car wrongfully towed!!!

http://web.camaross.com/bb/mad.gif http://web.camaross.com/bb/mad.gif http://web.camaross.com/bb/mad.gif
Friday night I was going to a steak place in addison, TX. I was suppose to meet up with a friend who was at the bar next door. I parked my car in the parking lot of the steak place we intended on eating at, and started walking towards the bar to meet my friend. I was only about 15yards from my car when a tow truck was hooked to my car. I couldn't believe it, I was there for less than two minutes. This is not an exaggeration. I ran back to my car to explain my story and was laughed at, and my girlfriend was almost ran over. The steak place has a contract with a towing company to monitor their lot. They pay two women to sit in their truck and videotape people leaving their cars. These women claimed to have me on video going into the bar. This was a bold faced lie! When I asked them to play it back for both me and the manager the changed their story. It changed to having a picture of me going in the wrong direction. The manager didn't care because, "I was obviously a customer of the bar next door", and I am sure he has heard hundreds of excuses. My biggest complaint was I wasn't a customer of anyone, I hadn't stepped foot in any establishment. The tow truck driver also raised the back of the car so high, everytime he went over the littlest bump, the front end scratched the ground. I tried to point this out, and the two ladies thought that was just hilarious. On top of it all they tried to charge me $25 on top of the $150 to disconnect the linking. The driver claimed to have crawled under my car and disconnect the linkage to the rear wheels because it was an automatic. He didn't do this because I watched them tow the car, and because he towed it from the rear there was no need. When I told this to the guy at the impound lot, he took off the $25, but thought it was funny that I had to watch them tow my car. I ended up paying $152.06, but was more mad about the way I was treated than the money. Does anyone have suggestions on what to do? If anyone in the Dallas area wants to know more specifics on the steak place location or the towing company im, or e-mail me. I don't want to slam anyone publicly.


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mfarris@flightmedicmail.com
2001 Blk SS #3069, A4, T-Tops, 12 Disc, 10-spoke, 3.23's
--K&N FIPK, TR55 Iridium's, MSN Super conductors, TTS headers, o2 sims, Corsa w/ Premium's, Zaino, Zaino, Zaino--

Man, screw that, slam them hardcore!!! If they're going to treat their possible customers like that, they don't deserve any of our business. The whole towing industry has way too much room for justification. My GF was parked in a handicap parking spot at her old complex, and was towed. The kicker is, the handicap sign was portable, and wasn't there when she parked and was gone the next day. Basically, the tow truck driver threw up a sign, snapped a pic with the car there, and took the sign down with him! The apartment complex offered no help with the situation, as they wouldn't provide the "registered" parking lot map which would have shown all the assigned handicap spots. We got to the impound yard, called the cops, and they also blew us off. We decided to pay the charge and leave it be. There's a case going on right now about this trying to force the city to enter some policy changes for this, but I don't know any details. You might try contacting some news station to find out some more info or to try to get something started. Bad publicity is the best medicine for this kind of thing. Again, post up the business name, and I for one won't be giving them any business...



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97 T/A
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"Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street
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mrquest@ti.com

Just saw your post in the LT1 tech section...Steak and Ale eh?

atleast you kept your cool, i had this happen in my brothers old apartment complex. i parked under the coverd parking for maybe 25 seconds to run inside because all the free spaces were taken, and it was middle of the day when the person with the covered parking was at work. anyways, i walk outside and i see my car being raised from the back end (this guy had to be sitting wating on anyone to just pull in). anyways im nice and try to explain i ran in for just a second and he tells me to pay him 150 and he will unhook it, otherwise its gonna be about 200 to get it back. i tell him thats ridiculous so i started mess with the controls on the truck since i am familiar with them. he runs over to me and forcefully grabs and squeezes my left hand so my first reaction is to knock the living **** out of him with my right hand and the guy tried to pull out a pocket knife and stab me with it, never did get to. by the time cops got there my car was on the ground, the tow truck had been driven across the parking lot and i tossed my brother my keys so he could get my car to a safe spot. then i spent a lovely night in jail, but assault charges got dropped since he tried to stab me, i didnt press charges back since he got his nose and both lips busted, and one eye was swolen. im sure he felt stupid the next day when all that started throbbing. i cant stand those damn crooks http://web.camaross.com/bb/mad.gif thats complete bullchit they can just take YOUR $10k+ vehicle, put it in a fence and tell you that you have to pay them 200 dollars or you dont get YOUR property back, just because you are on someones asphault.

and i wouldnt even bother going to the police about this, the only one they are going to serve and protect is the tow truck company. they might get you for a no front plate ticket though http://web.camaross.com/bb/mad.gif might as well chalk it up as a loss in your books, start parking reverse in all parking spots, slam on your e-brake and put it in gear (or park). they can still get it, just make it hell on em if they try to get it.

[This message has been edited by mr diabolical (edited September 04, 2002).]

http://www.steakandale.com/talk.htm

Sorry this wont help now. But you should have gone into the place and had the most expensive meal you could get. You know, maybe Champane, the works. Then told the manager that you'er not going to pay unless they bring your car back.

Try and get them some bad PR. Maybe though one of the TV stations and the BBB.

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NQR Racing
Wht 97 SS Conv.
Bld. #35

i can understand that they would want their parking spots for their customers, but that is a little extreme. i would seriously call news stations about it. they love to do stings on stuff like this.

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-Justin
'94 Z28 M6, SLP headers, Flowmaster AT, underdrive pulley's, CAI, 1.6 RR's, LT4 springs, Eibach Pro kit, Bilsteins, Nittos.

60 ft: 2.00
1/8: 8.58 @82.7
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'97 CBR600F3-my new toy