Rental protocol question

H

Hende1JA

Well-Known Member
I was returning a rental 172M Sunday and landed about 20 minutes in front a pretty strong central Louisiana afternoon cell. As I was unloading the plane, a gust caught the door and blew it forward causing the bottom hinge to bend.

The gentleman who rented to me owns a small training operation with three planes and does all maintenance himself. When I talked to him today he mentioned it would be a difficult repair and he'd have to pull some rivets and order parts. He has been great to me over the years (he was my private instructor) and I feel horrible even though it was an accident.

What should I do? Should I offer to pay? If so should I let the insurance company know?
 
I think you are ok. The rental cost is suppose to have a margin to cover these types of things. If you did something at fault then you could expect a bill but this was an act of nature. I would recommend purchasing renters insurance though because it protects you in these type of senarios, plus it is dirt cheap.
 
Hende1JA said:
I was returning a rental 172M Sunday and landed about 20 minutes in front a pretty strong central Louisiana afternoon cell. As I was unloading the plane, a gust caught the door and blew it forward causing the bottom hinge to bend.

The gentleman who rented to me owns a small training operation with three planes and does all maintenance himself. When I talked to him today he mentioned it would be a difficult repair and he'd have to pull some rivets and order parts. He has been great to me over the years (he was my private instructor) and I feel horrible even though it was an accident.

What should I do? Should I offer to pay? If so should I let the insurance company know?
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If it were me, I'd offer to pay for the parts involved. If it was just any flight school I'd wait for them to come to me, or pass it along to my insurance. But the people who take care of you in this world are few and far between - if this guy really has been good to you all of these years, the expense of covering the parts will be well worth maintaining the relationship.
 
Ya, part of that rental cost should include some margin for "unscheduled" mx. I would say you'll be just fine. But to justify the relationship you have with this renter, at the very least, you could ask if you can help fix the problem.. maybe even learn a thing or two in the process..
 
No don't offer to pay -- Its the cost of doing business. If you ripped the door off with your bare hands that would be a different story.

Your continued loyalty is worth more to them.
 
I don't fully agree with the 'don't pay' idea. This is damage to the aircraft that you could have prevented by taking proper care of the aircraft. As a general policy I never leave an open door unattended for this exact reason. It is similar to me as skidding a tire and flattening it. Should the operator/owner take you to the cleaners? No. If I were you I'd do everything I could to make it right and own up to my doings. If you've got insurance then use it, that is what your paying for.
 
All thank you for the hasty input. I'll call him tomorrow and make the offer of the parts and help with the replacement. I understand the $$$ buffer within the rental price, but he does a great service to GA by renting really nice 172's for $75/hour, so I don't think there is much buffer there.

Cody...just as a point in my defense, I was holding the door just not tight enough...point noted, though.
 
Hende1JA said:
All thank you for the hasty input. I'll call him tomorrow and make the offer of the parts and help with the replacement. I understand the $$$ buffer within the rental price, but he does a great service to GA by renting really nice 172's for $75/hour, so I don't think there is much buffer there.

Cody...just as a point in my defense, I was holding the door just not tight enough...point noted, though.
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Parking into the wind isnt just for jets. :)
 
cmill said:
Parking into the wind isnt just for jets. :)
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I can't count the number of people who said they had never known about that while I was doing checkouts at my old flight school job. Maybe it's just because Tucson can be gusty, but I thought everyone knew that!

It sounds like the OP lucked out and will learn a great lesson, as well as solidify a good relationship from the situation. Always a good thing when the outcome is positive.

++
 
Hende1JA said:
All thank you for the hasty input. I'll call him tomorrow and make the offer of the parts and help with the replacement. I understand the $$$ buffer within the rental price, but he does a great service to GA by renting really nice 172's for $75/hour, so I don't think there is much buffer there.

Cody...just as a point in my defense, I was holding the door just not tight enough...point noted, though.
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I was on a road trip once with a friend. He was driving, I was sleeping. We pulled into a gas station in Cheyenne Wy, I wake and I opened the door. Wham... There it goes in a 40kt gust. It ended up costing me $600. I've been there too, it is a bummer.
 
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