Crazy Customer Communications

A little while ago, we spent a very nice week end in Hilo.  We stayed in a nice little inn near the volcano ... and since Hawaii is the BIG ISLAND we rented a car from Budget and enjoyed driving all over the place.  We turned the car in at the end of our trip ... and the transaction was uneventful.

Three weeks later, I got a letter (a real, snail-mail letter) from the "Budget Vehicle Damage Control Department."  It read ...

Dear Frank Haas:

The investigation process of the damages incurred during your rental period indicates that we did not receive sufficient information upon your return.  Please complete the information below:

Location of Accident:
Date of Accident:
Injuries?  Y/N
Name of Person Injured:
Police Case #:
Witness #1:  #2:
Name of Other Vehicle Operator:

(and more ... ) 

Needless to say I was surprised.  Stunned, really.  Injuries?  Police report?  Date and location of accident?  There was no accident.  So I wrote to Budget, telling them that the report was sent in error.
This is the reply that I got:

Thank you for response to our inquiry letter. Our department is conducting an audit of the location. When a vehicle is taken down for repair, our system (at our corporate office in Virginia Beach, VA) automatically generates an inquiry letter to the prior renter. You were the last renter and we are trying to find out the condition of the vehicle during your rental period.

It is not a letter of accusation or an invoice; however, it is a universal form where renters can document if the vehicle was rented with damage, if there was an accident or incident or if the vehicle was returned without damage.  We investigate damages for vehicles from our locations all over the U.S. Without documentation on file, the letter will automatically be generated (from our system at our corporate office in Virginia) to the first prior renter to inquire about the condition of the vehicle; therefore the letter is not sent in error.

If they were trying to find out the condition of the vehicle ... why not say so?  Why send what looks like an accident report?  Couldn't they use a cover letter?  Is the language in the reply really customer-friendly?  "Therefore the letter is not sent in error" is essentially saying that "we're right and you're wrong."

I wonder who in the corporate suite authorized this?  Or, a more troubling possibility ... maybe they don't know how they're communicating with customers.

Two thumbs down, Budget Rent a Car.