Claiming Economic Loss against tow company

[Zigner]

Hi everyone. Thank you for the insightful responses. Sorry for the delay, I was a little busy.



To answer your question, the delay was 'on purpose' because several calls were made to the towing company before they released the trailer to me. I called the tow company 8 times between 12:30pm and 5:30pm on a Saturday. They answered each call (except 1 because they started to ignore me after the 7th call). In the first phone call, the manager I spoke with lied about the business hours and said he was closed (this is at 12:30pm). The real business hours are 9am to 1pm on Saturdays. They used the same business hours to tow the trailer, but refused to give it back within their hours of operation. Anyway, the manager continued to lie in each phone call and told me he was closed. He said I would need to pickup the trailer on Monday. I did further investigation of the towing company and realized that the official operating hours are 9am to 1pm. I confronted the tow manager over the phone for lying. He responded by saying 'it doesn't matter what I said earlier, you're not getting the trailer until Monday' (this conversation was around 5:30pm) . After I threatened to sue, someone else from the company gave me a call at around 6:30pm and released the trailer to me at around 7:20pm after paying a ransom of $550 (they said it's normally $500, but $50 is a 'favor fee'- complete bs). However, it was much too late by then. The freight that I was scheduled to pickup was canceled by then. Also, there is an incentive for towing companies to hold vehicles because they can arbitrarily charge storage fees at will. And no, I didn't tell the tow company I needed the trailer by "X o'clock" because I didn't think that was relevant. Why do I need to give a reason to retrieve MY things if I called within the business hours? The trailer is M-I-N-E. That's the only reason I need.



Zinger is correct, this was an non-consensual tow. However, there are more issues regarding the parking rules. There were NO signs present in the parking lot prohibiting parked trailers. The trailer was parked at a Loves truckstop. Loves is a franchise, and there are many locations that allow you to park your trailer/truck without worries for up to 24 hours. Whenever parking rules differ from other truckstops, signs are always present. The truckstop I visited didn't have signs (I took pictures of this for my case).



Taxing Matters, I've thought about framing the loss as a breach of contract, but I'm not sure which contract was breached because I never signed anything and this was a non-consensual tow. However, the tow company should have an obligation to return personal property if people call and request their vehicles WITHIN BUSINESS HOURS. Is it really legal for them to return people's property when they feel like it? This can't be possible. This is why I'm trying to find something that allows me to make a claim.

I also found some other laws in Wisconsin that limit the amount they are allowed to charge.
https://towing.witruck.org/laws/towing-storage-liens/ [ Wis. Stat. ch. 342 ]
My trailer was empty when it was towed, and it's only about 12,000 pounds. According to the rules, anything under 20,000 pounds should only cost $120. Not $550. And no 'favor fee' clauses. I plan to add this to the suit. They completely ripped me off.

The fee is based on the "manufacturer’s gross weight rating" of your trailer, not on the actual weight. If your trailer is 12,000 empty, then I'm sure that the "manufacturer’s gross weight rating" exceeds 20,000 lbs.
Frankly, $550 seems more than reasonable for this. No matter how you spin it, the fact is they stayed after-hours to allow you to pick up the trailer. You're lucky that you didn't actually have to wait until Monday.

You can focus on the signage, but I suspect that you don't really have any solid ground there, either. It's likely you just didn't see the sign, and I'm sure that your pictures won't show a sign because...why would they?

 

[adjusterjack]

There were NO signs present in the parking lot prohibiting parked trailers. The trailer was parked at a Loves truckstop. Loves is a franchise, and there are many locations that allow you to park your trailer/truck without worries for up to 24 hours. Whenever parking rules differ from other truckstops, signs are always present. The truckstop I visited didn't have signs (I took pictures of this for my case).

I'm guessing if you went back to the truckstop and asked, they would show you the signs.

 

[quincy]

No parking areas can be indicated by more than just “No Parking” signs on posts. Fire hydrants and lines on the pavement and ramps designed for wheelchair access, for three examples, can also indicate that parking is not permitted.

 

[legalinquiry_01]

The fee is based on the "manufacturer’s gross weight rating" of your trailer, not on the actual weight. If your trailer is 12,000 empty, then I'm sure that the "manufacturer’s gross weight rating" exceeds 20,000 lbs.
Frankly, $550 seems more than reasonable for this. No matter how you spin it, the fact is they stayed after-hours to allow you to pick up the trailer. You're lucky that you didn't actually have to wait until Monday.

You can focus on the signage, but I suspect that you don't really have any solid ground there, either. It's likely you just didn't see the sign, and I'm sure that your pictures won't show a sign because...why would they?

Hi zinger,
I went to the scale and the actual weight is 10600 lbs. The manufacturer weight is 12,280 lbs

https://www.mactrailer.com/flatbed-trailers.html

I have the 53 ft trailer. The specs are under the “MPL 6 or MPL 8” section. Like I said, it shouldn’t have been $550.

I’m not spinning anything. These are the rules. If you take 3 steps without dribbling, that’s traveling.

And there were no signs. I took a video of the entire parking lot. No signs in the area. My data isn’t biased. This is really what happened. I’m researching ways to make a case for the lack of signs.

 

[quincy]

It is generally the case that vehicles are not to be left unattended, even in parking areas, signs or no signs. I think any argument you have should focus less on the lack of signage (which may or not be absolutely necessary) and more on the public’s right to “overnight” empty vehicles on the private property.

 

[Zigner]

Hi zinger,
I went to the scale and the actual weight is 10600 lbs. The manufacturer weight is 12,280 lbs

https://www.mactrailer.com/flatbed-trailers.html

I have the 53 ft trailer. The specs are under the “MPL 6 or MPL 8” section. Like I said, it shouldn’t have been $550.

I’m not spinning anything. These are the rules. If you take 3 steps without dribbling, that’s traveling.

And there were no signs. I took a video of the entire parking lot. No signs in the area. My data isn’t biased. This is really what happened. I’m researching ways to make a case for the lack of signs.

Do you understand the difference between empty weight and gross vehicle weight? From the owner's manual linked in the page you provided:

The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating is the maximum allowable gross weight of the trailer and its contents with the listed wheel rims.

The EMPTY weight of your trailer is not the relevant weight.

 

[Zigner]

It is generally the case that vehicles are not to be left unattended, even in parking areas, signs or no signs. I think any argument you have should focus less on the lack of signage (which may or not be absolutely necessary) and more on the public’s right to “overnight” empty vehicles on the private property.

Without signs, the vehicle would have to be cited for illegal parking before it could be towed. With signs, no citation is necessary.

EDIT: I know I posted this link in the other forum, but I don't see it here: https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/349/II/13/3m/c (see also para (b) )

 

[quincy]

Without signs, the vehicle would have to be cited for illegal parking before it could be towed. With signs, no citation is necessary.

Not if the vehicle is considered abandoned.

 

[quincy]

It is generally the case that vehicles are not to be left unattended, even in parking areas, signs or no signs. ...

By the way, the sentence of mine quoted above was a really stupid one. It is of course very common to park cars in parking areas and leave them unattended.

 

[Zigner]

Not if the vehicle is considered abandoned.

I suppose it's possible that this was reported as an abandoned vehicle per https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/342/iii/40, but I suspect that's not what happened here. Simply parking the trailer overnight does not give rise to a reasonable presumption of abandonment.

 

[quincy]

legalinquiry_01, how long was your vehicle left unattended in the parking lot before you went to retrieve it?

 

[legalinquiry_01]

No parking areas can be indicated by more than just “No Parking” signs on posts. Fire hydrants and lines on the pavement and ramps designed for wheelchair access, for three examples, can also indicate that parking is not permitted.

Hello. There was no paint on the pavement either. No red lines or markings.

legalinquiry_01, how long was your vehicle left unattended in the parking lot before you went to retrieve it?

Trailer was parked overnight. So about 10 to 12 hours .

 

[legalinquiry_01]

… the fact is they stayed after-hours to allow you to pick up the trailer. You're lucky that you didn't actually have to wait until Monday.

Zinger, they didn’t stay after hours for me. They were never closed. They were on the premises answering the phone all day between 12:30pm and 6pm. They lied about being closed. When I had one of the managers from the truckstop give them a call for the trailer around 4pm, the manager from the tow company said “hold on, let me go outside and take a look to see if the trailer is there.” He was with the trailer and looking at the trailer the entire time, and I lost freight because of this. They had plenty of opportunities to give me my trailer, but they wouldn’t until I threatened to make a case against them.

 

[adjusterjack]

It is of course very common to park cars in parking areas and leave them unattended.

And this was a truck stop, where truckers park their rigs overnight, sleep in them, and may be away from the vehicles for long intervals for meals and using the facilities. They don't get towed.

Trailer was parked overnight. So about 10 to 12 hours .

You keep referring to trailer, meaning you drove into the truck stop, unhooked the trailer, drove off in your motor vehicle, and left the trailer unattended. Why did you leave it? Where did you go?

Have you asked the truck stop manager why the trailer was towed?

It might just be that leaving the trailer unattended raised a presumption that it was abandoned.

 

[quincy]

Hello. There was no paint on the pavement either. No red lines or markings.




Trailer was parked overnight. So about 10 to 12 hours .

Thanks for addressing the issues I mentioned in my posts, legalinquiry_01.

I can’t explain the reason for the tow (you will have to get that information from the tow company or truck stop ) but I know it is generally best to first get a towed vehicle off the storage lot by paying whatever is demanded, so storage fees do not escalate. Once your vehicle is in your possession again, you can better deal with the potentially illegal actions and predatory fees charged by the tow company. You might want to investigate the tow company’s history to see if complaints have been filed against it in the past.