Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

I made a reservation with a limo company. I signed the contract below. My party and I had our event yesterday. Once we were dropped off he did a quick sweep and said that everything looked good so I tipped the driver and went inside my home. About 5 minutes later I went outside to retrieve my friends and the limo driver was taking a picture of my 3 friends on top of the limo. He then escorted them off the limo and said good bye. About 1 hour later I received a phone call from the owner of the company stating that there were damages to the vehicle. 1. He said there was a scratch to the car that would cost about $200 for a new paint job. 2. There is a dent in the bumper. 3. the sun roof is miss-aligned. He was very accusing and aggressive and said that he will take the car to a mechanic and I am responsible for paying for all the damages. If not, then he will take me to court. He also yelled at me and said "why would you people do this to my vehicle?"

I told the owner that I understood and asked him politely to please calm down. I asked him how much it would be and he said that he will send me a receipt for all the damages and either way I am responsible for paying and if I don't he'll take me to court. I then proceeded to ask him, and state that I was confused. If it was an issue for the girls to take a photo on the limo then why did the driver allow it and encourage the ladies to take it by escorting them on the vehicle and taking the photo. The owner just got more aggressive and angry and called me a liar and said he doesn't believe me. He has lawyers and we can handle this the diplomatic way or he will file a lawsuit. I said ok, I'm not trying to argue with you I'm just confused. And basically he got angry and hung up on me.

He then proceeded and charged my mom's credit card 4 different times. the largest amount for 1500 and the smallest for 450. The payments did not go through due to the credit card limit.

As of now, he sent me an email stating that the receipt for damages will be sent to me on monday and if I don't resolve the matter and pay I will be taken to court and I will be responsible for the following:

You will be liable for court cost, my attorney fee's, and down time for the limousine repairs.

Once I get a judgment it will be reported to all 3 credit bureaus and I promise you that I will collect on the judgement through the full extent of the law. I suggest that you read the rental agreement to its entirety.

My question is: Is this right? Is this extortion? The driver didn't state that there were any damages and how do I know that the "dent" wasn't something that the driver did. I really doubt that the ladies damaged the car that badly. Do I have any rights or a case here?

1. All reservations are NON refundable and client's are responsible for the full reservation amount if reservation is cancelled by the client. 2. (Company named will be blocked by me) limousine is not liable in the event of mechanical breakdown while on charter and will only be responsible for making up lost time at a mutually agreed date, or providing customer with an equal replacement. 3. The client assumes full financial liability for any and all damages to the vehicle caused during the duration of the rental by them or any members of their party, including spillage of any beverages, and breakage of any glassware. Confetti's, Glitters, or Silly Strings of any kind are not allowed in any of our vehicles. No eating or smoking inside any of our vehicles. No pets of any kind are allowed inside any of our vehicles. Any violations will result in a $400 clean up fee and immediate termination of the reservation with out a refund. 4. A minimum fee of $500.00 for each carpet or seat burn, $400 for any spillage, $25.00 for each broken or missing glassware, $100.00 for each decanter. A clean up fee of $500.00 will apply if any occupants/passengers gets sick and vomits in any vehicles. The client will also be responsible for the down time of the vehicle for up to 24 hours. 5. Alcohol Consumption may be prohibited by law in certain vehicles. No illegal drugs allowed. We will report any illegal drug use to the local Police Department. Any fines will be paid for by the customer. 6. The driver has the right to terminate the reservation without refund if there is blatant indiscretion on the part of the client(s)or if the clients violates any of our rules as stated in this Rental Agreement. It is Illegal to stand through the sunroof. If cited by Law Enforcement the customer will be responsible for the full amount of the citation. 7. Airport and Cruise transfers overtime/waiting time charge will apply after the first 15 minutes of prearranged time as described on reservation confirmation. We will allow an additional 15 minutes grace period for Airport and Cruise pick-ups only. 8. Not responsible for any types of delays, unsafe road conditions, traffic, accidents, etc. 9. Not responsible for articles left in the vehicle. 10. Vehicles cannot be loaded beyond seating capacity. The driver will deny entry if there are too many passengers. 11. A 50% fee will apply for all cancellations authorized by 4Ever limousines. 12. I agree to have my credit card charged for any damages to vehicle caused by me or any of my guest during my rental period. This includes overtime/waiting time above and beyond my agreed rental period and or pick up time. If I dispute any charges with my Bank and lose I agree to pay $150 dispute fee to 4 Ever Limousine. 13. All overtime charges for all hourly rentals are charged at the regular rate and not the discounted rate. 14. I agree to pay for any tolls or parking or any other fees incurred by my reservation. 15. A charter may be abandon by (company will be blocked by me) Limousines if any customer does not show up on time and/or with-in one hour of a scheduled charter, and this customer will be responsible for the full chartered fare. 16. A $75.00 fee will apply for any changes made to a reservation with less than 24 hours notice. 17. A $50.00 fee will be charged for each non-scheduled stop. This only applies to transfers, point-to-point service, and not hourly rentals of four or more hours. 18. A fuel surcharge will apply for any stops that is thirty miles or more from the first pick up location at a rate of $1.50 per mile. 19. A $55.00 fee will be charged for all returned checks each time is presented to the Bank. All returned checks are deposited twice. 20. Any delays for airport and cruise line transfers will be charged to the customer at a rate of $40.00 for every thirty minutes for sedans, $60.00 every thirty minutes for limousines, $80.00 every thirty minutes for SUV'S, $100.00 every thirty minutes for stretch SUV'S, and $100 every thirty minutes for party buses. 21. All Airport and Cruise waiting time charges are in 30 minutes increments there will be no pro-ration. All over time charges are billed by the hour. No pro-ration. 22. The start time is the prearranged pick up time as indicated on your reservation confirmation. The end time in the final drop off location. 23. A $75.00 fee will apply for any same day reservation changes and if any flight is delay for more than one hour from the original prearranged pick up time, and (Blocked) Limousine chooses to re-dispatch an available vehicle. This decision is solely (Blocked) Limousine. The decision is based on available drivers and vehicles. 24. A 100% cancellation fee will apply on all cancelled reservations. 25. A 5% fee may be added for credit card transactions. 26. This Rental Agreement is your Reservation Confirmation for transportation services for the above listed date and time. There will be no further confirmation required by either party. 27. By accepting and/or using our services I agree to all of these terms and conditions.

Additional Charges To Credit Card $________For_________________Signature______________________________

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