vigilante Facebook page on Saturday (Feb 25), the user reported being involved in a "small accident" at the carpark of Novena Square 2.

They ended up being billed for it by GetGo — to the tune of $4,636.80.

Wrote the car-renter: "Be warned if you are renting a GetGo car, or plan to do so! I have heard many horror stories about accident claims from GetGo when involved in a car accident (sic). Until it happens to me, I know it is all real!"

The user shared how they had "grazed a white Mercedes parked next to their car when turning out from the parking lot.

Pictures uploaded to Facebook showed both cars with scratches with a slight dent on the GetGo car.

The user stated that the accident was reported to GetGo immediately and they continued to drive the vehicle till the end of the five-hour rental period. The peson added that a representative from GetGo assessed the damage that night. "The finding is there's a graze to the car and some damage to the paint," wrote the user.

The owner of the Mercedes contacted the user the next day, stating that he was quoted $150 for repairs.

"To compensate him, I proposed to pay him $288 in total. He agreed and we settled it privately," wrote the GetGo user.

The user received a rude shock, however, when a bill from GetGo received on Feb 25 found the user liable to pay $4,636,80 in damages, inclusive of the eight per cent goods and services tax (GST).

Items listed in the bill included the cost of repair for the GetGo car which came up to $960; compensation for the loss of use of the vehicle for three days, which was valued at over $300; as well as $3,000 in third-party damages. All the sums stated were before GST.

According to a copy of the letter shared online, the insurance excess for third-party damages amounted to $3,240.

The user, however, contested all three points, stating that the bill "is just too absurd to believe".

The car-hirer complained of the high repair cost which is "a few times higher than [going] to the workshop to repair it yourself".

Regarding the three days' loss of use, the user noted that the car was returned at 4pm on Feb 16, but was still available for rent on Feb 18.

"How is three days' loss of use calculated?" they questioned.

As for third-party damages, the user shared that with the matter settled privately, they were left wondering where the amount is derived from. The person has since filed an appeal with GetGo.

AsiaOne has reached out to GetGo for more information.

In the comments section, many warned that getting into accidents and incurring a sky-high cost for damages is a risk that drivers have to take when they rent from car-rental companies.

Others voiced their suspicions that even though the accident had been settled privately between the two parties, the Mercedes driver could still have gone ahead to make a claim against the driver with GetGo.

Yet others shared that a better option would be to take public transport or opt for ride-hailing services.

ALSO READ: Car renter gets slapped with $2,200 fine but others say he should've checked condition from the GetGo

candicecai@asiaone.com

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