A Fife man has been refunded after having £3,000 taken from his bank account in a row with a courtesy car hire firm.
Scott McCormack says he was left almost penniless after the money was taken directly from his account last week.
Scott, an accountant from Tayport, says he and his family were left relying on an overdraft and a credit card while he disputed the decision by Enterprise Rent-A-Car to take the cash.
It happened after the firm claimed he was responsible for causing damage to a courtesy car he was using.
What caused the dispute?
Scott was given the vehicle by Enterprise Rent-A-Car in December, while he awaited repairs being carried out on his Mazda.
Weeks after picking the car up from the branch on Seagate in Dundee, Scott says he noticed the clutch was not releasing fully and it was eventually returned.
But about a fortnight later he was told by the company he was being held liable for the damage, which an engineer claimed had been due to driver error.
He was told to expect an invoice for £3,075, despite disagreeing with the firm’s stance.
‘I’m not a boy racer’
Scott contacted his insurer, LV=, and claims he was told the situation would be sorted on his behalf.
But Enterprise eventually took the money from his bank account, with LV= then saying there was nothing it could do.
Scott told The Courier: “I am not a boy racer. I am 44 years old. I don’t ‘ride the clutch’ or wheel spin.
“I had the money in the account on that day, but this took me into my overdraft.
“I had to use my credit card for food shopping because we had nothing else.”
However, after The Courier raised the matter with Enterprise, the rental firm said it had made the decision to refund Scott in full.
He is also to receive £100 from his insurer as a goodwill gesture.
A spokesperson for the multinational company said: “We have fully investigated the case and been in contact with the customer on a number of occasions.
“The outcome of this investigation is that we have refunded the customer in full and will inform him of this decision.”
I hope this story helps other people in a similar situation know that there is hope
Scott has thanked The Courier for taking up the case, adding: “I am delighted that this saga is coming to an end.
“The whole issue has left me frustrated at all companies involved, most of which are supposed to be there to help me or the customer.
“I hope this story helps other people in a similar situation know that there is hope.”
Decision by Enterprise ‘not taken lightly’
A spokesperson for LV= said: “We recognise the situation Mr McCormack found himself in was extremely difficult.
“We understand that the original decision by Enterprise wasn’t made lightly and they were acting under the guidance from an engineer who had inspected the car.
“After discussing the issue with them further we were pleased that they decided to refund Mr McCormack, particularly given the distress it was causing to both him and his family.”