I say that because I have no idea what the profit margin and percentage the owner typically takes home, but I’m very familiar with how a business works.
Did you know, when you go to a normal, sit down restaurant, the prices in the menu are typically about 3 times what they paid for it? Or, more accurately, they operate at a 70% margin (also called 30% food cost). So, when your family goes out to a restaurant and the bill comes to $100, it’s safe to bet the restaurant paid about $30 for that food. But, I can also tell you, after everything else is paid for, the owner will put between 50¢ and $5.00 (on the very very high end) in their pocket. This, I know for a fact. This is what I was basing my above statement on. Like I said, I don’t know what the margin is on towing, but I was extrapolating from the restaurant business, which I know is a but of a stretch, but I’m guessing it’s a pretty good bet. I don’t think there’s a lot of businesses out there where the owner is putting $50 in his pocket on a $100 charge. “Oh my god, how can you charge that much” and “You’re getting rich off of my hard earned money” and “what a rip off” are all things business owners hear on a daily basis…99% of the time these are said by people have no idea what they’re talking about. There’s so many times when someone has said something like that, where I’d love to show them my financials and say “Here, you show me where exactly I’m getting rich, we have charge that much to keep the lights on and keep the place warm etc etc etc, no one’s getting rich here”.
And that’s what I’m saying (though it was directed at Captain Midnight). Most people not in the towing business (myself included) have no idea whatsoever what it actually costs to tow a vehicle. Therefore it’s not fair to say they were getting ripped off. You paid $75 for the tow. For all you know, it may have cost the owner $73 to do that job, but so many people just assume it must cost, like, what, $20. And ya know what, it may actually cost $20 to send someone out there and move the car, but that certainly doesn’t imply that the owner put $53 in his pocket. Go back to my above example, you pay $100 for your meal, it costs $30 (again, this I know to be true in the restaurant industry), but the owner does not put $70 in his pocket.
ETA, I’ve been running a business (it’s a family business, I’ve been doing the books for many years), so I get a bit worked up on topics like this, you’ll have to excuse me, I’m not attempting of offend, just educate.
That’s fine. I knew exactly what you were doing in your posts. I understood, I was merely supporting your right to speculate and added anecdotal evidence as to what a tow costs around our parts.
Hey fuckhead, I’m not complaining about being charged. Im complaining about how they charged more than three times their competitors, and that I had no choice in the matter. If you could remove Ayn Rand’s metaphorical cock from your face maybe you’d see that I was coerced by Johnny Law to pay above market price.
The actual cost? No, I don’t know, but I have an upper bound. Which itself is inflated. Those are the words of a towing company employee.
You mentioned that you wanted to know who to write a letter to. I’d write one to one of your local media outlets. They love stories like this.
Also, I’m surprised you couldn’t pick your own tow company. It’s odd that you would only be allowed to use the one they choose. I’ll give them that you have to have your car towed after an airbag deployment (not worth the argument), but I’d be very surprised if you couldn’t use your own company.
When my mom’s truck broke down a few weeks ago (and what a fiasco that was), the cop that stopped asked her if she wanted him to call a tow, or if we had it under control. I asked him to call, as mom was too tweaked about it all. She had it towed to her house, 2 miles away. $125.00. That was a discounted amount (he said) as it turned out he was buddies with my dad. Her insuance paid $30.00. Granted, it was a Sunday, so I’m sure it cost more than on a weekday.
The following day, a tow company from an hour away came and picked up her truck for repair. Since the auto repair shop was at fault, they paid. It cost $275 for the tow, according to her receipt.
If I was forced to have my vehicle towed and was requested to pay $800? I’d sign the title over and walk away. My car is barely worth $800.
Conspiring to pay big money as often as possible benefits the insurance company how? :dubious:
I will say that at least in Virginia tow truck operators are subject to a lot of fees and other costs, but yeah $800 is way over the line. And the “storage” fees are mostly bullshit too.
Wonder if it would work to try and get your own tow truck? I’ll definitely try if I am in the same situation.
That’s where this occurred.
OMG I am so sorry to hear it. I’ve been at the mercy of those _________ (I’ll think of a word bad enough later) and I do not envy you. Just beg, borrow, do whatever you have to to get your car out of there now, because you can’t win. I’ve fought them every way possible, but their contract is with the County, and you can’t win.
In my case, it wasn’t even an impound, although that’s what they kept claiming. The police officer was just kind enough to call for me, as my cell battery was dead. I get an adrenaline jolt just thinking about it.
Then explain to me how I can get a tow when my car breaks down on the side of the road for $125?
Why does that tow cost 75% less?
Now they might not get a tow every day under this aprticular contract, but when they do, they are making more than 5%.
I hear you. I have been involved ina LOT of family businesses and the worst margin I have seen was on our supermarket. It was about 2% of gross but the daily sales gross was over $15,000 so it generated about $300 in income every day. The best margin we had was on our liquor store.
If youa re running a restaurant and you are making 5% on your gross, they you are in trouble. You would be better off running a McDonalds (chick-fil-A’s deal seems to make a lot fo sense these days).
In any event, the OP was complaining about a $475 tow fee not a $75 tow fee. Its extortionate.
Sounds more like an impound to me.
Police tow contracts at least here come with some nasty stipulations, you have to jump through a bunch of legal hoops then once you are cleared you go on the list of “authorized tow providers” IIRC the response times are like 30 minutes or something like that. IF you are not there on time, more than a couple times a year they drop you off the list for 2 years.
So the tow companies that are on the list usually have several guys and several trucks on call to be able to pounce on the calls when they happen. Its ungodly expensive, but its more about having a service that can respond consistently within a very short period of time to get the street cleared.
So you’re saying $800 was a reasonable price? Are you a retard or a troll?
Last time I got arrested, they asked me if I had a specific towing company I wanted to use. I asked who the officer would recommend, and he told me that he wasn’t allowed to answer that question.
If I chose a particular company, I’d just have to pay that company’s normal towing charge (about $75 for the two miles to the impound yard), but if I didn’t specify, then whichever company was next on the rotation would get the call, and I’d have an additional $100 fee for being an official police impound.
Guess it’s time I preemptively forged a relationship with a towing company. Do tow truck drivers like fruit baskets?
I think the going rate is a six-pack and a pair of football tickets.
Okay-I’ve had to have my old hoopty towed to an engine and transmission rebuilder couple of times, crosstown, at a cost of 90$ per trip.
When someone ran a stop sign and totalled the hoopty in a very thorough fashion, I was forced to use a towing company not of my choosing, and a tow half the distance of the tow to the engine rebuilder’s cost me $250.
So, I can say with authority, they gouge you when you’ve been in a wreck.
I was most not amused. And in pain-no airbag, so I was spectacularly bruised.
The way the sheriff at the scene selected the tower was this-he threw all the present tower’s keys in a hat and drew one at random. If the free market was in play, I would have been allowed to take bids from the ten or so towers who showed up, to see who could haul my wreck the cheapest.
Insurance companies don’t pay big money very often; everyone is forced by law to buy insurance, but only a few people collect on it every year; the rest is profit. Then, once you do claim on your insurance, your insurance company cancels you as a bad risk.
Well the payouts can be spectacular. At least in Michigan which by law doesn’t have limits. When I was a kid my grandfather got in an accident that probably cost over $300,000 in 1993 dollars.