Plane broke down. Who covers expenses?

subpilot

Squawking 7600
A rental aircraft has a mechanical breakdown (bad mag) which is discovered 10:30 at night. The crew gets a hotel room and a rental car to drive back home the next day. Who pays these cost? The renter or the flight school?
 
IMO, the renter pays to house themselves. I had a rental break down on me once, while it wasn't at 1030PM, the FBO did do their best effort to send another plane to get me.
 
If I owned the business I'd pick up the room and ask if you'd pick up the car since you are obligated to return the plane as a renter. It could take a while to get a new mag. Maybe a couple of days. I don't know. I think if it was me I'd eat the car and go get the plane for the guy and take it back when it's fixed...if I could. I think the school has the right to expect the plane to be returned to them once it's fixed. I think the rental agreement will require the plane to be returned once it's airworthy. It's a tough situation perhaps asking for some compromise from both sides. If I was the owner, I'd offer a carrot or too to make this work out.
 
Just for perspective: enterprise rent-a-car pays for mechanical breakdowns. Airlines give passengers a room and meal voucher when a flight is canceled due to mechanical cancelations.
 
Dude....we're not talkin' about Enterprise or the airlines. With all due respect, if you want to go there, buy yourself a nice little GA plane. They are cheap these days and can be quite the fun.
 
At our school, we'll send a plane to pick up the pilot and retrieve the plane when it's fixed. I don't think we've had someone stay overnight for mechanical reasons, though.
 
I agree with DE727UPS. You are talking apples, oranges, and bananas. If the company has done there home work it is all spelled out in the rental agreement and who is responsible for what (assuming it was written correctly). If not, you are at the whim of management/owner.
 
This should be covered in the rental agreement. Mine says all maintenance/repair has to be pre-approved by me and no I'm not paying your hotel, meals, and car if you're displaced. Sorry, I'm not Enterprise or United. Flying small airplanes is for fun and adventure, if you want reliable business travel with guarantees, well good luck with that.
 
How is renting an aircraft different from renting a car from a legal aspect? The customer is paying a retail price for a product and there is an expected assumption of quality and reliability.
 
The rental agreement sets renter and provider expectations, hence why it exists.

Alternatively, you can buy your own plane... and in that case you not only get to pay for the hotel, meals, and rental car but also get to pay for the airplane repair.
 
Okay, we are not talking about private ownership or borrowing a buddies airplane. I agree that the rental agreement covering this policy is the legal answer to this question. In the absence of a written policy, what does common sense or the law state on this? Should a renter really be on the hook for a rental having a mechanical breakdown when he/she is already paying $150-200/hr for the rental?
 
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