Judge bars police from ticketing towing companies that over-charge you

Reported by: Jaie Avila

Email: JaieAvila@woaitv.com

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Published: 5/24/2012 7:12 pm

Updated: 5/25/2012 7:23 am

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SAN ANTONIO - A judge has ordered San Antonio police to stop ticketing towing companies for over-charging you. The temporary restraining order has halted a crackdown on towing companies that began with an investigation by News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila.

Some towing companies are continuing to charge close to $300 when your car is towed, even though a city ordinance says they can only charge $85. The judge ruled police cannot enforce that price cap until there's a hearing early next month.

After a series of Trouble Shooter reports on towing practices, the police department started enforcing a city ordinance already on the books which limits the tow fee to $85.

One company, Bexar Towing, which is also known as Roadside Recovery Specialists, refused to lower its price. In just the first two weeks police wrote Bexar Towing more than 400 citations for over-charging.

Bexar Towing then sued the city, and Judge David Burchelmann granted a temporary restraining order that keeps police from enforcing the ordinance until a hearing on June 4th.

“During the time period that the restraining order is in effect, we will not be writing citations”, said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.

McManus and City Attorney Michael Bernard both told News 4 WOAI they believe the towing ordinance will be upheld at the court hearing.

“I think it's a good ordinance for San Antonio, I think it's fair, I think that the people of San Antonio deserve such an ordinance. There’ve been predatory practices by many of the towing companies and I think that this ordinance is a safeguard against those predatory practices”, McManus said.

Bexar Towing did not return our call, but the San Antonio Towing Association has said enforcing the $85 towing ordinance will put many companies out of business.

“We have asked, and continue to ask, to participate in creating regulation that is fair and doesn't cause devastation to our businesses”, said Liz Johnson, President of the San Antonio Towing Association.

Chief McManus says once the restraining order is lifted, police can go back and write tickets for any over-charging that's going on right now. So, if you are charged more than $85 for a tow, he says hold on to your receipt, call this number, 207-SAPD, and file a report. Any complaints will be investigated by the department’s Vehicle Crimes Unit.

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The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of News 4 WOAI (WOAI.com)

Wyatt - 8/7/2012 6:27 PM

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I feel sorry for the tow industry. Goodmichael has a great point on how a towing company works. Anyone who has a degree in accounting or an NBA could and should sit down in court and explain to the people that an $85.00 tow limit could not keep a reputable tow business afloat. The problem is is you have a bureaucracy who doesn't have the knowledge or ability to run a business trying to run someone else's business. There's a purpose for capitalism and free enterprise they need to use it. Side note its interesting that police get away with spending 15 min writing $100 to $200 speeding tickets but a tow truck driver who spends 1 to 2 hours doing more extensive work with higher expenses can only charge less then what the city charges for the tickets. Masters in business management accounting Police reserve's Part time tow operator

goodmichael - 7/3/2012 1:46 AM

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For the record my 6/4/2012 post incorrectly stated that fuel was 3000.00 a day, which should have read 3000.00 a month or 100.00 a day. Paying hourly does not work well in the towing industry, as you have periods where there are no calls for service, yet you still need people to respond. I would like to see how people will react when, not if, when, a tractor trailer si left hanging off of the I10 410 flyovers or the soon to be 1604 281 flyovers. The capable towing and recovery operators will be worth their weight in gold then, as the intersections will be shut down completely. For those of you who think that just anyone can operate a wrecker, there will be an industry trade show here in San Antonio I believe in August or September, featuring live demonstrations. This should change your mind if you think that just anyone can do this job.

bornagain2 - 6/15/2012 7:47 AM

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goodmichael - so go to by hour and charge min. wadge simple as that nobody says you HAVE to pay them sallary pay the driver by the hour.

bornagain2 - 6/14/2012 12:52 PM

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and the towing industry starts crying!! The town goes WILD

goodmichael - 6/4/2012 10:17 AM

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depar, per your writing you must not own a vehicle, you must be one of the four or five people that are in the Via busses that are built for fourty. A driver driving very cautiously in a tow truck or any commercial vehicle for that matter will burn 3000.00 dollars in fuel in a day.People the City of San Antonio stuck their hands in the pockets of the taxi industry, now they are after the towing and recovery operators, and be aware that your industry could be next.

Tow matters - 5/31/2012 11:15 AM

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Here is an interesting tidbit for you. The city of San antonio just passed a new ordinance that regulates "Booting". After reading the new ordinance it is clear the city does not want booting in San Antonio. The Police chief just sent letters to all the state registersd booting companies in the area. The ordinance was so poorly done that there is no way to provide the service and turn a profit. Yes, buisness is supposed to turn a profit. The net result is that the towing companies now get to do more towing. Booting would have given the property owners a less costly alternative to towing. Are you amazed yet? The city claims that $85 is a fair price for non consent tows. So why do they charge $120? The city well tell you they are exempt from the ordinance. Must be nice to just decide you dont have to follow your own rules. Yup, its slippery slope time. Recently TDLR made the city pound stop auctioning cars after 21 days, and wait the 45 days the rest of the industry has to wait. Seems when the city privatized it the state said they were indeed required to follow state rules. Go figure! It is clear the city and police operate under a double standard. Heres the real kicker, all the city has to do is a tow fee study figure out what fair market value for the service is and set the new fee. By the way thats what the state law says they have to do. So why has the city refused to do the study for over ten years. Several towing companies have requested they do one, still waiting! Dont get me wrong some of the towing companies are just as corrupt as our city leaders seem to be. So before we go bashing the industry lets remember the towing companies are operating under the only rules avialable to them, the state rules. So as (POP) said "Its a big boy game" maybe everyone shouid do a little growing up, so we can put this behind us.

depar - 5/31/2012 10:11 AM

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I completely agree that the towing companies overcharge, when every time there is an accident, you have these towing trucks just speeding down the freeway/roads with no concern with the other drivers, they expect you to get out the way and sometimes you have to hit the brakes hard since they just plow in so they can get to the accident etc. So if the Fuel is 3000.00 per month (goodmichael) wrote, maybe they need to slow down and this will reduce the fuel bill. (insurance is close to 750.00 per month) if they quit getting in so many accidents, it will lower the insurace. (incidentals such as minor repairs as well as maintenance can easily add 1000.00 a month) maybe if they slow down - your minor repairs will go down and maintenace bill will not be high. per my understanding - staff to release vehicles is normally paid about $10.00 hours ?? depening on experience estimate $1600.00 per month payroll this is for 160 hrs per month - i assume the rate is the same for drivers - plus maybe commission - bonus per tow. You need to obey the law and only charge the $85.00.

goodmichael - 5/30/2012 5:04 AM

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For the record 250.00 is not out of line for a Private Property Removal. These companies have a tremendous amount of overhead just to operate a tow truck. Just to tow vehicles that break down on the street costs close to 10,000.00 per month to operate. Fuel is 3000.00 per month, truck payments are close to 1500.00 per month, salaries are 3000.00 per month for a qualified operator, insurance is close to 750.00 per month, fees to the state to simply operate are 100.00 per month, incidentals such as minor repairs as well as maintenance can easily add 1000.00 a month. There is also the requirement that they have staff on duty to release vehicles on a twenty four hour a day basis. If you desire, look at the requirements to operate a towing service that does private property removals on the TDLR website. 85.00 does not even cover the cost of a regular tow. It costs close to fifty dollars just to start the truck and initiate a response. Those of you who think you could do this type of work, (you have to have a decent driving record, as well as a clean criminal history) would most likely not desire employment where you are on call twenty four hours a day, seven days a week including holidays, weekends, and nights. Those of you who like to drink would have to abstain from adult beverages, as you never know when the phone will ring. While I do have sympathy for the person who broke down as a result of a bad fuse, I question why it took you six hours to return to get your vehicle. If the city really wants to help the issue, they should require a signature from the property owner requesting the tow. They should leave the prices, which are a rate currently set by the state (see TDLR website), and ticket the ultimate violator, the person who parked illegally in the first place. If I parked in your driveway, I gaurantee you will be hopping mad and be the first to call someone to rectify the problem. The judge was correct in granting a TRO.

Girau - 5/25/2012 3:59 PM

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Why do we have the Constitution and the status of each state if they are not going to be honored?

Tow matters - 5/25/2012 2:49 PM

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I am very familiar with this issue and to be honest the amont of people involved that are playing silly little games is unbelievable. This includes the city council, police, TDLR, media, and some of the towing companies. It would be extremly helpful it the parties involved would learn to follow the rules.

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