Tow truckers and insurance lobbyists are waging a legal war over seventeen dollars
When Hartford native Jon Walker parked his car on a private lot in downtown Hartford, he never expected the inconvenience that would ensue. An hour after leaving his car on the lot, it was towed, and Walker spent the remainder of his night frantically searching for it. He spent $20 on an Uber to the shop that towed him and paid $180 in fees. In Walker’s view, the business of towing is predatory and exploitative. “I don’t understand how we live in a society where a person can steal your property then bully you into getting it back.” says Walker, “why don’t they just give me a ticket?”
According to Sal Sena, president of Towing & Recovery Professionals of Connecticut (TRCP) and owner of Cross Country Automotive, consumer frustration over tow rates isn’t uncommon. Just last week an aggrieved vehicle owner came into Sena’s shop to retrieve a towed car and was so outraged over the fees that he held a gun to an employee’s head and stole his car off the lot. “We deal with crazy stuff like that all the time” says Sena, “Most people understand that the rates are what they are, but some people get angry.”
The current rates that shops can charge for a tow are set by the commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Most tows are “nonconsensual” meaning they’re prompted by an accident or a trespass. For nonconsensual tows involving vehicles under 10,000lbs (most cars and trucks) the rate is $105 plus potential added fees. Shops may also charge storage fees, mileage, and “after-hours” fees. Under normal circumstances a trespassing vehicle owner should expect to spend $105 or more for a tow.
Despite being unsavory to consumers, Sena argues that tow rates are abysmally low and barely cover the costs of doing business. “Profit margins on towing are razor thin” says Sena, “we’ve seen a tremendous drop in tow truckers throughout the state over the years because of this.”
Tim Vibert, the former president of Towing & Recovery Professionals of Connecticut, shares Sal’s sentiments, contending that tow trucking is integral to transportation infrastructure. “We clean up the streets and keep transportation flowing” says Vibert, “We don’t get paid by the police for accident tows, or by private lots for trespass tows. We rely on tow rates to do all of this, and we lose money.” With an average of over 90,000 car accidents in Connecticut a year (according to the Connecticut Crash Data Repository), tow trucks are routinely called on to clean up wreckage to keep transportation seamless. Accident tows are covered by insurance, but when vehicle owners don’t have coverage the cars remain on the lots indefinitely, triggering a junking process that can take months and cost tow truckers thousands.
The hostility stemming from tow rates has traditionally been framed as an issue between tow truckers and consumers. But a closer look reveals what Sena refers to as a “David and goliath battle” between mom-and-pop shops versus Connecticut’s largest insurance lobbyist, the Insurance Association of Connecticut (IAC). Sena’s organization dutifully petitions the DMV for tow rate increases every two years and invariably faces pushback from IAC. “It’s like David and goliath” says Sena, “The insurance lobby in this state is huge because we have so many massive insurance companies here.”
The insurance companies are mainly concerned with rates relating to accident tows, which they must pay for. Eric George, president of the insurance association of Connecticut, says that although his organization represents the insurance companies, consumers benefit from the battles they fight. “The costs of insurance ultimately fall on the consumer” says George, “We believe that towers and everybody involved needs to be compensated reasonably and there’s a process to determine what that reasonableness is. We go through that process. It is the auto holders’ best interest to keep those rates reasonable and it’s our position we don’t want these rates to be excessive.”
With the costs of purchasing and repairing tow trucks rising astronomically, and salaries, insurance costs, and fuel costs seeing similar increases, auto shops are tapering off their towing operations. This may come as happy news to people like Jon Walker, who park on private lots, but for transportation infrastructure this trend could be dangerous. Without a healthy pool of tow truckers to remove wreckage off public roadways, transportation could be adversely affected.
Vibert and Sena aren’t asking for much, just minimal increases in tow rates to match inflation and the increased costs of business. Despite their petitions, the DMV has refused to make substantial changes to tow rates. Prior to 2018 tow rates didn’t budge for an entire decade. After Sena successfully petitioned the DMV to increase rates in 2018, the department only gave tow truckers a marginal raise of $17, without raising mileage fees despite the increasing cost of gas.
Vibert said he’s willing to reach a middle ground that’s fair for everybody. “We aren’t trying to make anyone’s life difficult” he said, “a lot of shops, including myself, will work with people and give discounts if they can’t afford the rates. Customers don’t see what we do behind the scenes. We get taken into court by insurance companies over fifty bucks after cleaning up a wreck on the highway and storing it on our lot for a week.” The DMV commissioner examines tow rates every two years. Sena says his organization will continue to fight for rates that are fair to the industry and consumers alike. Inevitably, IAC will likely oppose.
***If you’ve been injured in a car accident call Jake Dressler 207 550 5604 or email us at [email protected]***