Abu Dhabi: The Al Ain Court for Civil, Commercial and Administrative Cases has ordered a young man to pay Dh78,889 to a car rental company for unpaid vehicle rental charges and traffic fines incurred during a 371-day rental period.The car rental company filed a lawsuit seeking Dh91,679 for outstanding rental charges, traffic fines and related fees, as well as court costs, expenses and lawyers’ fees.The company said the defendant rented a vehicle for Dh200 a day and kept it for 371 days without paying the full amount due. During that period, he also incurred traffic fines and Salik charges.According to the company, the total amount due was Dh100,375, of which the defendant had paid Dh8,695. The company submitted the vehicle rental contract in support of its claim. The defendant did not attend the court proceedings despite being notified.In its ruling, the court cited the Civil Transactions Law and said the rental contract and tax invoice showed that the vehicle had been rented for 371 days at Dh200 a day, amounting to Dh74,200. An additional Dh3,710 in value-added tax brought the total rental charges to Dh77,910.The court said the rental period fell within the period during which the defendant was shown by the documents to have had possession of the vehicle. Although he was duly notified of the lawsuit, he did not appear before the court or provide evidence that the claimed amounts had been paid or that the documents submitted by the company were invalid.Regarding the traffic fines, the court said records issued by the competent authorities showed that violations totalling Dh9,675 had been recorded against the vehicle while it was in the defendant’s possession.However, the court rejected the company’s claim for Salik charges and additional fees because it had not provided a detailed statement or documents from the competent authority showing the number and dates of toll-gate crossings and the charges incurred while the defendant had possession of the vehicle.The court said the company had acknowledged receiving Dh8,695 from the defendant. This was deducted from the Dh87,585 in dues established by the documents, leaving Dh78,889 payable.The court ordered the defendant to pay the company Dh78,889, as well as the court fees and expenses.
