Any Lawyers on Board?? This is great

[Bwestone]

Ok so i was out at a party the other night at one of my buddies house. I live in downtown Charleston and the parking is a problem as many would assume. So i decided to park next to the house as you can see by the picture. Well someone came in and said that someone is about to be towed. The great part about this is that it was 1:00am. So i went out and it was my vehicle so i went up and told the guy that he didn't have to tow me. We he was a real ass and basically said pay me now or im towing you. So i paid what i had on me in cash. That wasnt sufficient for him so he insisted that i go back inside and get the rest of the money from someone else but right now i am still getting towed. So he went back to throwing around equipment and acting like an ass. So at that time my buddy walks out with my girlfirend and she comes up and says here do you take credit cards. Well they did so she said here are the cards so take the equipment off of the truck. Well at that point the guys starts screaming at my girlfriend saying that he is going to tow the car anyway. Well i got up in the guys face and said there is no reason to be screaming at her for one, and two dont scream at my girlfriend (in not so polite terms). Well i said hey you have your money so i am going to pull my vehicle forward so this is over with. So i get in my car fire it up pull two inches forward and he decides to pick the boom up on the truck and try to lift the vehicle. Well he wasnt on my tires anymore so he picks me up from my rear end and crushes both quarter panels and breaks my rear bumper and kinks my rear door reallly good so it caused a lot of damage. So i get out raising hell and call the cops. They couldnt do anything because it was a civil matter but basically he got away with my money and tearing up my vehicle. So i recently filed a lawsuit for the guy and taking him to court over the $2000 worth of damage he caused. Enjoy the photos. It may not look as bad as it is but it cost a pretty penny to fix.

 

[Bwestone]

Any advice or comment are greatly appreciated. Wish me luck.

 

[michaels]

if you win the case, then time for an aftermarket bumper!

 

[D Chapman]

If you loose the case, get a pellett gun and pluck the windows out of his truck for payback. Just don't get caught.

 

[Slappy]

if you win the case, then time for an aftermarket bumper!

LOL! I was thinking the same thing. Rear bumper and sliders are in your future.....

 

[marc olivares]

looks like you were in the wrong, it's likely you wont get anything.

 

[az_max]

Were you legally parked, and were you on private property?

 

[DiscoveryXD]

is it legal for a tow truck driver to collect money like that? I've never been towed, or dealt with a driver, but that just sounds like he was trying to pocket your money in order to get out of the tow.

 

[Bwestone]

Yeah well basically he was lifting the vehicle with me inside of it which is wrong in it self for liability reasons. Besides that he had the money for the release of my vehicle and deliberately ruined my rear end. So it is worth the fight. Luckily i have witnesses to explain and to help prove my case. I was illegally parked which is understandable why i was going to get towed and have to pay him. Come to find out that the maximum he could charge me for the release, according to Charleston codes, is $48. But he did in turn charge me more after it was all said and done.

 

[captwyo]

I was parked in an alley one time in Boston unloading furniture for a friend's apartment. We came out to find a driver hooking up to the rental van and he said we had to pay him or he'd tow it since he already had it almost hooked up. We were parked in a no parking zone, so our fault.
So I don't know if they are allowed to, but yeah they do it.

 

[p m]

no, it is not legal for a tow truck driver to collect money like that.
Most likely, it is illegal to tow a vehicle in the presence of the driver.
I'd just get in the vehicle and sit - towing a vehicle with a person inside is illegal pretty much anywhere.

 

[Bwestone]

Just for curiosity sake. Why would i be in the wrong?

 

[Ed Cheung]

Few question I have:
where were you park, can you park over there?
The tow truck is towing you car on behalf of who? the city or the owner of the property where you are park at?
and why the tow truck guy can take money from you for not towing your truck, as he is towing your truck from a given instruction from someone?

 

[Bwestone]

That being said i stand on the fact that he tried to do all of this with me inside of it and i wasnt running or anything seeing as he was behind me and there was a house about 4ft in front of me. Also, I said and i quote, "I am going to pull my car forward. You have the money."

 

[Bwestone]

I was parked next to the house in the picture, which is my buddy's house. The lot is another buildings property come to find out and it was the tow truck drivers doing not on behalf of the city. So i would assume he was doing it for the building next to the house.

 

[Big Papa]

Man, I love Charleston. Great city.

 

[Bwestone]

Yeah I love it too and going to college here is even better. 4:1 girl to guy ratio and they love land rovers. Haha.

 

[curtis]

I am going to agree with Marc: you will not win this case. I don't blame you for trying, but it is unlikely you will get anything. Here is why: you were illegally parked, and he was authorized (through whatever jurisdiction) to remove your illegally parked truck. The fact that you got into your rig and started to move it is irrelevant. He will just claim you did it while he was in the cab and could not see it. Further, your moving of your rig is what caused the damage, not him trying to lift it. Had you left the truck alone, it would have all been fine.

Now, to him taking the money, well, it sounds like he really did not. He took down CC information, and will claim to the judge that he was going to take the truck to the yard until that information is verified and paid, and that you could have picked up the truck then. In any event, your truck was still illegally parked and he had a right to remove it

Regarding your "witnesses", I would doubt they will have any credibility over what he will say in court. They were your friends and are going to be biased.

Anyway, good luck, but that is how I see this working out. In time you will learn that some people have the ability to use their limited power to be complete assholes, and get away with it. This is likely not his first time on the playground.

Your best bet is to file the suit, make sure he has been served, and then see if he will work with you, at his prices, costs, and connections to get the truck fixed. Looks like about $300 in actual damage using used parts, then offer to split the bill and drop the suit.

Remember, it is not about what is right and wrong. This is a civil matter, which is why the cops did not get involved. Treat it civilly, and you have the best shot of getting anything.

 

[Bwestone]

I agree with some of what you are saying. The thing about all of it is more the purpose behind it more than it is the money. What he did was wrong in the fact that him picking up my vehicle with me inside of it and while i was moving it was completely unnecessary. The thing about it that really chapped me off is the fact that when both of my parents got involved they tried to reason with the guy and he basically cussed them out and said "he wasn't doing shit for some stupid college student". He also is lying to both my parents and the police on what really happened saying that the vehicle was already lifted in the air and i drove off of it. This accusation is ridiculously bullshit. So for that reason he is going to get served and i am willing to work with the guy on fixing it but i feel like his actions allow me to get some kind of compensation.

 

[RBBailey]

They've been having a lot of issues with this around here lately.