We are in summer, and with it comes road trips or the occasions when we rent a car to get around at our destination. Well, I advise you to do a good market research when choosing a car rental company, as Hertz and Sixt seem to be causing problems for users. According to The Drive, Hertz has implemented the use of artificial intelligence to detect damages on their vehicles at the moment of delivery and return by customers. The problem is that it is not only attributing damages to the wrong clients, but is even inventing them. The technology used by Hertz, UVeye, has been charging hundreds of dollars to customers who had nothing to do with the imposed fines.
For its part, Sixt is also using another AI, Car Gate, which is generating the same problems. As of the date of writing this article, Hertz only offers this service at airports in the United States, but it plans to expand it to 100 locations by the end of the year 2025, according to the New York Post. The social network Reddit has also been filled with testimonies from users affected by damage penalties on vehicles. Despite the companies’ lack of accountability, the fines were reversed, but both companies continue to use the same tools.
The use of artificial intelligence in companies
More and more companies are incorporating the use of artificial intelligence tools into their production or service delivery processes. After all, which company is going to resist a cost reduction adorned with technological innovation? None. There are many and varied uses for this type of tool, such as the automation of manufacturing processes in automotive factories, voice assistants that are increasingly present in more homes, data analysis to personalize the user experience, and a long etcetera. Given this, how could car rental companies stay out of it? No way.
Hertz & UVeye
World-renowned, it is a car rental company present in almost every part of the planet. It specializes in renting cars for general use, both from airports and urban offices. You might recognize names like Dollar, Thrifty, or Firefly, which are other brands under which it operates. Apart from the large number of vehicles it offers and its global presence, Hertz has invested in incorporating artificial intelligence into its workforce.
Since April 2025, the company has launched UVeye, an artificial intelligence capable of detecting scratches, dents, or damages in general on the vehicles. The purpose is to check if the rented vehicles have any damage at the moment the user returns them. For the moment, they only have this service at the airports, but they intend to expand it to 100 locations before the end of 2025.
Problems with UVeye
Hertz claims that the AI only detects billable damages, but the truth is that this is not the case. The Drive has reported multiple instances where customers have been billed for the most insignificant damage. But there is more, UVeye has even gone so far as to invent damages on vehicles and charge them to customers’ accounts. Despite the fact that the social media platform Reddit has also been filled with testimonies from affected users, Hertz points to the AI, shirking any type of responsibility.
Sixt does not lag behind
Sixt, another well-known company dedicated to vehicle rentals, has also followed in Hertz’s footsteps. In their case, they have begun to use Car Gate; another artificial intelligence system that scans for vehicle damage. According to The Drive, two customers claimed they were charged two fines for damages that the vehicle already had before renting it. The most serious issue with Sixt is that at the time of delivery, there are human personnel who also check the cars, and yet, there are cases of erroneous fines.
Fortunately for those affected, the fines were reversed, but the terrible user experience offered by the company will cause greater losses in the short and long term. The best thing will be to take a book of the vehicle at the time of delivery and collection, in case there is a need to claim for erroneous fines.