A Perth woman is in a legal fight with Budget Australia after her rental car was stolen and torched near Broome.

Speaking with 6PR’s Liam Bartlett, Katie Timms said she was on holiday at the popular tourist destination with a friend, when she woke to discover their villa had been broken into on their first night.

“Someone had come into our villa during the night, they had taken my friend’s handbag, the keys to our hire car, and unfortunately we went out the front and realised they had taken the car as well.

“We had the police in, in the morning, and we reported it to Budget advising them the car had been stolen.”

Ms Timms was required to pay the $4,000 excess to Budget and the car was eventually found burnt out by police.

But months later the car rental company requested they pay a further $24,000 to cover the cost of the destroyed car.

“A couple of months later we got a letter from some lawyers saying we were liable for the cost of the entire car because we had failed to secure the keys properly,” she said.

“We have also been charged for the loss of earnings from the time that the car was stolen until they were able to find a replacement.”

Budget Australia has been contacted for comment.

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(Photo: iStock by Getty Images.)