Is it Theft to Not Give a Refund for Services Not Rendered

My question involves criminal law for the state of: California

Hi,

I am not sure what category to post my question, so I will start out here.

A group of friends split the payment for 2 weeks of accommodation at a rental property. I paid my share 3 months in advance, but 2 weeks before we were due to move in, I was told by one of the people in the group that if I didn't respond to her email requesting confirmation of my stay she would cancel my reservation. I emailed her confirming my stay, but she went ahead and cancelled my reservation any way and I was not able to avail the rental. Now I am requesting my money be refunded by each of the people in the group. Not everyone is willing to refund my money (saying I was informed of her request and since I did not reply in time [which I did] and did not provide her enough information when I replied to her, therefore "brought this upon myself" and am not entitled to a refund. Side note, I never agreed to her request, which as far as I can tell means we did not have any form of a contract, verbal or written. Is this correct?)

I'm wondering what recourse do I have... Is it theft since the services were not rendered, the money is technically not theirs? Can I make any threats such as filling a police report for stolen property, etc. to get my money back? Obviously I'd like to avoid the hassle of small claims court if possible.
Thanks everyone for your help.

-Starry (eyes)

This is a small claims court issue. You will need to sue all of them apparently.

thanks for the reply. which forum should I post in to get some feedback on the viability of winning a case in small claims? Not sure which one mine would fit in. Thanks a lot

The crystal ball that is shared by all the forums is currently out for cleaning. You file your small claims suit and you get what you get. The opinions on the forum do not have any influence on the eventual result.

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Quoting starry

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My question involves criminal law for the state of: California

Hi,

I am not sure what category to post my question, so I will start out here.

A group of friends split the payment for 2 weeks of accommodation at a rental property. I paid my share 3 months in advance, but 2 weeks before we were due to move in, I was told by one of the people in the group that if I didn't respond to her email requesting confirmation of my stay she would cancel my reservation. I emailed her confirming my stay, but she went ahead and cancelled my reservation any way and I was not able to avail the rental. Now I am requesting my money be refunded by each of the people in the group. Not everyone is willing to refund my money (saying I was informed of her request and since I did not reply in time [which I did] and did not provide her enough information when I replied to her, therefore "brought this upon myself" and am not entitled to a refund. Side note, I never agreed to her request, which as far as I can tell means we did not have any form of a contract, verbal or written. Is this correct?)

I'm wondering what recourse do I have... Is it theft since the services were not rendered, the money is technically not theirs? Can I make any threats such as filling a police report for stolen property, etc. to get my money back? Obviously I'd like to avoid the hassle of small claims court if possible.
Thanks everyone for your help.

-Starry (eyes)

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Before you march off to small claims court, I would suggest that you write a letter to each of the members stating the timeline of the email and your response and include copies of the emails. You state that each one of them has been unjustly enriched at your expense. And demand your money back or you will bring suit to recover. Unjust enrichment is an equitable doctrine applied in the absence of a contract.

But don't you have to ask yourself why, if you answered in a timely manner your reservation was canceled? Either someone in the group didn't want you there or they wanted someone else more. Did all the members receive the same email? Check it out.

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Quoting budwad

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Before you march off to small claims court, I would suggest that you write a letter to each of the members stating the timeline of the email and your response and include copies of the emails. You state that each one of them has been unjustly enriched at your expense. And demand your money back or you will bring suit to recover. Unjust enrichment is an equitable doctrine applied in the absence of a contract.

But don't you have to ask yourself why, if you answered in a timely manner your reservation was canceled? Either someone in the group didn't want you there or they wanted someone else more. Did all the members receive the same email? Check it out.

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Thank you for response. I do get the sense that someone in the group did not want me there. I was actually going to do just want you suggested - write an email demanding my money back. But before I do that, I need to have some "meat" in there that is threatening enough to make them repay me. I am not sure what legal protection I have and that is what I turned to this forum for. I thought maybe a police report, but would like more suggestions from others more familiar with the law. Small claims court is the last of my options and I am in no rush to meet them there!

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Quoting cbg

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The crystal ball that is shared by all the forums is currently out for cleaning. You file your small claims suit and you get what you get. The opinions on the forum do not have any influence on the eventual result.

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The purpose wasn't to expect a crystal ball, but hear other viewpoints, strategies, and suggestions should I move forward with the small claims route.

Anyone who has any thoughts on the viability of a small claims suit can do so here. There's no need to post it elsewhere, and indeed it's preferred that you keep all related questions in one thread so that the responders don't have to go looking elsewhere for specifics. Double posting is frowned on.

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Quoting starry

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Thank you for response. I do get the sense that someone in the group did not want me there. I was actually going to do just want you suggested - write an email demanding my money back. But before I do that, I need to have some "meat" in there that is threatening enough to make them repay me. I am not sure what legal protection I have and that is what I turned to this forum for. I thought maybe a police report, but would like more suggestions from others more familiar with the law. Small claims court is the last of my options and I am in no rush to meet them there!.

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Do not send an email to the members. Send a letter, either certified with RRR or send it registered mail. That way you know who got it and who didn't. If and when you file a claim in small claims court, you will attach that letter to your pleadings to show that you tried to resolve the problem before troubling the court.

And you need to find out if your slot was filled by someone else and if they paid what you paid.

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Quoting budwad

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Do not send an email to the members. Send a letter, either certified with RRR or send it registered mail. That way you know who got it and who didn't. If and when you file a claim in small claims court, you will attach that letter to your pleadings to show that you tried to resolve the problem before troubling the court.

And you need to find out if your slot was filled by someone else and if they paid what you paid.

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Quoting budwad

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Do not send an email to the members. Send a letter, either certified with RRR or send it registered mail. That way you know who got it and who didn't. If and when you file a claim in small claims court, you will attach that letter to your pleadings to show that you tried to resolve the problem before troubling the court.

And you need to find out if your slot was filled by someone else and if they paid what you paid.

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Thank you for the advice. I know for a fact my slot was not filled by anyone else. What is the significance of this information? I would not be able to claim unjust enrichment if my slot had been taken by someone else?

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Quoting starry

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Thank you for the advice. I know for a fact my slot was not filled by anyone else. What is the significance of this information? I would not be able to claim unjust enrichment if my slot had been taken by someone else?

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It does not mean you can't claim unjust enrichment either way. If your slot was not filled but they used your money for the rental, you still didn't get any benefit and they all did. If they did fill your slot and kept your money, then they all had to pay less for the rental and you still didn't derive any benefit.