$275 Towing Fee?

[el Gusano]

If you ate a burger at a joint that said "we'll tell you the price and bill you for it later and you better pay it or else" is a more appropriate analogy.

[gridbug]

And "scam" and "good guys" and "thieves"...

[Jay]

Feb 18, 2010 18:14:16 GMT -5 Justin Thyme said:

The reason you can't get a free tow to the repair center that is going to perform the repairs to your car is that the wrecker board requires a minimum fee.

Do you know why there's a minimum fee?

[Justin Thyme]

It isn't that there is a minimum fee, it's that the wrecker board sets THE fee. The reality is that a couple of politically collected people in the industry didn't want newcomers to the business undercutting them and starting a wrecker fee war.

[naturedude11]

A few months ago, some repair guys were working at my house. I asked them to lock up when they left. They did...but they locked EVERY door instead of the one they had entered. To make a long story short, I got locked out of my house. My mistake for not making it clear to them.

I had to call a locksmith. He arrived within 30 minutes, and very politely and efficiently opened my door. He had specific equipment and expertise that a professional technician should have. He charged me $ 60, paid upon his arrival. Total time on the job, less than an hour. That was very fair. Based on what most trained technicians in many fields make, his labor fee was reasonable.

He could have charged me $100. Or $ 200. Or $ 300. He was my only hope to get into my house. Fortunately, he was an honest businessman. I would call on him again in a heartbeat, and thanked him profusely.

There was no need to complain to anyone. He was not a crook, not a thief. He apparently values his reputation, as well as that of all locksmiths.

Can the same be said of local towing companies? If their charges of $275-$400 or more are fair, why have other cities, and now Chattanooga, taken action to keep them from ripping off their citizens? Why are the police complaining about them?

[el Gusano]

And if the locksmith wanted to charge $275, could you not have chosen not to contract with someone else?

[Jay]

Feb 19, 2010 15:50:46 GMT -5 Justin Thyme said:

it's that the wrecker board sets THE fee. The reality is that a couple of politically collected people in the industry didn't want newcomers to the business undercutting them and starting a wrecker fee war.

Craziness. I can understand if there's a maximum fee. There shouldn't be a set fee.

Feb 19, 2010 16:16:22 GMT -5 naturedude11 said:

A few months ago, some repair guys were working at my house. I asked them to lock up when they left. They did...but they locked EVERY door instead of the one they had entered.

I would have done the same thing. Better safe than sorry. Do you have any family that can keep an extra key for ya? Doing that can help ya one day.

[Justin Thyme]

He could have charged me $100. Or $ 200. Or $ 300. He was my only hope to get into my house. Fortunately, he was an honest businessman. I would call on him again in a heartbeat, and thanked him profusely.

Understand this; the $275 isn't for services rendered. It is punishment for parking where it isn't allowed. It is suppose to hurt. Man up and take what's coming to you.

[naturedude11]

Your responses are laughable. The best part is: You Lost. Man up, is right. Changes are on the way. Just in time for Riverbend!

If the locksmith had tried to charge me $275, could I have called someone else? Sure, if I had wanted to stand out in the cold for an hour or two. But fortunately, he was not a thief. He was an honorable businessman.

Fines that fit the crime....finally coming to Chattanooga, just as they have in other cities. The ripoff towing company thieves can hold up folks for another few weeks, then, the party's over. It's about time.

$275 is "punishment"? Give me a break. No law was broken, hence no need for "punishment." A mistake was made. A $75 mistake, according to other cities. $275 is merely a way for greedy towing companies to pad their wallets, while they can.

I love how they tell their sob stories on the news. If they have to lower their fees to what Nashville and Knoxville companies charge, it will hurt their business. Really? How DID they stay in business up until a year or two ago when they doubled and tripled their rates? Karma's a bitch.

[JC]

Stupidity is a bitch.

Wrecker companies also mark up their fees for other jobs aswell.

Look through the photo gallery here, and you will find a story I posted of what they charge to pull cars out of flooded areas.

Like said, it's merely a stupid tax. Learn to read(or tell your 'friend' to learn how to read) signs, and this whole 'outrageous fee' thing would be obsolete.

[naturedude11]

Agreed, it is a stupid tax. And soon, in Chattanooga, it will no longer be a $275- $400 stupid tax. It will be a $75 stupid tax, as it is in other cities.

We owe a big thank you to the police officers, wrecker board members, and city council for seeing the need to change this.

The predatory, greedy towing companies of Chattanooga brought this upon themselves.

[el Gusano]

So, are you ready for your komrades to start telling you how much you can sell a loaf of bread for or a pound of meat?

[naturedude11]

I suspect if I start holding up people, eventually the authorities will be pressured to ensure that their citizens are protected from me....as is the case in this situation.Unfortunately it has taken Chattanooga longer to react than some neighboring cities did, but better late than never.

[Warkitty]

Well, since we're all for the city setting prices for towing charges, let's see if the city can also set prices for gas sales, auto service work, food items, clothing items... while we're at it let's mandate the cost of tylenol.

[rstewart]

WK,

Just wait, B. Hussien Obama is still tied up with healthcare. Once he gets that done he'll start addressing those issues as well.

[Warkitty]

I don't think Barak is the one setting fees for city tow service. Nice try though.

[mikeydokey]

Just give him time, he is capable of all thangs, he is the won.

[duke]

In the too distant past a convenience store owner in East Ridge was prosecuted for gasoline price gouging.
In 1971 then Republican President Richard Nixon implemented nationwide rent controls freezing rents in the process.
Where there is adequate competition, business can be generally self-regulating. There is no competition where a valuable piece of property has been confiscated and held for ransom.

[naturedude11]

Hmmm...did someone suggest the city set prices for gas, clothing, food and auto service?

Well, if they could reduce those prices by 75%, it would make my day brighter.

The difference is, most of those retailers have not raised their prices 300% in the past few years.

Then, I got an oil change for 20 bucks. Today I can get it for 25. Then, I paid 7 bucks for a lunch buffet. Today I pay 8. Then, I bought jeans for 25 bucks. Today they are 29.

Then, you could pick up your towed car for $100. Today it's 300, and sometimes more.

Most businesses and craftsmen are not ripping off their customers, making obscene profits. And if they try to do so, they usually go out of business for one reason or another. Sort of like what's about to happen to a few crooked towing companies.

[Justin Thyme]

Most businesses and craftsmen are not ripping off their customers, making obscene profits.

The person being towed isn't the customer in this case. The customer is the private property owner that called to have the jerk towed off his property.

[naturedude11]

Correct, the "jerk" being towed is not the customer (which was never stated, by the way).  He, or she, is the victim.  For now anyway.  It's about to change.  The Chattanooga towing scammers and thieves have been caught.Thanks again to the police for bringing this to the attention of those who will soon rein in the thieves.

[daworm]

Justin, if you look, I said I didn't think they needed to make a law about it. But if people quit using them for normal towing services (and of course didn't park where they weren't supposed to) then they wouldn't charge that much for long. The only way to make that happen is to let others know which towing companies charge outrageous rates so those you know won't do business with them. Of course, it enough people park where they shouldn't, they probably don't need normal towing business anyway.

[JC]

Here we go...

sceniccity.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=photo&action=display&thread=20344

750 bucks for stupidity.
Yup, it's a bitch, but it's their own fault, as in your case, naturedude

[LimitedRecourse]

"...he is the won."

Obama is South Korean currency?

[jester]

My son parked at Walgreens on Frazier. He'd forgotten his wallet. His room mate met him across the street with his wallet. He crossed back over and went inside to make his purchase and didn't notice that his car had been immediately towed. The manager of the store was sitting inside with a cell phone calling the tow truck driver who had been parked behind the store. I went there to take him to retrieve his car. I also got the pharmacy to print out the $1200 dollars worth of prescriptions that he had had filled there. We found out the tow company charged more for a private call than they did when the Chatt. police called. Curious, right? Long story short - pay attention North Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce - none of us have been back to the North Shore. I have no idea if Walgreens corporate knows that their managers are waiting with their cell phones to call the moment someone steps outside of their parking lot - and of course it's their right to do it. But it's a stupid business practice. In our case it will cost them a few bucks in profits.

[Justin Thyme]

I have no idea if Walgreens corporate knows that their managers are waiting with their cell phones to call the moment someone steps outside of their parking lot - and of course it's their right to do it. But it's a stupid business practice. In our case it will cost them a few bucks in profits.

And that is the way it should be handled.

[Jay]

Feb 24, 2010 18:23:49 GMT -5 @jester said:

I have no idea if Walgreens corporate knows that their managers are waiting with their cell phones to call the moment someone steps outside of their parking lot

I would let them know.

[mikeydokey]

I also got the pharmacy to print out the $1200 dollars worth of prescriptions that he had had filled there. We found out the tow company charged more for a private call than they did when the Chatt. police called.

$1200.00 worth of prescriptions??? Hell I'm 50 years old and haven't ever bought $1200 of medicine in my whole life... Your name is jester for a good reason. Either you're lying about the whole thing or your son was going across the street to get the money for all the pills he was picking up for his friends.

[Deleted]

Aha!

From the Tennessee constitution
[ADOPTED IN CONVENTION AT NASHVILLE, FEBRUARY 23, 1870. PROCLAIMED AND IN EFFECT, MAY 5, 1870, AS AMENDED.]

Article VI Judicial Department, Section 14:

"Sec. 14. Fines exceeding fifty dollars to be assessed by jury. — No fine shall be laid on any citizen of this State that shall exceed fifty dollars, unless it shall be assessed by a jury of his peers, who shall assess the fine at the time they find the fact, if they think the fine should be more than fifty dollars."

I just knew I'd read that somewhere. I understand that more recent legislation than 1870 may have changed the rules, but I'm satisfied that I actually did read what's above.

[Police Moderator]

Yoda, that does not pertain to this situation. This was not "fine" demanded by the guvmint. It is a fee, charged by a business, for performing a task.

Now those fees for performing a task can be limited by the guvmint, if they wish to dip their wicks into the private sector.

It is kinda a "Stupid Tax", and the only ones benefiting are the business owners.

As with any "Stupid Tax", I am all for it.