Help! Alamo charged me $1,000 after my car battery died in the Swiss Alps
in this case
- Kjell-Erik Berggren rented a car from Alamo in Geneva for a six-day Swiss trip. It ran fine until the last frosty morning in the Alps, when it would not start at all.
- Roadside assistance told him to leave the car behind, so he paid extra to reach his flight. Two months later Alamo charged him more than $1,000 with no warning, on two invoices that did not even match.
- Alamo said he should have bought roadside protection and pointed to his deductible. But rental companies are generally responsible for mechanical breakdowns that are not the customer’s fault, which raises the question of who pays when a battery simply dies in the cold.
Kjell-Erik Berggren rents a car from Alamo in Geneva for a Swiss vacation, but on the final morning in the Alps, the vehicle won’t start. He calls roadside assistance and thinks the matter is settled - until Alamo charges more than $1,000 to his credit card two months later without warning. Should he have to pay for a battery that failed?
Question
I rented a car from Alamo at Geneva Airport in April for a six-day trip through Switzerland. The car worked perfectly for the entire rental period until the last morning. We were staying in Champex-Lac in Valais, a mountain village at 1,500 meters elevation, and woke up to a cold, frosty morning. We needed to return the car and catch our flight from Geneva.
When we tried to start the car, nothing happened. No lights. No starter. Nothing. Four people tried to get it going, but the car was completely dead. We called Alamo’s emergency number, and they told us to leave the car where it was since we didn’t have time to wait for a technician. Three of us had flights to catch that morning, so we arranged alternate transportation to the airport at considerable expense.
Two months later, Alamo charged roughly $1,000 to my credit card without any prior agreement or warning. What’s worse, they sent me two different invoices with completely different totals: one for 395 Swiss francs and another for 489 Swiss francs. Neither amount corresponds to what they actually charged to my account.
I later learned that the garage checked the battery and had to replace it entirely. It wasn’t simply discharged from negligence - it needed full replacement because it was defective and couldn’t handle cold weather. When you rent a car, you expect it to function properly for the duration of the rental. This battery was clearly inadequate from the start.
I’ve read that rental companies don’t charge customers for mechanical or electrical breakdowns unless the breakdown is the customer’s fault. We didn’t leave lights on or doors open. The car simply wouldn’t start on a cold morning. How is that our responsibility?
When I contacted Alamo’s customer service in Switzerland, they refused to refund the charge. They said I should have purchased their Roadside Assistance Protection, which would have covered the towing costs. They also claimed that because I selected an insurance policy with a 1,500 franc deductible instead of the zero-deductible option, I was responsible for all these charges.
This feels completely wrong. We suffered a loss by not being able to use the rental car we paid for. Now they want us to pay an additional $1,000 for their faulty equipment. Can you help? This seems like Alamo is taking advantage of foreign customers who have difficulty defending themselves outside Switzerland. - Kjell-Erik Berggren , Oslo
Answer
You’re right, if the battery was defective, Alamo should never have charged you for it. Rental companies are typically responsible for mechanical breakdowns that aren’t caused by customer negligence or misuse. A battery that dies on a cold morning after functioning normally for five days suggests a pre-existing problem with the vehicle, not customer fault.
Here’s what you should have done. First, document everything immediately. Take photos of the car, the dashboard, the surroundings - everything. Get the names of everyone who tried to help start the vehicle. Create a written timeline of events while the details are fresh.
As soon as you see an unexpected credit card charge, contact the company in writing. Email is fine, but keep copies of everything.
And third, appeal to a higher authority. When a customer service representative closes your case, escalate to the executive contacts. I publish a list of Alamo’s contacts on Elliott.org for exactly this purpose. A brief, polite email to a senior executive often produces better results than multiple exchanges with frontline customer service.
After I contacted Alamo on your behalf, the company conducted a thorough review of the case.
“After checking all previous rentals, we confirmed that no prior customer reported any issues or faults with this vehicle or its battery,” a representative told me.
The company suggested that repeated start attempts after the initial failure may have permanently damaged the battery. But what were you supposed to do? Not try to start the car? Leave for the airport on foot? The logic doesn’t work. When a rental car won’t start, most people will naturally try multiple times before calling for help. That’s not negligence. It’s common sense.
To Alamo’s credit, the company recognized this wasn’t a clear-cut case and it agreed to cover the cost of the battery as a goodwill gesture.
Your case highlights an important issue with rental car breakdowns. Companies often have policies that seem reasonable on paper but become problematic in real-world situations. The lesson? Always purchase travel insurance that covers rental car mishaps, document everything obsessively, and dispute any suspicious charges to your credit card immediately.
Sometimes a dead battery is just a dead battery - and the car rental company should pick up the tab.
Your voice matters
A rental car that quits through no fault of yours can still end with a surprise charge months later. The debate is over what a rental company should be required to do before it bills you for a breakdown.
- Should rental companies be legally required to get your written agreement before charging your card for any repair after you return the car?
- Should rental companies be legally barred from billing customers for mechanical breakdowns unless they can prove the customer caused the damage?
- Should rental companies be legally required to issue a single itemized invoice that matches the amount charged to your card?
What you need to know about rental car breakdown charges
When a rental car breaks down through no fault of yours, the bill can still land on your card months later. Here is how to know what you owe and how to fight what you do not.
Am I responsible when a rental car breaks down mechanically?
Usually not. Rental companies are typically responsible for mechanical and electrical breakdowns that are not caused by customer negligence or misuse. A car that works for days and then fails on a cold morning points to a pre-existing problem with the vehicle rather than customer fault.
Can a rental company charge my card months after I return the car?
Companies sometimes do post charges weeks or months later, but a charge with no prior agreement or warning is worth challenging immediately. Contact the company in writing as soon as you see it, and dispute it with your card issuer if the company cannot justify the amount.
What should I do the moment a rental car will not start?
Document everything before you leave. Photograph the car, the dashboard, and the surroundings, note the names of anyone who tried to help, and call the company’s roadside number. A written timeline made while the details are fresh becomes critical evidence if a charge appears later.
Does declining roadside protection make me liable for a breakdown?
Not for a defect. A company may argue that an add-on like roadside protection would have covered towing, but optional protection products do not transfer responsibility for a faulty vehicle onto you. A defective part that fails on its own is generally the company’s cost, not yours.
What if the rental company sends invoices that do not match the charge?
Treat mismatched paperwork as a red flag and a strong basis for a dispute. If the invoices show different totals and neither matches what hit your card, ask in writing for a single itemized invoice that reconciles to the exact amount charged before you pay anything.
Who do I contact when customer service refuses to refund me?
Escalate past the front line. A short, polite email to a senior executive often gets a better result than repeated exchanges with customer service. Our executive contact database can help you find the right person to reach.
How can I protect myself against rental car charges abroad?
Buy travel insurance that covers rental mishaps, document the car’s condition obsessively at pickup and return, and dispute any suspicious charge with your card issuer right away. If you hit a wall, here is how the consumer complaint process works.
Elliott Report
This story was originally published June 3, 2026 at 3:00 AM.