How Turo handles claims with prior damage

Fast Facts:

  • This article applies only to trips with peer-to-peer hosts. Commercial Hosts process their own claims, independent of Turo.
  • Read about the full damage claims process in the US, Canada, and the UK. 
  • Turo reviews claims with prior damage to ensure we pay the appropriate amount to hosts and to protect guests from being overcharged. 

How do you assess new damage vs. prior damage? 

Prior damage is any damage to the vehicle that existed before the start of the guest’s trip. We’ll take a close look at any and all prior damage to determine what costs are related to the new damage, versus prior. To do so, we rely heavily on pre- and post-trip photos in making our assessment. It’s essential that you take and upload these pictures to your Trip Photos. They help ensure you’re covered in the event of an issue during a trip. In certain situations, Turo Go hosts may be able to rely solely on post-trip photos. Hosts must take those photos within 24 hours of the end of the trip to qualify for physical damage protection. US hosts who submit a claim without photos will be charged a $25* processing fee. Learn best practices for taking photos for damage claims. 

How does claims payment work if there’s been prior damage? 

If we discover that the vehicle had prior damage, we'll make two calculations. We'll estimate 1) the cost to repair the prior damage and 2) the cost to repair the new damage, if any. We'll pay the host the difference between these two. This ensures the host is paid for costs related to damages that occurred during a trip. It’s also fair to the guest, ensuring that they only pay the costs for the damage they caused.

Examples of prior damage assessments

Note: Values are in US$ in the United States and in CAD for Canada. They’re in £ (pounds) for  the United Kingdom. 

Example 1

Before a guest’s trip, a vehicle has prior damage to the bumper. Repairing and refinishing the prior damage would have cost $350. During the trip, the bumper receives new damage. Due to the new damage, the cost to repair the new bumper has increased from $350 to $500. Turo would pay the host $150 for the new damage.

Example 2: Wheel Damage

Scrapes to wheels are very common, which means having scrapes prior to a guest’s trip is a possibility. Most shops charge a flat fee of $125 to repair and refinish a wheel. During a trip, a guest adds new scrapes to the wheel. In most cases, the cost to repair the wheel in total is still estimated at $125. The new scrapes don't increase the repair cost from what already existed, so the claimed wheel damage would not be paid. 

However, if the new damage causes an increase in repair cost, we'll pay the difference. Let’s say that an aluminum wheel has scrapes prior to a trip. The cost to repair the prior damage is $125. During a trip, the wheel is bent and now requires replacement. The cost of the replacement is $300. Turo would pay the host $175, the difference between the replacement cost and the prior damage repair cost.

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