Having flat tires in cars is a normal event that occasionally takes place.
The bad part here is that they’re unavoidable, as you can’t do anything to stop them from happening.
It gets, even more, worst when you rent a car and get a flat tire. In the case of Enterprise car rental, what can you do about this? Does Enterprise have a policy for this? Read on to find out.
Overview of Enterprise flat tire policy
On Enterprise, there are generally not many policies guiding how flat tires on a rental vehicle should be handled. However, you should take note of the few available.
Firstly, a renter is responsible for any expenses made when working on a flat tire, whether worked by Enterprise roadside assistance or a third-party car workshop.
Enterprise doesn’t even care to know whether you’re at fault or not.
The only exception to this would be when you have proof that the tire had an issue before being rented out to you.
Following Enterprise flat tire policy…
If you signed up for Enterprise roadside assistance before renting the car, the company would help you fix the car tire, as long as you’re not on a restricted area. You won’t also be paying for labor, as well.
However, if the damage is too much, for instance, total tire damage, you’d have to pay for that, as Enterprise’s roadside assistance doesn’t cover any extra purchases made while fixing a broken rental car.
The company would also come to help you if you didn’t sign up for the Enterprise roadside assistance but called later for help.
However, you’ll be charged for any purchases needed, at the highest possible rate. This is done, to make a difference between the people who pre-signed and the ones who didn’t.
You also get charged an admin fee, alongside.
Alternatively, you could service the rental car through a third-party car workshop. This works best if you didn’t initially sign up for roadside assistance; No admin fees, Relatively cheaper, and much more comfortable.
Note that you are allowed to do this, provided the tires are fixed properly by a professional.
Here’s what to do if you get a flat tire on an Enterprise rental car
On the FAQ page addressing flat tires, the company only goes on to say “if you get a flat tire, ensure to call the roadside assistance at 1-800-307-6666.”
If you signed up for road assistance, this should be the first step to take.
However, judging for a number of reasons, this might not be much of a help, if you didn’t initially sign up for the roadside assistance, as the company would want to bump you with high charges and an admin fee.
Read also: Overview of Enterprise Smoking policy
So what step should you take if you didn’t sign up for roadside assistance? Below they are:
Check the trunk of the car for repair toolkit
If you notice that your rental car’s tire is down, the first to take would be to take the car to a safe location, void of too many cars.
While parked, make sure to satisfy every safety requirement such as the presence of a triangle light either the behind the car, or a turned-on hazard light.
Next, you’ll want to check the trunk of the car for a repair toolkit, in a case where there’s one. Enterprise is most likely not to leave a tire toolkit. But who knows? You could just be lucky.
If a repair toolkit is present, you can try fixing the car if you can.
However, if you can’t, you can easily get someone to help you.
Take the car to a workshop
If you can’t fix the tire yourself, or there are no spare tires or tire toolkits on the car’s trunk, you might want to take the car to a workshop.
You can either do this by asking people around for a closeby car workshop or by using your Google maps to find one.
Make a recheck on any insurance policy you have
Many insurance/finance programs and associations do come with perks for being a member. One of these perks is basic Roadside assistance, likely to only cover flat tires, dead batteries, and keys locked in the car. It may also include towing services, and trip interruption coverage
Read also: Can you get removed from Enterprise Do not rent?
A typical example of this is the AAA insurance program, which offers a free basic roadside assistance plan to all of its members, provided they reside within the US and Canada.
You could also do well to check your credit card company’s policy to see if they offer a thing like Roadside assistance.
If you also signed up for third-party roadside assistance, it could also be of help.
In any of these cases, it’d be best you contact the roadside assistance team of the company either via social media, call, or customer care. Depending on the location, they’re most likely going to help you fix the car.
Final Thoughts
Generally, Enterprise doesn’t have a strict policy for flat tires. You could either use their roadside assistance if you signed for it earlier or fix the car yourself, any way you can.
However, it’s worth mentioning that you’re fully responsible for the fee which could be incurred while the car is being fixed (whether fixed by Enterprise or not).
