What Counts as Wear and Tear for Rental Vehicles

In response to rising damage reports, Nexus has a damage reporting tool on our rental management platform that makes it easier to immediately identify and report vehicle damage upon delivery of the rental vehicle. Remember to always check a rental vehicle when it arrives and before it off-hires. 

Our damage processes save our customers thousands of pounds on damage expenditure. 

Damage claims can be expensive to resolve but often you could be covered under fair wear and tear. 

We take a look at what is and is not typically covered as fair wear and tear on rental cars and vehicles: 

Alloy Wheels & Tyre Damage 

✓ Alloy damage, any damage under 20mm circumference on the rim only, and less than 1mm deep of the alloy will be considered  

✕ Any damage to the tyre wall or tread is not considered to be Fair wear and Tear and is chargeable 

✕ Damage to the centre of the wheel spokes or the hub of the wheel is also not considered to be Fair wear and Tear even if the damage is under 20mm 

Bodywork/Paintwork/Bumpers 

 ✓ Dents under 10mm are considered Fair wear and Tear providing there are no more than two per panel and the paint surface has not broken 

✓ Small chips less than 3mm are considered Fair wear and Tear as long as the whole panel does not need repainting 

✓ Surface scratches under 20mm  

✕ Dents on the roof or swage line on any panel are not considered fair wear and tear

✕ Scratches that expose bare metal or have penetrated the top layer of paint will not be accepted  

✕ Scratches more than 1mm in diameter are is not considered to be fair wear and tear 

✕ Bumpers with cracks, holes or evidence of misalignment will not be accepted  

Windscreen and Glass 

✓ Light scratching will be acceptable as Fair wear and Tear providing it is not in the driver’s line of sight (Zone A) 

✕ Any chips within the driver’s line of sight in the primary zone (Zone A) will not be accepted as fair wear and tear and would require a           replacement windscreen 

✕ Chips, cracks and holes in any area of the windscreen do not fall under fair wear and tear 

If you’re struggling to keep damage costs down, or you’d like to discuss further what fair and wear covers, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch today.