A retired Canadian couple was left fuming after Enterprise Rent-A-Car allegedly tried to hit them with a jaw-dropping bill, falsely accusing them of putting diesel fuel in their rental and demanding thousands in damages.
Kelly and Katherine Graves, of British Columbia, dropped off their rented 2025 Dodge Durango to National Car Rental, which is owned by Enterprise, at the Edmonton International Airport in Alberta in April 2025, they told CBC.
As required, the pair filled the gas tank with roughly $60 CAD ($44 USD) at a 7-Eleven 35 miles from the airport before dropping it off at the airport to return home.
A week later, the rental company told them they owed $9,500 CAD ($7,000 USD), accusing them of damaging the car by putting diesel fuel in the gas tank.
After the duo denied the allegation, the car company told them to open an insurance claim as the car wouldn’t start and diesel had been detected in the engine.
After that, the company didn’t communicate with them for nine months before sending them an eye-popping invoice demanding the large sum of money.
‘I was frustrated, because we hadn’t heard anything for such a long time,’ Kelly told CBC.
The couple said Enterprise didn’t prove that diesel fuel was in the tank, just demanded they pay for the alleged damage.
Kelly and Katherine Graves, of British Columbia, spent $60 CAD ($44 USD) to refill the tank of their rental car in April 2025 before returning it to National Car Rental, which is owned by Enterprise
A week later, they were told they owed $9,500 CAD ($7,000 USD) for putting diesel in the gas tank. The couple denied it, and provided a photo of the pump they used showing it didn’t have diesel as an option
‘My blood pressure went up,’ Kelly told CBC.
Their lawyer, Abu Khurana, said the megacompany couldn’t require them to pay without proving the damage was actually done by them.
The couple submitted two receipts from 7-Eleven, showing they pay roughly $60 CAD between two payments while fueling. The receipts are timestamped two minutes apart, as the first one clicked off before the tank was full.
They also obtained a photo of the exact pump they used, showing there wasn’t a diesel option to pick from. The capless gas tank should also not be able to fit a diesel nozzle, which is a few millimeters bigger than a gasoline one.
The couple also drove the car 35 miles to the airport, which the vehicle wouldn’t have been able to do if it had diesel in it.
After getting a lawyer and CBC reaching out with questions, Enterprise dropped the case.
In a statement to the outlet, it said it has a ‘comprehensive investigation process that includes reviewing internal records, as well as information provided by the customer.’
‘A vendor diagnostic conducted as part of the repair confirmed fuel contamination occurred during the rental period, causing significant damage to the vehicle,’ Enterprise said.
After getting a lawyer and CBC reaching out to Enterprise, run by Chrissy Taylor, the company dropped the claim against the couple
In a statement to CBC, Enterprise said it has a ‘comprehensive investigation process that includes reviewing internal records, as well as information provided by the customer’
‘However, due to the time that has elapsed since the vehicle was fueled, we are unable to verify additional details regarding the fueling source. As a result, we have decided to close the claim and have contacted the customer with an update.’
In a follow-up statement, the company said ‘long-term loyalty is important to us.’
CBC notes the company did not answer questions regarding its insistence that the Graves were the ones to put diesel fuel in the car.
The ordeal left Kelly unable to sleep properly as the large sum of money hung over his head.
‘You work all your life to gain savings so that you can retire and enjoy your life, and then somebody comes along and says: “We’re going to take $10,000 away from you,”‘ he told CBC.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Enterprise for comment.
