My car was stolen, recovered, and I get hit with the bill

[JMDEM]

My car was briefly stolen, then recovered the next day in a ditch about 10 miles from my house. It was obvious that someone had just taken it for a "joyride".

I got a call from the police that they had recovered the vehicle, and that it had been towed to an impoundment lot. I could not pick the vehicle up, however, because it was Sunday.

The next day I got the vehicle, and I received a whopping bill -- $185 to tow the car, and $80 for two days of storage, for a $265 bill altogether. The impoundment lot happened to be about 3 miles from where the car was discovered, so that was $165 for a 3 mile tow.

When I went to pick the car up, they refused to release it to me until I paid, and that is when I found out what the bill was. I was outraged, but they all said to calm down -- that insurance would cover it. So I calmed down, got the car and took it home.

The next day I found out from my insurance company that they would NOT cover the charges. Or rather, because I had $250 deductible, that they would cover $15 of it. It wasn't even worth the effort to file the claim. The insurance company added that this happened all the time, and the towing company and the police knew damned well that insurance didn't cover this bill.

The insurance guy said this was a rampant nationwide scam that was set up between the police and local towing companies and that "profits" were often split between the towing companies and either police departments or the cities. He said that only one state -- Missouri -- had a law on the book that required the police to give you the option to use your own towing services (e.g., AAA) to have the car towed to a location of your choice. Some cities also have this law, such as San Francisco. Otherwise, you are screwed.

And yes, I do have AAA. In fact I have dual towing privileges through my insurance company and AAA, but neither would cover the towing part of the bill because I had not requested the tow -- the police had. Apparently they too are aware of this scam and dodge it with the clause that they will only pay when the vehicle owner requests the tow. In these cases, the towing bill is usually much much lower.

[dysfunctional press]

1. part of the risk and costs of owning a vehicle.

whatcha gonna do...? :shrug: that's life.

[JMDEM]

4. I don't accept obvious rip-off schemes as "life"

However, I also get a little nervous about confronting police departments on their behavior.

[dysfunctional press]

6. right...let me know when you get your money back, then.

:eyes:

[Jim Sagle]

61. Let US know when you have anything useful to post..

[JVS]

7. Have you talked to a lawyer?

Also, I'd complain to the insurance people a bit more. They sound awfully complicit in this scheme and if you could get them to exercise a little muscle, or AAA to do something, they might be willing to compromise at a reasonable rate.

[dysfunctional press]

36. yep- when in doubt, reach for the lawyer- is this a great country, or what...?

nt

[Flubadubya]

45. Why must you always jump into someone's obvious misfortune...

with an all-out attack of rank CYNICISM?

What a genuinely unsympathetic rotter you are!! :puke:

[dysfunctional press]

48. you say cynicism, i say real-life...

:shrug:

why must so many people expect fairy-tale solutions for every bit of misfortune they encounter...?

[annabanana]

50. Life sucks, why fight it? Just lie back and Think of England...

right?

[dysfunctional press]

51. someone who uses terms like "unsympathetic rotter" would be more likely to think of england-

i prefer to think of tahiti.

to each their own, i guess.

[burythehatchet]

63. Thanks.

[burythehatchet]

64. Nor should you. It is exactly the attitude of "sit back and enjoy it"

that enables the fuckers of the world to continue their fucking innocent victins of their fucking little games.

[K Gardner]

17. See post #13. If everyone threw up their hands and said "thats life" against injustice, where in

world would this country be?

[Deja Q]

23. Illinois?

[Greyhound]

43. LOL!

:rofl:

Ain't that the truth...

:rofl:

But really, it's everywhere. We're the sheep that are fleeced to support their game.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

44. Bingo!

;-)

[Deja Q]

22. "Life is what you make of it."

With luck, the irresponsible little bastard who nicked the car will get caught and pony up.

Where do kids get their morals from anyway, electronic nannies showing "Grant Theft Auto" and "Family Guy"?

[dysfunctional press]

39. life is not like tv...

when my car was broken into, and the radio stolen- there were very clear fingerprints where the window had been pried open- whern i pointed that out to the investigating officer, he just laughed and told me that reality doesn't work like tv, and that they wouldn't go thru that much expense and bother over a car radio- even when i pointed out that catching the person would prevent him from committing other crimes.

another one-
when we lived in chicago, we were half a block north of a christian college, and 3 blocks south of the only bar in our ward- which meant that we got a lot of late-night foot traffic of drunken christians headed back to the dorm. one evening, (well...2am) some of them decided it would be fun to run down the street on top of the cars parked along the street, including ours. i happened to be up, and witnessed it, so i ran out, and caught up with them, and was able to grab one by the arm to keep them from running away. the chicago cops who responded told me to drop it, or i would be charged with assault for grabbing the kid, and that this kind of stuff is "why you have insurance".

[Xenotime]

82. Obama is on TV what does that mean then?

[peace13]

27. Well the OP had taken precautions against life

by purchasing towing insurance and AAA. It seems that the owner of a vehicle is pretty easy to find due to registration and that the police could place a call and let the owner retrieve the car. Oh wait, that would impede the investigation of the crime. Why is the victim always asked to pay the price?

[dysfunctional press]

34. the op could have also popped for car insurance with no deductible...

but that probably would have cost more than the price of the tow.

[peace13]

52. That's what we ended up doing.

It does take the sting out of a deer hit.

[dysfunctional press]

53. and it would have taken the sting out of his towing fees as well...

but that's life- live it and learn.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

29. Aren't you just a ray of shining light?

What is your point in posting such a comment?

[dysfunctional press]

35. same as yours- expressing my opinion.

:hi:

[TheCentepedeShoes]

2. Kinda makes you wonder

who really stole your car.

[dana_b]

3. that has happened to a couple of friends of mine too

so sorry about this. you're already pised off about the car being stolen and then the people who are supposed to help you rip you off.

[Buck Laser]

5. The Lincoln Park Pirates strike again, huh?

Back in the 70s, Steve Goodman wrote a neat song about that scam in the Lincoln Park area of Chicago. Maybe they're franchising it nationwide now.

[alfredo]

8. Talk to your state's AG. The local media would love a story like this.

[Ian David]

26. Be neat if someone ran some kind of sting operation on them.

Talk to this guy...

The Raw Story | Former drug officer launches 'KopBusters' TV show
Dec 6, 2008 ... "KopBusters rented a house in Odessa, Texas and began growing two small Christmas trees under a grow light similar to those used for growing ...
www.rawstory.com/news/2008/Excop_Barry_Cooper_launches_Kop_Busters_1206.html

[alfredo]

46. I saw that. Towing companies seem to be shady in many towns.

Punishing the victim is just wrong wrong wrong.

The police should secure it on their property because it is evidence. By turning it over to a towing company they are breaking the chain of custody for evidence.

First your car is stolen, then the police then take it and hold it for ransom.

[Ian David]

56. Not being a lawyer, I don't know if this would work:

1) File a lawsuit against the person who stole your car, naming them as "John Doe."

2) Subpoena information from the police department seeking information relevant to your case against John Doe.

3) Sue the tow truck company and the police department for "Ruination" of your lawsuit, and/or negligence for failing to preserve the evidence necessary for your lawsuit.


But really, IMHO, if this isn't a RICOH case I don't know what is (but maybe I actually don't).

[alfredo]

57. Shaming them should be the first step. You need the media. If you

do generate some media, take the issue to the city council, if they say it is outside their influence, go to your state legislators. But you got to do that while the story is above the fold. Have documentation and people willing to stand with you. Maybe even the insurance company might have a dog in this fight. If it costs them money they may help you overturn this in your case and maybe if you take it to the state legislature.

Frame it well. Fleecing the crime victim? Victimizing the crime victim? Holding your car for ransom? Charging you a finder's fee? Next thing you know, they will be charging for rape kits.

Three bullet points in twenty nine words is what we teach local politicians.

[raccoon]

66. RICOH? nt

[DonEBrook]

9. Typical corrupt shenanigans. They tow cars in when it isn't necessary at all.

Rather than just notify the owner and let them come get it they have vehicles impounded even when they are otherwise legally parked...sometimes even on private property. And they get away with this institutionalized larceny.

[leftofthedial]

10. the police impound scam is one of the oldest around.

like most crime, the police are useless and you get to suffer not only the crime, but any bills that derive from it.

My car was stolen a month ago or so. My insurance company is great, but I still ended up out of pocket about $400, plus the $1000 over and above the settlement on my totaled vehicle that it cost me to replace it with a comparable car.

The thieves? They got clean away, as they do in 95% or more of these cases. The cops? They were nice enough to call me and give me 15 minutes to drive 45 minutes across town to retrieve my car before they impounded it. The cops said my car was fine. It was totaled. No clutch, the back station wagon door all but ripped off its hinges, the entire cargo department was demolished on the inside, wiring ripped out, molding all smashed...

The bill for a 5-mile tow and one day of "storage"? $450.

I feel your pain.

[Ian David]

11. Cops always leave their keys in their ignitions with their engines running.

Be a shame if they had to call a tow truck to recover THEIR cars.

I'm just sayin'

[LiberalFighter]

14. I wouldn't advocate driving away in a police car.... maybe losing the key.

[Ian David]

25. I also wouldn't advocate peeing in the front seat. n/t

[LiberalFighter]

81. That's what the back seat of a police car is for.

[gollygee]

12. I'd start with your city council

They employee the police, and that's free. A complaint there might be a first step.

[NashVegas]

21. And Continue On to the Consumer Affairs Advocate At Your Local TV News Stations

Write letters to all of them, and pitch the story to them, offer yourself to be interviewed on camera. Follow up 3-4 days later with a phone call.

Also, write letters to the editor at your local newspaper.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

76. They are probably the ones who approved the contract for the towing company

This has little to do with the police, and more with the typical chain of city and town government.

[LiberalFighter]

13. You need to do several things.

Complain to your city council member. Push for your council member to pass an ordinance requiring police to notify you immediately and give you the option of having the vehicle towed yourself.

Contact your state representative and state senator inquiring what the law is that allows them to do this. And if there is a law push your state legislators to change it. Or pass a law that requires local law enforcement to notify you. AND pass legislation that would make it a felony if local law enforcement and towing companies conspire this type of activity.

Oh yes... complain to your mayor, write a letter to your newspaper complaining about this too.

[kath]

60. Agree with these. Contact local media, city council, state AG and state Insurance Commission.

also state leg.
get the word out - this is really an abomination.

[Maat]

15. I'm sorry that you went through this.

A relative of mine went through this years ago.

Citizens have to get together and change this; we have to add it to the list.

It's just sickening.

Postive thoughts and energy headed your way.

[K Gardner]

16. You know that they called in the license plate when they found it, knew it was stolen, and

easily could have called you to either come get it or arrange for towing.

What are people going to do who have no credit cards, no extra money.. they just lose their car because they can't afford to get it out of impound? I wonder the same thing about traffic tickets.

I had a friend who went to court to fight a ticket, and won her case. She still had to pay over $200 in court costs or lose her license. She borrowed the money from her parents. Two months later, she gets a letter from the state that her license is being suspended for nonpayment of court fines. After hours on the phone, she finds out that during the processing of her current case, they've dug up a 15-year-old "ticket" for violation of a leash law (which she doesn't even remember) and she owes an extra $345 for that within 24 hours or she loses her license and then has to pay the money plus reinstatement fees and yadayadayada.

I loaned her the money, because she makes minimum wage and barely feeds her kids, but you just have to wonder about people v police depts and courts who have NO resources.

[havocmom]

18. Look on the bright side: You weren't raped in Alaska

Just sayin, life could be worse and you could still get the bill.

[madmom]

19. Write a LTTE about this practice, they may do something to correct it, nobody likes bad PR.

[TexasObserver]

20. Yes, it is part of the obvious graft and corruption routinely practiced by police in America.

They are working for the towing companies, who are kicking back cash to the police, some known, some under the table. It is an epidemic, and just one more example that the number one group in America to worry about is not criminals, but police. They engage in such petty thievery routinely, and further, think it's their damn right to do so.

This is one of those seedy practices NO POLICE OFFICER ever resists. It's a glorified form of free donuts at Dunkin.

[DonEBrook]

33. I worked my way through college as a cop...the FOP "lodge" was really just a private bar

stocked with liquor grabbed from kids or actually anyone driving or otherwise out in public. There was always plenty to choose from. I'll confess to having a few drinks but at least I never took any directly from a citizen. :shrug:

[undeterred]

24. How infuriating.

Like being robbed twice.

[ThomCat]

28. It really pisses me off that it's so normal

for municipal governments to defraud their own constituents as a routine matter of business.

Who the hell do they think they are serving? x(

Government is just another corporate power base with a mandate to amass money, power and authority. :(

[proud2BlibKansan]

30. Time to contact your state reps

Maybe you could send them a copy of the bill on the books in MO?

I have first hand knowledge of that legislation, as my husband's car was stolen in MO and the following day, a towing company called us to tell us the car had been found and they needed our permission to tow it. The police never called us.

So I can report it is a good law indeed. :)

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

31. About 20 some odd years ago my car was stolen in Manhattan, NY, where I lived.

After 3 weeks I received a call from the cops that it was found. It turned out, it was found 2 weeks earlier, and not only did I get charged for the towing, I had to pay for storage. I was victimized twice.

BTW...the thieves who took it for a joy ride destroyed the whole front end and I had to junk it immediately after I paid about $400 in fees.

[NNN0LHI]

32. Wow! $250 deductible? I didn't think they even had such a thing any more

Thats like what it was back in the 70's.

I went to a $1000.00 deductible from $500.00 probably 20 years ago.

Sorry to hear about you trouble but I think I would raise up that deductible and save some real money on your car insurance.

Bet you could save a few hundred dollars a year at least by doing that.

Don

[msongs]

37. you should not be charged for time the impound lot was CLOSED and in the future, Police should

notify owners when a stolen car is found and ask what the owner wants done with it. that way the owner can arrange their own
towing.

Msongs

BTW - the impounded car is evidence in a crime. why should the owner have to pay for evidence storage?

[lunatica]

38. Unfortunately that's common. I call it police/impound mob tactics

I think the police are related to the impound companies' owners which keeps the extortion practices in the family. It's a total rip off. I'm sure the police get a kick back.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

75. Like anywhere else, it's probably a city contract

The guy getting a contract like that probably has a cousin in the mayor or city manager's office. The average police officer has nothing to do with it.

[sandnsea]

40. I like that MO law, will send it to my rep

A lot of times your local people just need to know there's an alternative out there and are happy to change things when they know what it is.

[Greyhound]

41. Welcome to Amerika, where did you think you lived?

Corruption and incompetence, top to bottom. Try dealing with a car dealer sometime, that industry has been buying politicians and legislation for a century and have zero liability, no matter how egregious their offense.

Towing companies are infamous for being above the law across the country.

There is a place in the middle of CA, King's County IIRC, where the top cop is the BIL of the Mayor and the her brother owns the only towing company in town. Their father is the judge and the town's primary revenue source is speeding tickets. You can imagine...

I'm very sorry this happened to you.

[benld74]

42. YUP thats how its played, when mine was stolen,,,

had tow chardges, storage charges, insurance went up, had to co-pay the damage. Car was NEVER the same. ALL for some damn joy ride by a bunch of punks. Hell ESTL PD threatened ME with jail, all I did was call their operation a Mayberry RFD outfit!

[alfredo]

47. They are holding your car for ransom

[JerseygirlCT]

49. That sucks.

I hope you're pointing out the situation to your legislators...

[yy4me]

54. A little like last spring when the neighbors tree fell on our house.

We had to pay to remove the tree from our house then argue with Liberty Mutual about coverage. They tried to settle our claim by phone from Texas. I live in Mass. We had to hire an independent adjuster to argue with them for any coverage. $11,000 damage, we had to pay $7,000. We would not have even gotten anything if it wasn't for the adjuster. It seems that at least here in MA, damage caused by a neighbors tree is your fault.

Insurance is an evil necessity, no matter what happens, don't expect to win anything without a fight.

BTW. Check your policies. 3 years ago, we lost the furnace. We were not home and it had rained quite a bit several days before. Our cellar does not flood, but after the rain reaches the high water table, it comes up through the sump well. Result? Flooded furnace well. No coverage. Seems we did not have the $23.00 dollar rider on our policy to cover sump failure. We never new it existed. We gave then over $1000.00 a year for insurance, don't you think we would have bought that coverage for such short money if we knew about it?.

I will never deal with any insurance company except a local independent. He is your advocate too. Phooey on the likes of Liberty Mutual. We canceled with them, both house and auto. Learned the very hard way. And, always ask if there are other things you should have on your insurance other than the obvious. Sometimes there are non-mandatory surprises.

[dysfunctional press]

68. since it was your neighbor's tree- can you make a civil claim...?

maybe HIS insurance should pay for it.

[yy4me]

71. Nope, Massachusetts law from what I was told. Even if I could

have gone after them(it is a condo association), the time and $$ involved would not have been worth the effort. The worst part was that no-one in the 12 townhouse association complex ever came over to say anything to us. They just pretended it never happened. Wait, one did, to suggest a tree removal service.

Needless to say, we don't talk much.

[rvablue]

55. JMDEM, this totally sucks and apologize for the major jerks who

are attacking you and blaming this on you.

Insult to Injury, right?

It sounds like you had the money. But what if this happened to some single mom with two kids barely surviving on minimum wage. Would she just have to walk away, then lose her job because she couldn't get there, then get evicted.....I think you see where I'm going with this.

Just to be clear, I am in no way, shape or form, belittling your experience, but affirming it.

Fines like these when you did NOTHING wrong could very well completely devastate a life.

Totally sucks....and I'm sorry.

ONE FINAL IDEA: Having worked in the news biz, the time between Thanksgiving and New Year's is known as the slow season and reporters are killing themselves to come up with stories.

You should call your local paper and/or TV station (especially one that might have a consumer advocacy reporter) because they might be VERY interested in the story....make sure you give them the spin that this has "ruining your holiday plans." so they can have a seasonal angle.

[JMDEM]

62. I will contact the alternative paper this week

One of those typical weekly rags that gets handed out for free, but which does have a wide audience, and which does like the conspiracy sort of issues.

[slutticus]

58. Deductibles suck. My window was smashed outside my house recently.

It cost $510. My deductible is $500.

Wasn't even worth telling my insurance.

[dysfunctional press]

67. you should check your policy- sometimes there's an exception to the deductible for window glass

nt

[L0oniX]

59. Kinda like gettting raped and having to pay for the rape kit tests.

[aikoaiko]

65. One thing I wish I did after I got my stolen car back was SELL IT, IMMEDIATELY

Of course my car was 13 year old sedan and the thieves had it for about a month (and was involved in a high speed chase which my car won thank you very much). The transmission died soon thereafter I got it back and had already signed the its A-OK form from the insurance company.

Thieves are hard on their cars. You might want to consider selling it before the transmission or engine damage catches up with you.

[Fire1]

74. Me too! I bought 'Lo-Jack',

to 'lower my premiums' and the cops found it stripped, the next day. The Ins. Co. paid to restore it, but it's performance was
never the same and I was hit 6 times in the rear on 6 separate occasions, thereafter. I couldn't believe it. I will NEVER buy another lo-jack or any kind of 'retrieve' system, again. If they steal it, they can total it.

[slackmaster]

69. Having your stuff stolen sucks donkey dicks

It's almost impossible to be made whole again after a major theft.

The person who SHOULD be made to pay for towing, etc. is long gone.

[Soylent Brice]

70. same thing happened to me TWICE in Phoenix

i lived in Phoenix for a few years.

first week i was there my car was stolen from the driveway of my sister's house. they found it the next day by 10am.

we found out from the impound, the cops never contacted us.

we showed up at the impound, and there was a slew of charges as well. when it was over i was out about $275.

then it happened again. it was parked in front of work, literally in front of the front wall sized windows. security cams every where, and security guards patrolling on golf carts. they stole it and dumped in a few blocks from work. a week later the cops were informed by the tow truck company they found it. the problem though was that they never called me to tell me. it took me 2 1/2 weeks of hounding the police to let me know what was going on. they told me to give up, consider it a loss, etc. i sad fuck that. turns out a tow truck found it the same day, so i ended up paying almost 3 weeks of fees for storage, etc etc etc.

same car stolen twice, recovered twice. damned piece of shit.

I FEEL YOUR PAIN.

[depakid]

72. "the cops never contacted us."

Yep- same thing happened to me in San Diego. I'd driven down on business, only to come out and find my truck gone. Took a cab to the airport and flew home. Over the next two weeks, I called every day, thinking it might be a joy ride type deal, but the cops said it was probably in Mexico- and to just write it off.

So I did, and the day after I purchased another car- wouldn't you know, a notice of lien sale came in the mail from the towing yard. They'd recovered my vehicle the day after it was stolen. Cost me over $800 to get it back.

I wondered at the time whether there was something going untoward going on (though knowing police in California it's equally probable that it was simply a result of incompetence).

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

73. Have you called your city council person or commissioner or whatever?

Most places have a reduced fee or no fee for stolen vehicles. Good luck to you.

David

[Canuckistanian]

77. Police Depts are taking a cut of the VICTIM'S costs?

I could see charging a MODERATE towing rate - after all, the city is doing you a favor (somewhat).

But THE COPS SHARING the overpayment? That should be illegal and reserved for lawbreakers only.

That's what I call conflict of interest.

[KamaAina]

78. Where is this? Wasilla, Alaska?

:shrug:

[Matariki]

79. As someone else mentioned, write to your City Council.

I've done that over an issue that seemed outrageously unfair and the law actually got changed. You may not get your money back, but it's *very* satisfying to instigate a change in the law in an unjust situation.

[amborin]

80. this is standard, same thing happened to us...