What Does Wrongful Tow Mean?
For a towing company to be liable for wrongful towing, you must prove that they failed to follow the state’s legal requirements for towing vehicles. This includes but is not limited to first properly investigating and verifying if the vehicle was authorized to be on the property in question. In addition, they must verify the validity of the person authorizing the removal of the vehicle and must give the vehicle owner the proper opportunity to pay for any outstanding bills prior to towing. If any of these requirements are not met, the towing company may be liable for damages .
The most common scenario in which wrongful towing occurs is when a vehicle gets towed despite the fact that the owner had given the property owner permission to leave the vehicle there. Another common scenario is the improper towing of a vehicle that is legally parked on the street (as opposed to on private property). Keep in mind that even if the property owner has the right to have your vehicle towed, the towing company must still follow the general requirements for these scenarios as mentioned above.
Legal Grounds for Suing a Tow Company
If you believe that your vehicle was wrongfully towed, you may have legal grounds for a lawsuit against the towing company. In order to prove your case, you will need to establish that the towing company violated their legal obligations under state and local laws and/or failed to follow proper procedures. Most states and counties in the U.S. have enacted laws that govern the towing industry and set forth the specific circumstances in which a vehicle is legally allowed to be towed.
If one of these circumstances does not apply to your case, then you may be able to hold the towing company liable for damages related to the wrongful tow. Some of the most common legal grounds for suing a towing company for a wrongful tow include:
Besides the statutory provisions that limit when a vehicle can be towed, virtually all states have laws that govern how towing companies are required to notify vehicle owners of a tow. In some cases, they are required to send a copy of the tow notice to the last known address of the vehicle owner. If the towing company did not follow the notification requirements, then, again, depending on your state’s laws, you may be able to file a lawsuit.
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), "All states have laws that address predatory towing practices. Most require clear signage; some specify how quickly after a vehicle is towed the owner must be notified." It is important to note that even if your state has a specific statute regarding this, that does not necessarily mean that you will be able to hold the towing company liable.
In addition to filing a civil lawsuit against the towing company, you may also be able to pursue legal action against the private property owner – especially if the tow was initiated by the private property owner without proper cause or notification. As part of your legal strategy, your attorney will likely examine any claims that you may have against the vehicle owner and weigh those claims against your claims against the towing company. It is possible that you will have grounds for a lawsuit against both parties.
Gathering Evidence for Your Claim
If you decide to move forward with your case, there are certain types of evidence you will need to build a strong claim against the towing company. Here are just some examples:
Photos: If you can get pictures of your car before it was towed and after it was returned to you, this could be very powerful evidence. Likewise, it is also a good idea to take a picture of the towing company’s sign, if it has one, before it took your car. If the towing company placed any signs or stickers on your car identifying you as a non-paying customer, this could easily be interpreted as malicious.
Receipts: When you eventually get your car back, you will likely be required to pay a fee in order to have your car returned. While this is not necessarily evidence of any wrongdoing on the part of the towing company—it is common for places to charge for the transport of vehicles to cover their expenses—it’s still worth keeping to show the jury the actual costs you incurred as a result of the wrongful tow and what you’ve had to pay in order to get it back in good condition.
Eyewitness Accounts: If there was anyone nearby who witnessed the tow, or has any other information that could be of use to your case, be sure to get their contact information so your lawyer will be able to reach out to them.
Filing a Tow Truck Company Lawsuit
Once you have collected all the necessary documentation, such as the parking sign, documentation of the towing, and your phone records, if necessary, and have determined the potential damages available in a lawsuit, then you will need to determine where you can file your lawsuit.
Everyone has a different jurisdiction that they are subject to (the city/county and state that you live in). In most cases you will be forced to bring your lawsuit in the same jurisdiction where the tow truck company is located. If they are located in your same city or county, you will be forced to file your lawsuit in that city/county.
In these instances, even when the damages thrown at them break the $10,000 threshold it is not always financially viable to hire an attorney. For example, bringing a lawsuit in the District of Columbia is now relatively easy with the automated e-filing system, which can be done with no filing fee for those who certify themselves as indigent. This makes it easy for some to sue for only up to $4,000-$5,000, without any attorney, which is often the same or better than the amount typically offered in settlement (if any at all), as the limit for suits returned by the D.C. Small Claims Court is $5,000 (which includes damages for violation of the law, plus a $25 fine), or $10,000 under D.C. Code § 12-301(3), for wrongful conversion (seizure without permission).
For example, back on May 16, 2011 I advised that "the proper remedy for wrongful towing under the District of Columbia Vehicle Code is limited to the amount of the actual loss attributable to the wrongful towing, plus the $25 fine contained therein (totaling up to $375 rather than $750)." In that instance the parking sign clearly said it was not a tow zone, but it had been towed anyway. The decision was by the "Commission", which would negate almost any punitive damages, and focus will be on your loss from having your car actually towed away, and expenses incurred to recover the car.
The only way to seek actual damages or punitive damages for these types of cases is through a jury trial. However, given the time capable of being spent in trial and the financial risk, some people elect to pass, and settle out of court with the tow truck company, usually at around the $200-$300 range, assuming there is a pro-tow feeling in our City/County.
In some jurisdictions, like Virginia, which does not have a Small Claims Court, at least an attorney can file a "Praecipe" (a form by which a lawsuit is initiated), and retrieve the person’s car via court order if an attorney is retained. In some jurisdictions, where a dismissal or Praecipe is not easily completed on behalf of a represented party, your attorney can get the defense attorney involved, and recover the car without the need for litigation.
However, if you are towing someone’s car, or are being unjustly arrested or prosecuted, who did not properly pay their parking fees (i.e., you have no defenses in law), it is unlikely an attorney would handle your case for free, or at a discounted rate (where they are more like "pro bono" attorneys, or "volunteer attorneys"). In such cases, it may be best to litigate the case yourself, and go through the court system directly, avoiding mandatory arbitration (as opposed to binding arbitration).
In most jurisdictions, if you win the lawsuit, so long as your procedure is correct, you may be entitled to recover your attorneys’ fees against the tow truck company, i.e., they will pay your attorney’s fees for the vehicles and property they wrongfully seized with intent to sell. In many jurisdictions, they may be required to pay your legal fees and court costs in full. However, in many jurisdictions, the actual monetary issue frequently is so low as to make it difficult to sue.
In essence, this can be a strong deterrent to taking on a tow truck company directly. In many jurisdictions, the person being wrongfully towed may not be able to find an attorney willing to represent them. It is not until they are unreasonably charged that an attorney takes the case on a contingency basis (which can be an expensive proposition). By then, the question is whether it is worth spending thousands of dollars in legal fees against heavy "slow dollar" collection pressure against the defendant, knowing they will be overly compensated anyway, or simply walking away.
In most jurisdictions, a lawsuit that focuses on the actual "wrongful seizure", and pre-collection period, may be more successful than a purely negative lawsuit (tort), including claims for conversion, unfair trade practices, or malpractice against the original entity, which in some jurisdictions may be unnecessary, if that entity did nothing wrong in the initial investment of the car. The focus being "conversion", not tort. A separate breach of contract cause of action could be added to "cover" any ambiguity as to charges that were excessive.
In most jurisdictions, the claim must be based on a provable factual error under their existing policies, or distinguishable under an ambiguous parking policy (contract). Whether the claim is for the signed contract or for the apparent (and possibly implied) value of a vehicle (e.g., a Ferrari), a determination must be made as to what would have been "reasonable" under the circumstances, and how to prove it.
In most jurisdictions, that will be a subjective determination (i.e., private negotiation), with the parties having some room to negotiate before filing any complaints, and often incentivizing one party when there is a risk of a much larger adverse monetary award against them (which may be capped), or a jury determining the remainder of the monetary incentive.
Possible Outcomes & Compensation
The outcome of a lawsuit against a towing company can vary based on the specific circumstances of the case. The primary goal is to substantiate that the tow was illegal and to seek compensation for damages incurred as a result.
If the court determines that the towing was indeed wrongful, the first possibility is that the judge or jury will award compensation for damages. Examples of damages could include compensation for lost personal property such as a phone, laptop, briefcase, brief contents, snacks, or medicines, as well as costs associated with going to a doctor in order to obtain a replacement for a broken prescription-medication bottle. These damages could also include loss of work hours if the person had to take time off work in order to go to the police department or filing a claim with the towing company. In such cases, the person could seek compensation for lost wages.
Second, the judge or jury may award triple compensation for damages if the towing company participated in unlawful acts. Businesses that commit illegal acts in order to carry out their services are subject to triple-per-damages under California Civil Code Section 48.5. This type of compensation could apply, for example, if the driver’s car is towed out of a parking lot even though they had a permit to be there .
Third, a judge might award reimbursement for either all or part of the towing fee. If it can be shown that the towing company failed to properly disclose towing fees or falsely advertised the cost of a tow, the judge may award reimbursement, which is mandated under California Civil Code Section 22953. Current law requires that towing companies prominently post signs that indicate a fair estimate of how much a person will have to pay if their vehicle is towed. A business that wishes to file a claim against a towing company for wrongful towing and seek compensation for damages or reimbursement for all or part of the towing fee can do so by contacting a law firm such as McGee, Lerer & Associates, P.C.
Finally, punitive damages may be awarded if the court believes that the towing company’s behavior was carried out intentionally, recklessly, or maliciously. That means that there is evidence to support the assertion that the towing company, rather than making an honest mistake, knew that it was engaging in wrongful conduct. The unhappy person believes that the towing company acted in bad faith and is seeking compensation for both the towing company’s bad faith and punitive damages.
Alternatives to Filing a Lawsuit
Alternatives to Lawsuits for Wrongful Towing Situations
In some situations, enough damage has been done by the wrongful towing company that involves sufficient risk of serious harm that it will become necessary to file a lawsuit against the company in order to protect the person whose vehicle was towed. However, there are also many situations in which enough damage has already been done that resolving the dispute through informal means is unlikely to succeed and represents a waste of time.
The typical resolution mechanisms for most disputes are informal, meaning that would-be litigants (those intending to sue) will first approach the other party to try to resolve the matter without going to court. If the initial negotiation fails, more formal forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) come into play.
Mediation is one of the most common informal ADR processes. Typically, a neutral third-party mediator or mediators work with both parties to the dispute. The mediator(s) do not decide the outcome of the case for the parties; they instead help each party understand the viewpoint of the other and how each party can resolve the conflict in a way to ensure that both parties are satisfied with the outcome of the matter. Mediation allows for greater flexibility and creativity, as it does not rely on strict legal frameworks for the outcome. It usually only costs both parties a few hundred dollars and is done after business hours or on weekends.
Another method is binding arbitration. In this case, each party to the litigation submits its case to a neutral third-party, with certain requirements for support of the claims, admissibility of evidence and so forth. There can be a specific dollar amount set as the limit for any damages awarded, which means that considerable larger cases could simply be sent to court at the discretion of the parties. Typically, this alternative will be used only when the parties have a great deal of trust in their neutrals, providing them with an intimate understanding of the law and how cases proceed through the court system.
A third option is mediation and arbitration in series. Some parties choose to try to mediate the case, and then if that fails, introducing a more concrete framework of legally-binding decisions through arbitration. It can be expensive — as in some cases involving multiple mediators and arbitrators — but it can also be a good way to allow for binding resolution of disputes while still trying to avoid the costs and delays of going to court.
If you have a dispute with a towing company, and you’re not sure which option may apply to you, contact a South Florida attorney for consultation and discuss your options in detail.
Preventive Options for Car Owners
The best way to avoid a dispute over wrongful towing is to understand the applicable laws and park accordingly. Now that you know where you can and cannot park, how do you protect yourself from the parking lot "snatch and grab"? Some people think the best way to keep their car safe is to park in lots controlled by 24-hour surveillance or that have security guards on site. Although these services may help dissuade would-be thieves and vandals, they do nothing to prevent the most common cause of wrongful towing: miscommunication between the parking lot owner/operator and the towing company. If you are legally parked, but you find that your vehicle has been towed and the parking lot operator/owner has not given you a reason, check the following: Generally, the first person to call when the vehicle is towed should be the lot owner. If the lot attendant has no knowledge of the towing , or if the lot attendant tells you to "just call the towing company," you should be concerned. If you have confirmed that your vehicle was legally parked (i.e., there was no communication failure) and you learn that the towing company has the vehicle (if possible, ask the representative to give you the exact location), you should also investigate whether the towing company has violated any legal requirements, such as: If you are not sure whether your vehicle was legally parked or if you were unclear on the parking signage, ask the parking lot operator for clarification regarding the towing terms and conditions. Individuals should be mindful to avoid confrontations with parking lot attendants, even in these frustrating situations. The best approach is to remain calm and polite; an overly hostile attitude will only serve to inflame the situation.