3.7
Outdoorsy memberHost since June 2018
Communication
350% response rateTypically responds in less than an hour
About kip's RV rentals
We have 3 boys and a 4th on the way.
3.7
Outdoorsy memberHost since June 2018
Communication
350% response rateTypically responds in less than an hour
1 RV available to rent
Memories made on trips with kip hilton's RVs
Anthony S.
5August 2024
Brianne J.
1August 2023
Overall, terrible. First, I booked my trip one year in advance. The owner did not respond to my original message or subsequent message months later through outdoorsy. Second, his listing says the camper has a fully stocked kitchen. That is not true. There is no toaster and very minimal kitchen utensils. There was a strange smell in the microwave above the stove. I thought maybe it was just musty from sitting idle. The next morning, after cooking my daughter lunch in that microwave, my father noticed marijuana in the microwave. I did not notice the day before, as I am too short, and could not see in the back of the microwave. I am mediately contacted the owner about this. He stated that his wife cleans the camper and is also short, so probably didn’t see it either. The worst thing that happened was we had a flash rain/hail storm. I tried to lower one of the arms of the awning only to find that both arms are in a fixed position and not able to be lowered. Subsequently, one of the arm snapped on the awning. Again, I immediately contacted the owner, who said there was nothing he could do about it. After some convincing, he did come the next morning around 12 hours later to fix this. Luckily, no one was outside when this happened. His father-in-law informed us that the owner’s son had dangled off the awning, causing it to snap already. Which is why the “fixed“ awning was in a fixed position. So, the owner knew about this. After checking out, I received an email through outdoorsy stating that the owner filed a claim for damage to the RV. So, currently I am in the process of dealing with my own personal auto insurance who denied the claim, as I did not drive this recreational vehicle And I am being told that I am responsible to up to a $500 deductible to pay for this damage. The owner was aware of the previous damage. At this point, I would consider him to be committing fraud. I am dealing with both outdoorsy and my own personal attorney to see what I can do about these damages. In the meantime, outdoory has held my $500 incidental fee on my credit card. No signs of returning there anytime soon as this has not been settled. So, I paid $1800 to rent this recreational vehicle to find drugs, have a snapped off awning and now deal with the situation.
kip’s answer
I don’t usually respond to reviews but have never had such a negative one. I’ve been renting my camper for many years without major incident or problems that couldn't be solved, and feel I need to address what has been stated in this review. I completely understand a negative review and when things go badly a lot of emotion can get involved. I would just like to clarify the situation on my behalf.
First, I would like to respond to the marijuana joint remanence that was found in the microwave. The renter contacted me and stated what she had found, and I was ashamed and embarrassed. I've been renting since 2018 and have never had an issue like this before. It gets cleaned feverishly after each use. After talking with the renter, they stated that they found it under the glass turntable of the microwave. This was a complete failure on my part, and I accept 1000% accountability. I will always check this going forward and I can’t apologize enough. I apologized relentlessly to the renter because I have young kids as well and would be equally as upset as she was about the situation. Once again, this is my fault and I accept responsibility.
As far as response to the initial rental message I didn’t respond to the message because I didn’t initially see it due to an error in the push notifications from the website. This isn’t an excuse, just a horrible overlook on my part as I should have checked the messages through the site on a periodic basis. Her subsequent response a week prior to delivery was responded to, which I gave her my phone number and we corresponded via text about what was in the camper, delivery, etc. The kitchen has all necessary utensils to cook with, like pots, pans, spatulas, tongs, etc. I keep paper plates, napkins, plastic silverware, paper towels, trash bags, foil, saran wrap, cleaning supplies etc. in there as well. The renter asked about a coffee pot prior to delivery, and I stated that there was one in there. After delivery they asked if there was a toaster, and I responded that there wasn’t. I don’t keep one in there because they collect crumbs and are messy and impossible to completely clean, which isn’t sanitary.
With the awing issue I have had the back arm break due to rain weight while I was using it the first year, I had it, I replaced it then. That’s why I warn all renters about how they need to roll it in if it’s windy or heavy rain. I had also just had it completely replaced due to a prior rental accidently leaving it out in a windstorm. That renter notified me of the damage and filed a claim to outdoorsy themselves. I was shipped a whole new assembly, and it was installed less than month prior. It was a brand-new and there was nothing wrong with the awning. The power awning works as it should and can be rolled in in less than a minute. They aren’t designed for heavy wind or rain and if the renter had rolled it in as instructed it never would have broken.
The renter wasn’t there for the delivery, but her father had the campsite next to it, so my father-in-law explained to him everything about the camper. My father-in-law left the power awning rolled in and explained that if it got windy or rainy, if rolled out, would have to be rolled in. During the rental period I had just gotten to work and received a call from the renter stating that the awing arm was destroyed because of heavy winds. She stated that she tried to adjust the pitch of the awning but because it was windy, she couldn’t get the arms to come down. She stated she didn’t try to roll the power awning in because she didn’t want the stuff under it to get wet. She didn’t contact me stating that she was having trouble with the pitch adjustment. She only contacted me after it was completely destroyed. I stated that since I work in the control room of a Nuclear Power Plant I couldn’t be up there until my 12-hour shift was over. I’m legally not allowed to leave. So, I called my father-in-law, and he went up there to roll in the awning (Arriving less than 2 hours from when she contacted me, it’s a 45-minute drive). When he got there, she didn’t want it rolled in because she still had stuff under it and wanted to eat dinner out there. So, he was able to prop it up to make it usable for the night. Upon getting out of work at 630 am I went to my house and grabbed the old bent awning arm that had gotten damaged on by a previous rental and removed the broken arm and installed the old one. There was nothing wrong with the awning or pitch adjustments when it was delivered for use.
I submitted a claim through outdoorsy to replace the awning because it was damaged due to her negligence. There was nothing wrong with the pitch adjustment, it was just too windy for her to be able to adjust it and should have been rolled in. Outdoorsy determined that it was damaged due to her negligence and withheld her deposit and they filed a claim with her insurance company. This aspect of it has nothing to do with me as the owner. That’s why pictures of everything are required prior to every delivery to protect the renter and the owner from false claims. I submitted all of the pictures and proof that it was a brand-new arm that had recently been replaced.
I have all of the correspondence with the renter. I also have photos of the new awning being installed one week prior to this event, as well as all emails from the outdoorsy and shipping proof that the new awning was installed prior to this rental, however I am unable to attach it to this response.
First, I would like to respond to the marijuana joint remanence that was found in the microwave. The renter contacted me and stated what she had found, and I was ashamed and embarrassed. I've been renting since 2018 and have never had an issue like this before. It gets cleaned feverishly after each use. After talking with the renter, they stated that they found it under the glass turntable of the microwave. This was a complete failure on my part, and I accept 1000% accountability. I will always check this going forward and I can’t apologize enough. I apologized relentlessly to the renter because I have young kids as well and would be equally as upset as she was about the situation. Once again, this is my fault and I accept responsibility.
As far as response to the initial rental message I didn’t respond to the message because I didn’t initially see it due to an error in the push notifications from the website. This isn’t an excuse, just a horrible overlook on my part as I should have checked the messages through the site on a periodic basis. Her subsequent response a week prior to delivery was responded to, which I gave her my phone number and we corresponded via text about what was in the camper, delivery, etc. The kitchen has all necessary utensils to cook with, like pots, pans, spatulas, tongs, etc. I keep paper plates, napkins, plastic silverware, paper towels, trash bags, foil, saran wrap, cleaning supplies etc. in there as well. The renter asked about a coffee pot prior to delivery, and I stated that there was one in there. After delivery they asked if there was a toaster, and I responded that there wasn’t. I don’t keep one in there because they collect crumbs and are messy and impossible to completely clean, which isn’t sanitary.
With the awing issue I have had the back arm break due to rain weight while I was using it the first year, I had it, I replaced it then. That’s why I warn all renters about how they need to roll it in if it’s windy or heavy rain. I had also just had it completely replaced due to a prior rental accidently leaving it out in a windstorm. That renter notified me of the damage and filed a claim to outdoorsy themselves. I was shipped a whole new assembly, and it was installed less than month prior. It was a brand-new and there was nothing wrong with the awning. The power awning works as it should and can be rolled in in less than a minute. They aren’t designed for heavy wind or rain and if the renter had rolled it in as instructed it never would have broken.
The renter wasn’t there for the delivery, but her father had the campsite next to it, so my father-in-law explained to him everything about the camper. My father-in-law left the power awning rolled in and explained that if it got windy or rainy, if rolled out, would have to be rolled in. During the rental period I had just gotten to work and received a call from the renter stating that the awing arm was destroyed because of heavy winds. She stated that she tried to adjust the pitch of the awning but because it was windy, she couldn’t get the arms to come down. She stated she didn’t try to roll the power awning in because she didn’t want the stuff under it to get wet. She didn’t contact me stating that she was having trouble with the pitch adjustment. She only contacted me after it was completely destroyed. I stated that since I work in the control room of a Nuclear Power Plant I couldn’t be up there until my 12-hour shift was over. I’m legally not allowed to leave. So, I called my father-in-law, and he went up there to roll in the awning (Arriving less than 2 hours from when she contacted me, it’s a 45-minute drive). When he got there, she didn’t want it rolled in because she still had stuff under it and wanted to eat dinner out there. So, he was able to prop it up to make it usable for the night. Upon getting out of work at 630 am I went to my house and grabbed the old bent awning arm that had gotten damaged on by a previous rental and removed the broken arm and installed the old one. There was nothing wrong with the awning or pitch adjustments when it was delivered for use.
I submitted a claim through outdoorsy to replace the awning because it was damaged due to her negligence. There was nothing wrong with the pitch adjustment, it was just too windy for her to be able to adjust it and should have been rolled in. Outdoorsy determined that it was damaged due to her negligence and withheld her deposit and they filed a claim with her insurance company. This aspect of it has nothing to do with me as the owner. That’s why pictures of everything are required prior to every delivery to protect the renter and the owner from false claims. I submitted all of the pictures and proof that it was a brand-new arm that had recently been replaced.
I have all of the correspondence with the renter. I also have photos of the new awning being installed one week prior to this event, as well as all emails from the outdoorsy and shipping proof that the new awning was installed prior to this rental, however I am unable to attach it to this response.
3 Photos submitted by Brianne J
Joseph R.
5July 2022
Wonderful experience renting through Kip. Answered immediately and made pick up/drop off a breeze. Would highly recommend him! RV was great and accurately described.
1 Photo submitted by Joseph R
JoAnn R.
3September 2020
Kip was great! Super easy going.
The camper had everything we needed just like advertised.
Unfortunately I spent about an hour just cleaning and wiping out cabinets and drawers as they were gross. Traffic rugs should have been washed and the carpet needed to be vacuumed. Also the shower curtain had mold.
very disappointing especially during COVID
If he took the time to clean it I would def recommend renting from him.
Once it was clean we had a great time.
The camper had everything we needed just like advertised.
Unfortunately I spent about an hour just cleaning and wiping out cabinets and drawers as they were gross. Traffic rugs should have been washed and the carpet needed to be vacuumed. Also the shower curtain had mold.
very disappointing especially during COVID
If he took the time to clean it I would def recommend renting from him.
Once it was clean we had a great time.
Ryan J.
5September 2020
Kip is the man and this trailer is the bee’s knees!
1 Photo submitted by Ryan J
Trevor S.
5August 2020
Kip is an awesome dude. Absolutely accommodating and willing to go the extra mile to make sure you have everything you need to have a successful trip. Also, he was very flexible, kind and understanding. Thank you Kip! Strongly recomended.
2 Photos submitted by Trevor S
Jon K.
5August 2020
He could not have been more flexible or accommodating. Would rent from him in a minute
Donna W.
5July 2020
Kip was so flexible and easy to work with! The camper had more supplies than we ever could have needed. The instructions for how to load it back up were very specific including pictures which made it so simple. Couldn't say enough positive things about our experience!
Ryan J.
4June 2020
Kip was great and this is a perfect trailer for a quick get away! My wife, son and I had a great trip! Highly recommend!
Benjamin W.
5October 2019
Had great time!
Jim D.
5October 2019
Kip was great and spot on with the camper. Great value and great person to work with.
Taylor P.
5May 2019
Had a great time
Kip is very responsive and willing to help from the first second of renting to the last. Great people
Thanks guys
Kip is very responsive and willing to help from the first second of renting to the last. Great people
Thanks guys
1 Photo submitted by Taylor P
Claudia D.
5October 2018
We rented Kip's camper to fish the salmon river in Pulaski. Communication with Kip was very easy and he provided everything we needed. Including sheets, kitchen items, a full generator, a propane heater and propane grill. He set up the camper when we were fishing. It was very nice to arrive on the site and just walk in. It was perfect for two adults.
3 Photos submitted by Claudia D
