One of my colleagues out here in Ohio pointed out an unusual trend. Rental car agencies, when they give you keys to the car, give you two keys.
This in itself is not unreasonable. Hotels typically give you two swipe cards. This way if you have two users, you’re cool. Except for the odd fact that the keys are connected via a crimped metal cable. You can not separate the keys.
I looked into this a bit and it looks like the reason for doing this is to assure that the two keys, which are required for resale, are not lost. If one key was ever lost by a user, then the rental company would be required to make an expensive replacement. I guess the car companies presumed that the minor inconvenience to their customers is not worth the potential cost for key replacement.
You’re part right.
Most rental companies include both keys for this reason, but you’ll find if you rent often enough that some locations actually give you only 1.
The benefit of this is having a spare back at the rental office in case something happens to your copy.
Hertz will actually bill you for any key replacement, and many keychains indicate the minimum replacement fee of 250$ or more.
Additionally, most customers find that having two keys in a pocket is no less comfortable. However, being your size with all of your clothes virtually sprayed on, this inconvenience is surely more notable, however we feel that it’s the least you can put up with, considering what your girth is doing to our suspension service intervals.
Well played, Hertz. Well played.
Shamus found evidence supporting the resale theory.
http://www.freakonomics.com/2013/04/10/a-rental-car-puzzle/
Enjoy!