Car Towed Illegally? How to Find Out and What to Do About It
Having your car towed is inconvenient, frustrating, and often embarrassing. And when you’re pretty sure it was an illegal tow, it can be infuriating. Towing companies only make money when they tow cars. While most are honest, there are some that bend or outright break the rules in order to pad their bottom line. It’s important to know what constitutes an illegal (or “predatory”) tow and what your options are if you suspect it’s happened to you.
Look for Signs
The first step when you come out of a building and find your car gone is to look for posted signs. While laws regulating towing vary from state to state, they all mandate that a sign detailing the parking regulations and giving the name and address of the towing company must be posted prominently. Keep in mind that a faded, impossible to read sign doesn’t meet the requirement. It must be legible and visible to count.
If you can’t find a posted sign or the sign can’t be read, take as many pictures as you can of the area surrounding the place where your car was parked. These pictures may be very important to a legal case in the future.
Towing Must be Reported
Did you know that tow companies are required to report to the local police department when they tow your vehicle? This is so they’ll know where your car was taken if you call to report it stolen. Calling the local police department should be your next step after looking for a sign, to determine whether the tow company followed the correct legal procedure. Many municipalities also require the tow company to take pictures of the illegally parked vehicle before they tow it, and you can request copies of those pictures as well as the towing documentation (although they may charge you a fee for printing).
Get Your Car Back, Then Fight
Once you determine that your car was towed illegally, it’s time to take action. First, get to the towing yard to claim your vehicle as soon as possible. Storage fees will accrue for each day you leave it there, and cars are often auctioned off after they’ve been unclaimed for a certain period of time. If necessary, it’s a better idea to pay the fines and try to reclaim them later than to refuse to pay and find out that your car has been sold off.
Next, do your research. Call your city or county law enforcement to check on laws that regulate towing companies. If any of them were violated, you can take the towing company to small claims court with your evidence and try to reclaim your money.
You don’t have to be a victim of illegal towing. With careful documentation, a calm head, and a plan, you stand a good chance of winning your case.