Car hire operator cancels bill sent to grieving family

A New Zealand rental car company changed course on Wednesday and retracted a car towing bill it had sent to a family whose sons had been killed in a glacier accident, after an angered prime minister sharply criticized the company’s action.

Twenty-four-year-old aerospace engineer, Ashish Miranda, and his 22-year-old brother, Akshay, a university student, were crushed by 100 tonnes of falling ice last Thursday when they posed for a photograph at Fox Glacier on New Zealand’s South Island.

Several hours after the incident, Ashish’s body was recovered, but danger posed by additional falling ice has so far prevented the recovery of the body of his brother, Akshay. It was Akshay who carried the keys to the rental car.

Car hire operator, New Zealand Car Rental Specialists, was demanding payment from the family of the men, who were travelling with them, in the amount of NZ$1,950 for the replacement of the keys and towing the car back to Wellington, where the vehicle was rented.

Widespread criticism from residents of both New Zealand and Australia – and the comments of the New Zealand Prime Minister – eventually led to the company backing down.

On Wednesday evening, Tourism New Zealand reported that New Zealand Car Rental Specialists said they would cover the costs.

beehive.govt.nz