Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New Jersey
Good Samaritan Backfire
I gave my friend my debit card number to rent a car for her aunt for one week in New Jersey. The aunt was arrested while speeding and is facing prison time for a previous federal warrant. The car rental agency tells me that by giving my number I am responsible for all rental fees and returning the car to New Jersey. I'm in Texas and the car was passed off to a relative of the aunt. The rental agency has put a hold on every cent in my checking account. I have a copy of the contract which is between the aunt and the rental agency but nothing is signed. I was never provided with a copy of this contract by the agency. Am I just out of luck here? I have no way to pay for all of this, I only agreed to give the aunt 485, but now I'm facing charges over 1000. What can I do?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Good Samaritan Backfire
You need to tell the company in writing that you are not responsible for other's debts and that you are not responsible for a third party's actions.
If you are very upset, you should consider calling your credit card company and decline the charges.
Re: Good Samaritan Backfire
Probably not much. In my opinion, going at this by yourself is going to be really hard because it seems like has progressed to a point where there is litigation going on. It would cost more than you owe for an attorney. Thus, you may want to work something out for them.
You are not a party to the contract, so I can't see how you can be bound, but this is not my area of the law. But like I said, even if the law is on your side, you may have a tough time showing a court that.
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