Incident
National Car Rental Commits Negligence by Not Having Snow Tires on any of its cars for renters going skiing in the mountains. And I understand NO car rental companies at Denver Airport have cars with snow tires, studded or not. Through Priceline I rented a Chevy HHR at Denver Airport that apparently with 25, 000 miles had very little tread on its tires. None of the cars in the row I chose from had sufficient tread on so-called all-weather tires. National says front-wheel drive cars are all that's needed to drive in the heavy Colorado snow at 10, 000 feet. Wrong. I pulled into the Dillon Post Office a few weeks ago and slid sideways going at 2 mph into a car. The right bumper was damaged on my car and there was damage to the car hit: sidewall of a Subaru came off. The car proved incapable of climbing the driveway from my condo without a running, sliding start. I would drive slowly in this car especially on turns since it had NO traction. Now National wants to charge me $1, 100 for the damage to the car and they still insist that bald tires on a front-wheel drive car are sufficient to avoid any claims of negligence on their part. This is SNOW COUNTRY. Such negligence will ultimately cause deaths. All car rental agencies at Denver Airport should offer renters snow tires, studded or not as part of the deal. Snow tires are not on their list of "accessories." Most of the locals here know that even a 4x4 is not good enough and that snow tires with good tread are needed. How do we get car rental agencies to ensure that their renters do not die in one of their death traps?

Damage Resulting
Economic damage claimed by National $1, 110. Economic damage claimed by car hit: $1, 450. All due to a slide into a parking spot going 2 mph.

I live in Alaska and have rented cars here a few times. I agree with the poster. Contrary to the negative comments above, there are conditions for which even special Jedi driving skills need a little help. Driving in snow and ice without the proper traction equipment is less safe for someone of any driving ability or experience. Not offering snow tires and/or studs as an option is irresponsible and potentially dangerous.