Question about transportation from airport

I filled out a quote for taxi from DFW to my home after my cruise in January. I ended up having a family member pick me up and forgot to cancel the taxi service. They just sent me an invoice for 99.00 for theft of service. If I don't pay they will report me to credit bureaus and notify the police. I am 81 years old, on fixed income and have husband with Alzheimers. 99.00 isn't much money but it is to me. They did not require a credit card to reserve and all of their taxis leave from DFW, I don't see anywhere on their website that if you don't cancel they will take legal action. Should I pay it?

Here is the customer service page for DFW airport. Perhaps someone there can tell you the legitimacy of this claim.

https://www.dfwairport.com/contact/index.php

I filled out a quote for taxi from DFW to my home after my cruise in January. I ended up having a family member pick me up and forgot to cancel the taxi service. They just sent me an invoice for 99.00 for theft of service. If I don't pay they will report me to credit bureaus and notify the police. I am 81 years old, on fixed income and have husband with Alzheimers. 99.00 isn't much money but it is to me. They did not require a credit card to reserve and all of their taxis leave from DFW, I don't see anywhere on their website that if you don't cancel they will take legal action. Should I pay it?

WHO is sending this bill? A taxi company? Forget it. A quote is just that, a quote. In order to have a valid contract there needs to be offer, acceptance, and consideration. I am not seeing where you accepted the offer. Could you provide a link to the page that you filled out for the quote? Frankly this sounds like a scam, I would not pay a dime, and you might want to ask for assistance at your local department on aging or senior affairs.

A quote is just that, a quote. In order to have a valid contract there needs to be offer, acceptance, and consideration.

Given that she said she forgot to "cancel the service" it sounds as though something was booked. Last time I checked getting a quote doesn't mean there's something I'm required to cancel.

Assuming I am correct she'll need to read what was sent after the booking was made. I would not be surprised if there is a no show fee. I wouldn't ignore it, as someone who works in the consumer finance world I've seen people's credit get shot to hell over very minor collections and judgments such as this.

I guess the real question is was it just a quote or was a booking made?

If just a quote, then ignore the notice.

If a booking was made, then you have to read the small print.

My other question is about not being able to pay the $99 but can afford a cruise????? :confused:

My friend takes me on a cruise once a year sailing out of Galveston Texas, I don't pay for it, she does. Pretty special friend I can tell you that.

I would have canceled had I gotten some kind of confirmation from them. I have asked them to resend the email confirming but they don't send one, they only send me my name, address, phone number . I would probably not forgotten had I had something. I'm old but not senile. I read on a legal website that Theft of Service' Would be if I rode in the taxi and then not paid the driver.

Tell them you want a copy of anything that said you accepted the quote. If they can't provide it, tell them that if they continue harassing you that you'll file a police report. If they are legit they will send documentation. If not, they'll go away.

.A quote is just that, a quote. In order to have a valid contract there needs to be offer, acceptance, and consideration.

I give you an "A" in contracts class today.

Impossible to comment on OP's post with any helpful suggestion, as I haven't seen the paperwork that was exchanged. She may well have a valid contract, who knows?

A theft of service is when someone receives goods or services and doesn't pay for them. If someone enters into a contract with a taxi company, who sends a car and driver to the airport to pick them up, and this person does not show up for the ride, have they received a service? Is the company out any money?

That said, this question has nothing to do with air travel and this is not a legal advice forum.

who sends a car and driver to the airport to pick them up, and this person does not show up for the ride, have they received a service? Is the company out any money?

Of course. Cost to driver to pick them up, fuel, car parking and any lost opportunity on earnings if other services had to be turned down to cover a service the OP (potentially) requested. We could then start getting into wear and tear on the vehicle if you want to get very precise :D My own C2B company (although a completely different industry) collects refundable deposits for this very reason.

If the OP did make a real booking then there's no reason to run away from the levied charge assuming that's in the contract or documentation exchanged and agreed upon.

The fact they were able to send her an invoice suggests they had enough information (Name, address, etc.) from whatever initial enquiry the OP did, something I wouldn't expect from a quote alone. Depending upon jurisdiction that may be enough to file a judgment (if a homeowner) at the local courthouse but probably not a collection that would go on a credit report.

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If the OP did make a real booking then there's no reason to run away from the levied charge assuming that's in the contract or documentation exchanged and agreed upon.

 

The fact they were able to send her an invoice suggests they had enough information (Name, address, etc.) from whatever initial enquiry the OP did, something I wouldn't expect from a quote alone. .

Yes, OP may have entered into a valid contract and owe the money to this company. Consideration is the payment, which often isn't made until service is provided. Just impossible to know, as OP hasn't provided many details.

I was wrong to post this on this board. I only get emails from this company

operatorcopy@dfwtransportation.com or

noreply@dfwtransportation.com

I keep searching google using search words dfw transportation but get results from many different companies, I don't know which company it is that is billing me, they don't identify in the emails.

Ducklite, thank you so much for this. I did call them but they said it is "Theft of Service" If I order a taxi and a no show. I don't want them to keep threatening me with credit reports and they say if I pay they will not notify the police. Thank you everyone for your advice.

The police won't care, that's a ridiculous claim. Did you get a quote or actually make a reservation?

I did call them but they said it is "Theft of Service" If I order a taxi and a no show. I don't want them to keep threatening me with credit reports and they say if I pay they will not notify the police.

If you did not order a taxi and they keep threatening you with stuff like this, then maybe you should be the person to go to the police. I don't know what the possible offences might be in the applicable legal system, but it might be something along the lines of (criminal) harassment or blackmail. It's possible that the police would be more sympathetic to someone in your position who's being wrongly hassled by a company than they would be to the company's complaint (if it were ever to make one).

www.dfwtransportation.com resolves to http://www.dallas-taxi.com I see where a person can order a taxi, but there is no "fine print" with anything about a cancellation penalty. The # 800-681-7017. I'd call them.

It's possible that the "fine print" won't show up until immediately prior to (or at the same time as) the "point of no return" of the actual reservation, which could be several screens away from the initial quote.

If so, stopping at the "quote" shouldn't incur any charge, but obviously completing the process, including any "fine print" would (or could, depending upon the policy).

Generally speaking, the term "theft of services" as it pertains to the Taxi industry, means that a fare has ordered a ride and taken the ride and then tries not to pay at the end of the ride.

Very similar to "dine and dash".

In my non-legal opinion, I don't think you owe them a dime let alone anymore of your time.

Kaydee 1917-since you are a Senior you can try calling a senior advocacy office. I do not know what services might be available to help you but I see that The city of Dallas has a senior services office. Give them a call and hopefully they can help you. Maybe you qualify for some legal services at no charge. I don't live in Texas so I have no idea what is available for Seniors. I tried to post the link to their web page but it was so long that it did not post here properly. Just google City of Dallas Senior Services.

With this webpage, after you complete all your information and press "order", it states you will be contacted to confirm your order.

What happened w/ OP, I have no idea, but it seems odd they didn't require advance payment.

I filled out the form, but I never got any kind of confirmation from them. I simply forgot about it, had I gotten email confirming then I would have canceled it. In my emails I've sent and phone call I asked them to resend the original confirmation that they sent me concerning this order when I filled out the form, but they don't send me anything, except an email that says my name, address, phone number. I talked to my granddaughter and she says tell them to go blazes, if they refuse to send me original confirmation then they don't have a legitimate claim. I'm sure a confirmation from them after I filled out form would have stated the penalty if not canceled, if that is their policy. That would have gotten my attention. Again I apologize for taking up time on this forum.

I filled out the form, but I never got any kind of confirmation from them. I simply forgot about it, had I gotten email confirming then I would have canceled it. In my emails I've sent and phone call I asked them to resend the original confirmation that they sent me concerning this order when I filled out the form, but they don't send me anything, except an email that says my name, address, phone number. I talked to my granddaughter and she says tell them to go blazes, if they refuse to send me original confirmation then they don't have a legitimate claim. I'm sure a confirmation from them after I filled out form would have stated the penalty if not canceled, if that is their policy. That would have gotten my attention. Again I apologize for taking up time on this forum.

Don't apologize, please!

Yes, but don't tell them to go to blazes until AFTER you have calmly (if possible!) told them that you need to see documentation that you agreed to pay, for *any* bills, not just for them, etc.

They will have no grounds to try to collect (much less call the police) unless they have provided you with that.

There are consumer protection laws about this.

And it's also a good idea to contact the local Elder Affairs Office. They are no doubt well accustomed to hearing about - and hopefully helping with - quite a variety of scams.

I'm not saying that this is a scam, but if the taxi company cannot provide valid proof that you agreed to the terms, including a "no show" fee, then it would become a scam.

I agree that the taxi company would indeed have losses from sending a driver, and waiting around, etc. But unless they run their business making their terms clear, that's their problem.

NOTE: Some large taxi companies may have enough taxis going to and from a major airport that they don't have to designate a specific driver to wait for you... they'd just send the "next one" when you notify them you have arrived and are waiting.

Which reminds me: What arrangement did they presumably give you to notify them, so you know which taxi, and the driver knows where you are to meet, etc.?

Without that, it's a bit difficult to understand how the company expected someone to pick you up in the first place...

Good luck.

Contact the Texas attorney general's office and tell them you asked for a quote but never got a confirmation and thus never used their service and now they are demanding you pay or threatening to report you if you don't, but that they refuse to show you the confirmation where you agreed to pay them.