QuestionWe were rear-ended while stopped at a stop light in a rental car from National. This happened in San Antonio, Texas. We paid for the rental car with our AmExp card and turned out that AmExp paid for the damages to the car. However, a few weeks later we received another bill from National for Loss of Use, Admin Fees, and diminishment of value, all totaling $210. AmExp has since advised us that they are unable to get the fleet utilization log from National to substantiate and pay their loss of use claim. Therefore, they will not pay for this most recent billing from National without this fleet utilization documentation. After refusing to acknowledge this bill, they have since threatened to forward this claim to collections. My questions are:
1. Is this legal for a rental car company to demand payment for loss of use, admin fees, and diminishment of value without having to show proof to substantiate their claims?
2. Are they required "by Texas law" to provide documentation for the three items they now demand payment for?
3. If they have not satisfied the requirements with AmExp who carries the Loss of Use insurance, do we have any further legal obligations to pay National for these fees?
4. What happens if we do not pay the bill, can they pursue this legally? If so, will they then be required to provide the fleet utilization log in a court of law before we are required to pay the bill?
5. Is it merely a threat to send this to collection? or is it real where the fees will start adding up over time....therefore we probably should just pay the bill and save us the headache?
AnswerMillie,
Sorry for the delayed response, we have had some technical issues due to storms . . .
I wrote a detailed article about your situation. Here are your answers.
1. Yes. It is legal to demand payment for whatever you want, you just can't be harassing about it.
2. Yes and No. They are not required by law to show you documentation, but if they filed a lawsuit, they would be required to prove their damages.
3. Yes. American Express is a third party to this claim, they don't have any deal with National. They paid the damages due to the contract you signed with National. You are the only person that is really obligated to National, but the contract with National may have dragged AmEx into the picture.
4. Unfortunately, if you do not pay the bill, they can pursue this claim. They will have to prove up the loss if they want a judgment against you, but because you signed the rental agreement, you are stuck. This is a nasty little habit of rental car companies.
5. The answer to this question is a personal issue. I am not an attorney, but I have been successful in presenting some claims for deceptive trade practices, if you catch my drift. You'll have to decide if it is worth the headache on your own.
I hope this helps.
