I used to be bullied by automotive rent to purchase £581 additional insurance coverage: SALLY SORTS IT

My wife and I fly at least twice a year to Orlando, Florida. We always book a hire car and never have any problems.

But in April, when we went to pick it up from Dollar car rental, the agent refused to let us take the vehicle unless we paid an excess waiver of $738 (£581) for six weeks.

Even though I told him we have our own standalone cover — and showed him the policy number — he would not accept it. Tired after two flights and 18 hours of travel, I felt I had no option but to pay up. I was furious. I complained later but to no avail. Can you help?

J.A., East Lothian

Sally Hamilton replies: Your tale of car hire desk woe made me groan. The hard selling to exhausted travellers is a menace that should be stopped but sadly is likely to continue as long as holidaymakers hire cars.

For years, many travellers have been browbeaten into believing that they had to pay for something called ‘super collision damage waiver’ at the desk.

While hire-car contracts come with a certain level of insurance, this extra policy is designed to cover the bits this doesn’t include — mainly the excess charged on any claim, which is typically £1,000-£2,000.

It may also cover exclusions, such as the cost of a burst tyre or windscreen damage.

But it is not compulsory to take it out. Customers can decide either to take any financial hit themselves, if required, in terms of paying the excess, or, as you did, purchase a standalone policy, which is miles cheaper.

For instance, your annual global policy from iCarhireinsurance cost you £133 — four times cheaper than the Dollar policy that only covered the period of your trip.

If there is an incident where repair bills arise, the driver simply pays the hire firm the agreed excess and then claims the costs back from their policy later.

Whether self-insuring or taking out a standalone plan, drivers will still have the value of the excess ring-fenced on their credit card by the hire firm during the rental period, some or all of which it will keep if a chargeable incident arises.

You were well within your rights to reject the hire firm’s high-pressure sales tactics but felt you had no way out as the agent wouldn’t let you take the car. You and your wife are in your 70s and you say she suffers badly from arthritis, so after the long flight you were both tired and she was in severe pain so wanted to get to your destination quickly.

You took up a complaint with Dollar on your return from Orlando but got nowhere. It hid behind the fact you had signed for the additional cover.

So I took over the wheel and asked Dollar to investigate what had gone wrong and to reimburse you. Within two days the hire firm did a complete about turn and refunded you the full $738.

Dollar apologised to you directly ‘for any misunderstanding’. A spokesman for Hertz, which owns Dollar, tells me: ‘Customer satisfaction is our top priority, and we regret this customer’s experience. While employees are trained to provide information about our value-added services, our vehicle protection plans are optional.

‘We have apologised, issued a refund and will reinforce our policies with staff to ensure clear communication to customers.’

My Dyson Airwrap never worked – why won’t it help? 

My daughter purchased a Dyson Airwrap hairdryer for me last November, and it has never worked. I have contacted Dyson on numerous occasions without resolving the matter. I am so frustrated. It has promised to send a returns label but it never arrives. Please can you help?

M.M., Glasgow

Sally Hamilton replies: You were delighted to receive such a generous gift from your daughter but were mightily disappointed that the £479.99 hairdryer never worked properly.

You used it only three times, as it would shut off after a couple of minutes, and each time you had to wait about 15 minutes for it to restart. You were forced to revert to your old hairdryer. The Dyson Airwrap was clearly faulty.

Under the Consumer Rights Act, purchases must be ‘of satisfactory quality, as described or fit for purpose’ and if they aren’t, the buyer can request a refund, replacement or repair depending on how much time has elapsed since it was bought.

If a problem emerges within 30 days of purchase, buyers can ask for a full refund. You did not realise the hairdryer had an issue until after that because you hadn’t opened the present (purchased in November) until Christmas and didn’t start using it until a couple of weeks later.

The law allows customers six months to return faulty goods unless the retailer can prove the item was not defective when it was bought. It is permitted one opportunity to repair or replace the product, but if that does not work out the customer can request their money back.

You went to great lengths to show Dyson that the hairdryer wasn’t working, including showing an agent via a video call in March that it turned off and could not be restarted. She told you she would arrange for it to be collected, but nobody came.

After contacting Dyson twice more before the end of March, and being assured a courier would collect it, still no one showed up.

In April, you phoned again and were promised a returns label by email so you could post the hairdryer. You were given a 25pc money-off voucher to say sorry but the label never arrived and more empty promises followed.

Anyone buying a hairdryer costing in the region of £500 should expect a fully functioning device and first-class customer service.

I asked Dyson to put things right. I am pleased to say that this time its response was faultless and within days you received a full refund. A spokesman apologised and says: ‘We have been in touch with M.M. and have resolved the issue.’

SCAM WATCH

Households should beware scam emails claiming recipients have won a Bosch drill kit, Action Fraud warns.

Tricksters impersonating hardware store Screwfix write that recipients can claim the drill kit for free.

But links in the emails lead to a survey on a dodgy website which asks you to fill in your personal and financial information.

Action Fraud has received 616 reports of the scam in just two weeks.

Do not click on the links in the email. Forward it to report@phishing.gov.uk instead.