27-05-2025
I was charged $180 after I returned a rental car in perfect condition. Here's how I knew the mess had been staged
An Aussie mum has called out a car rental company after she was asked to pay a $180 cleaning fee for a mess she claimed was 'staged'.
Narissa Cullen, 34, from Perth, hired a car from Bargain Car Rentals Brisbane for two weeks during a family trip to Queensland in March.
Ms Cullen said she and her partner quickly discovered that the car had a number of issues, including a faulty headlight and GPS system.
Given the couple were using the car while Cyclone Alfred battered Queensland, it 'probably wasn't the safest', she told Daily Mail Australia.
When it was time to return the car, Ms Cullen and her partner filled it up with petrol and dropped it back to Brisbane Airport.
They took photos of the car's interior which showed they had left two drink cups in the centre console and a small amount of sand and grass on the mats.
Ms Cullen said she was shocked when they landed in Perth and discovered the company had charged them a $180 cleaning fee.
The company sent photos of its own, showing the drink cups strewn in the driver's side footwell and a stain on the seat which Ms Cullen said wasn't caused by them.
The company said its terms and conditions dictated the vehicle 'must be returned to us in a reasonable state of cleanliness,' and 'as a result of the vehicle's condition on return, a steam clean and extra detailing was warranted'.
But Ms Cullen argued the company's photos didn't match her own.
The stain on the driver's seat appeared dark and fresh, she said
'You can see the cleaners have probably spilt it, I don't know if they've done it on purpose, and then staged the cups on the ground.'
Ms Cullen disputed the fee with the company, asking for timestamped photos, which it did not provide. She also posted a video to TikTok about the disagreement.
'It was pretty upsetting, frustrating and stressful. I was 30 weeks pregnant so we didn't need the added stress,' she said.
'It was a lot of back and forth, a lot of phone calls, they denied everything - it wasn't until I posted the TikTok that they gave us the refund.'
An email to Ms Cullen from a staff member at Bargain Car Rentals on March 18 said: 'After further investigation, I've processed the cleaning fee for you.
'I can certainly see where you're coming from after spending more time looking at the photos, and it turns out we did not follow part of our own process, and this wasn't fair on you. Specifically, we did not contact you before processing the charge.'
Ms Cullen said she was worried others could be charged an unfair cleaning fee.
'Who else are they doing this to? Especially older people who don't have the resources or knowledge to get the refund,' she said.
