TURO, INC JAMES L & TURO SUPPORT JAMES L & TURO SUPPORT FRAUDULENT DAMAGE CLAIM SAN FRANCISCO CALIFORNIA

First I'd like to say, that I'm still relatively new to Turo. So the situation that I'm in, is on account of poor execution at the beginning of my trip. Last month I rented cars through a couple hosts who were awesome. Despite slight hiccups with poorly maintained cars it was a wonderful experience and very cost effective.

This past Sunday (7/12/2020), I rented a Mazda Miata from a guy named James L. I walked around the car and didn't see anything that stood out damage wise with the exterior, so I didn't take my own pictures (big mistake), but the host took some "far away pics" and I later learned why. The car smelled like hot garbage and was dirty when I got it (against the apps rules & regulations) but I took it anyway because I needed the car.

Mind you, other renters said his cars stinks of smoke and whatever the hell else. (I told the host about this and he said I didn't have to bring it back clean since he gave it to me like this). I brought the car back the next morning, thanked him for a great overall experience, gave him a 5 Star Rating in spite of the repulsive smell in the car, and went about my day. Later on that day, I received a text that a damage claim was submitted.

When I looked at the new pics the host uploaded it was pics of slightly cracked imperfections in the front bumper and a scratch on the grill.


The imperfections in the paint looks like a a crackled paint job as opposed to damages impacted by bumping the car.  

I messaged him and told him I didn't do this and he's being dishonest. He retorted and said I'm being dishonest and I damaged his car AND I smoked in it even though he gave me the car smelling like trash and I don't smoke! I'm still waiting on the claim process to be completed but if it turns out that I'm blamed for his pre-existing damage, I'm taking this case to small claims court because I'm not paying for damages that I didn't do.

Furthermore, the so-called damages were so faint that I didn't even see it in the beginning! Even worst, he took a picture of two perfect holes in his bumper that looks like it was placed there by a machine of some sort and blamed it on me! This app is very convenient but when you have people who try to manipulate the system to get a freebie, that's when you taint the integrity of the app's objective. I used 2 debits cards with the app.  The first debit card I used was my business check card.  After renting a car with it (through a different host), I tried to renew the car with it for a longer period of time and Wellsfargo blocked the transaction so I switched to my personal check card. 

So I removed the Wellsfargo business check card & uploaded my Suntrust personal check card.  Fast forward to this claim, they told me that I would have to pay $500 towards the damages and once the claim is completed, if it's determined that it's not my fault, I'd be refunded the $500; if the cost of the claim is less than $500, I'd be refunded the difference; and if it exceeds $500, the additional difference would be deducted from my card.  I blatantly told them NO, you will NOT charge my personal check card for something I didn't do, I plan to fight this whole ordeal in small claims court because I'm innocent.  I immediately cancelled my personal check card, because they told me the charge would happen within 24hrs and these people went into my card history and pulled the business check card that I originally uploaded but removed & put a $500 charge on it today!

Now my account is overdrafted although I didn't authorize this, this is a nightmare!  They have no proof whatsoever that I did these damages! The host is a janky, good-for-nothing, lying, horrible excuse of a human being. It's bad enough that I was already struggling financially through this pandemic, I rented a car that I no longer needed and was out $100 for one night, then for James L to falsely accuse me of scratching his bumper is absurd! There are several cases like mine where damages are pinned on innocent renters because we didn't see the imperfections on the car prior to driving off.  

Now, I've disputed the $500 with Wellsfargo and it's going to take 10 days for them to come to a resolution.  I wish I can just go back in time and unbook this man's car.  I'm so hurt, distressed, frustrated, and disheartened with this because if I was at fault, I would take responsibility and pay up! But I'm not! How does someone crack a bumper and put two perfect holes in it???? What kind of scam company is this???? Beware of this company, they are not legit.