Tag: towing company class action

Towing Company Fraud

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A New Jersey Court recently allowed a class action for towing company overcharges.  If your vehicle has been recently towed, you may be entitled to compensation.

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Towing Company Defenses

The towing company argued it was authorized to tow vehicles by the town.  The Court rejected the argument,

Here, Pisack is not complaining about the authority of the police to move her illegally parked car. Instead, she complains about certain of the towing charges. The police did not supervise the towing charges. Moreover, the municipal ordinance allowing towing and storage charges does not insulate from challenge a towing company’s actual charges. Indeed, the statute that authorizes municipalities to regulate towing services requires each municipality to provide a dispute resolution procedure, effectively recognizing that towing companies will sometimes overcharge or charge for services  hat are not permitted. N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.54. Furthermore, Pisack did not sue Newark. She sued a privately-owned towing company that charged her for towing her car.

If you have been Overcharged by a towing company, Call (973) 598-1980 for a Free Consultation

Frustrating Phone Conversation
The law says the charges are supposed to be $134.00, but they told me they would not release the car till I paid them $247.00 cash.
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Suing for Towing Abuses

Yes, you may have remedies when you have been unlawfully towed.  Here are just a couple unlawful practices outlined in the New Jersey Predatory Towing Act.

1. Trolling by Dishonest Towing Company

A towing company sees a car illegally parked and tows it.  That is unlawful unless the towing company has a contract with the business establishment. “No person shall tow any motor vehicle parked for an unauthorized purpose or during a time at
which such parking is not permitted from any privately owned parking lot, from other private property or from any common driveway without the consent of the motor vehicle owner or operator, unless:

(1) the person shall have entered into a contract for private property towing with the owner.

2. Required Sign

The law requires,

(1) there is posted in a conspicuous place at all vehicular entrances to the property which can easily be seen by the public, a sign no smaller than 36 inches high and 36 inches wide stating:

(a) the purpose or purposes for which parking is authorized and the times during which such parking is permitted;

(b) that unauthorized parking is prohibited and unauthorized motor vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense;

(c) the name, address, and telephone number of the towing company that will perform the towing;

If your vehicle has been unlawfully towed you may have grounds to contest the fees.  Call us at (973) 598-1980 for a free consultation on your claim.

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TOWING OVERCHARGES CLASS ACTION

 

Tow signMan in home office on telephone using computer smiling

A number of cities have found overcharges by towing companies.    Here is a report from an Ohio investigation.

“It sparked outrage from consumers, so they turned to 10TV to help. Now, a resolution to a towing overcharge case that could impact thousands of central Ohioans. For years, towing companies in Ohio charged customers additional fees for tows and storage costs.  However, it may have gone for even longer, attorneys say, if not for some fed up consumers who felt they were being ripped off. “They had to be stopped,” says consumer Bill McCartney.  “Hit them in their pocket books.”

 

Under Ohio law, the rate a towing company can charge is set by statute and can’t be increased unless lawmakers allow it.  So when consumers noticed their towing bill was more than the standard $90 tow, they joined a class action lawsuit claiming they were over-billed. On Tuesday, a settlement was reached between two of Columbus’ largest towing companies: Shamrock Towing and Camcar Towing. ..

 

Under a settlement, the towing companies will have to payback consumers.  Now, anyone whose car was towed between September 2008 and July 2014 qualifies – if their tow exceeded $90 and the $12 a day storage fee.” 10TV.com. 

Our office is investigating claims of towing overcharge.   Call for a free consultation.

 

 

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