Rental car damage dispute headed to collections despite police report showing I wasn’t at fault
Location: Indiana
I’m trying to figure out whether I need an attorney and what my next steps should be regarding a rental car damage claim that may be headed to collections.
A few months ago I was involved in an accident with another driver. State Farm insured the other driver and accepted responsibility for the original accident involving my personal vehicle. While my vehicle was being repaired, State Farm paid for a rental vehicle through Enterprise.
Later, the rental vehicle was involved in a second accident while parked, and I was not inside the vehicle at the time. According to the police report and responding officer, I was not the at-fault party in that incident either.
Enterprise is now pursuing me directly for the rental damages and has threatened collections/legal action if the balance is not resolved within 10 days. I have already:
obtained the police report,
provided the report to Enterprise,
opened a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance,
and documented all communications.
Enterprise has also banned me from renting through Enterprise and affiliated companies while this is unresolved.
One thing that concerns me is that when State Farm originally arranged the rental, the adjuster reviewed my insurance and told me I would be covered through my insurance while using the rental vehicle. That apparently turned out to be incorrect after the second accident occurred.
My questions are:
Is Enterprise allowed to send this to collections while liability is still disputed and an insurance claim is active?
Should the at-fault driver’s insurance ultimately be responsible for Enterprise’s damages if liability is accepted?
Does the State Farm adjuster’s statement about coverage matter legally if I relied on it?
At what point should I involve an attorney?