This was a family vacation with a total of 3 families with responsible adults and children ages 8-15. We drove 6 hours to Waynoka, OK with the intentions to rent 3 of their Polaris RZR (sport UTV) for 24 hours for the intended purpose of riding the sand dunes in Little Sarah State Park. Stewart Sandsports is the only vender available for UTV rentals with no other competition to choose from. I will state the facts and you can decide whether or not you should trust this organization. If you do choose to rent from them use a credit card so you can dispute the charge for when they try to keep the full damage deposit and rental after their equipment fails due to normal use.
Rental period started at 11:00 AM 5/28/20 after signing paperwork that is very non consumer friendly. Because we drove so far, had no other competition to choose from, and because we believe in our credit card consumer protection, we chose to move forward with the rental.
1:00 PM (2 hours out of 24 hour rental). UTV #1 had mechanical transmission failure under normal use while riding with others in buggy #2 and #3. The chunk blew out the side of the transmission. Stewart said it was our fault and that we must have tried to change the gears while running, but had zero proof. Merchant took the UTV away but did not have other UTVs available and could not supply us with a replacement per our agreement. We offered to pay $59.02 for the 2 out of 24 hours of the total $708.33 for rental of buggy #1. They declined to refund us any money.
2:00 PM (3 hours out of 24 hour rental). UTV #2 had a belt break (happens under normal use) which then damaged the transmission oil seal while riding under normal conditions with others. Merchant took away the 2nd vehicle and did not offer a replacement to continue rental. We offered to pay $88.53 for the 3 out of 24 hours of the total $708.33 for rental of buggy #2. They again declined to refund us any money.
3:00 PM (4 hours out of 24 hour rental). UTV #3 failed due to an engine light decreasing power to protect itself and could not be ran. Merchant for the 3rd time took our 3rd and final vehicle and did not offer a replacement to continue rental. We offered to pay $118.04 for the 4 out of 24 hours of the total $708.33 for rental of buggy #2. They again declined to refund us any money.
Stewart also declined to refund us the entire $6,000 damage deposit claiming we broke their equipment though they have zero proof we did anything to damage the UTV, which were driven under normal operating conditions.
We had 8 adult witnesses who will testify that the equipment was driven carefully, often with young children on board, was not wrecked, jumped, or used in an aggressive manner.
We are trying to get this disputed by our credit card but it keeps going back and forth. Steward refuses to give in and there is a chance we will have to pay them then sue in return for our money back. What a nightmare to get $8,125 back!
We proved to the credit card company that Polaris RZR's transmissions fail all the time, exactly like our failure, which is not the fault of the user but instead due to age in high-stress environments (like sand dunes) and/or poor maintenance by Stewart Sandsports. As far as we would have known, Steward could have sent us out on equipment that had no oil with the intentions of killing a worn-out transmission to take our deposit and buy a new one. Renter be aware for these unethical fraudsters. I would never never never rent from them again! read more