Broken down car (calling Argabarga)

[TimmyHate]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=11245856

So on the one hand - what was he to do, it broke down in the carpark on a sunday and could not move it until monday. On the other hand, the company followed its policy of not reading not (and Arga, I've noted you say you never read notes either).

Thoughts?

[Argabarga]

The rules of the road/private property will always take precedent, and while breakdowns can't be planned for, it's your responsibility to get your car moved to a safe location and off of private property if such applies.

The big mistake he made was LEAVING.

If he had stayed WITH the car and waited for a tow truck he called himself, none of this would have happened.

A breakdown can be very inconvenient and frustrating, but it does not entitle you to break the rules. We've heard this argument before, and it doesn't get any more traction in this hemisphere than it does down there. That's why towing is done under blanket black-and-white rules, it belongs, or it doesn't, no "I dont' belong but........' because then you open the can of worms and every single tow becomes a "Is my excuse good enough?' contest.

[Raveni]

In my part of Florida at least, the tow company charging more than the posted fees is really the only reason the police will get involved. Sorry bub, if the "administrative fee" isn't posted at the tow yard, you don't get to charge it.

[Greenday]

If he had stayed WITH the car and waited for a tow truck he called himself, none of this would have happened.

He left the car there overnight. Not really feasibly to stay with it.

Seems like he was just too cheap to have it towed to a mechanic though, which is his fault.

[Argabarga]

He left the car there overnight. Not really feasibly to stay with it.

Seems like he was just too cheap to have it towed to a mechanic though, which is his fault.

That's what I was trying to say, if he had called a tow truck, and waited right there for it, (and he may have had to wait a bit, say 45 minutes to an hour at most) none of this would have happened.

The moment he said "Eh, I'll get to it tomorrow" is where he made the mistake.

[csquared]

He claimed that he "couldn't move my car in a safe manner." The correct statement is "I didn't want to pay for a tow truck."

[DGoddessChardonnay]

That's what I was trying to say, if he had called a tow truck, and waited right there for it, (and he may have had to wait a bit, say 45 minutes to an hour at most) none of this would have happened.

The moment he said "Eh, I'll get to it tomorrow" is where he made the mistake.

Not to mention by leaving the car overnight, the car was vulnernable to possible break-in and/or vandalism and the car park won't be liable for such damages. That would also been another reason why they have the towing rules enforced as they do.

That's like the time our little car broke down back in January - Mom coasted it to the side of the road (at a major intersection making a right turn when the car suddenly stopped on us) and I immediately checked my YP app for towing services and called a nearby towing company to come get us. Then had to call a neighbor to pick up me and Mom (couldn't leave Mom there and she has mobility issues.)

Neighbor got to us at least a good 45 minutes before the tow truck driver and stayed with us until the truck arrived, then we got Mom loaded up into neighbor's truck (me in the back seat) and Neighbor talked with the driver and told him to follow us (I'd already given the dispatcher our destination address, which was our home and not far from where we broke down.)

Got the car home, driver set it down in the back yard for us and I handed over my Visa debit card, signed the paperwork and that was pretty much it. Mom got the copy of the receipt while I thanked the driver, went into the house and cried over having to spend the money (was an unplanned expense and we watch our spending each month but at least we had it in the bank at the time. 65 bucks may not be much but for us it makes a difference but I digress.)

But the point is: we were not about to leave our car on the side of the road for Dog knows what to happen to it - so we did what any normal, sensible folk would do:

1) park in a reasonably safe place

2) locate and call towing company

3) wait with vehicle (flashers on while waiting) until tow truck gets there

4) call someone to come pick us up

5) get the car home (and us as well) safe and sound

Dude really didn't think ahead a few steps at all . . . .and if he didn't have the money he could have called a family member or friend to loan him the cash or bring a credit card and repay it as soon as he could. Leaving the car overnight was just plain stupid IMO.

[wolfie]

Not in the tow industry, but I'd imagine the following scenarios would apply:

- Note in the windshield saying "broken down - my mechanic will be here in the morning", car unattended - car gets impounded.

- Owner standing beside car, tells person checking "My car won't start, and I've called the auto club to send someone to look at it and see if they can fix it" - car doesn't get impounded.

- Repeat of above, except "Emergency road service couldn't fix it on the spot, auto club is sending a tow truck to take it to my mechanic" - car doesn't get impounded.

- Car is sitting on mechanic's property with note in the windshield "Had a no-start condition at a commercial parking lot, got it towed here, will contact you Monday when you're open for business in order to arrange repairs" - car doesn't get impounded, ESPECIALLY if you called your mechanic's cell phone to give him a "heads up".

Moral of the story: Use your head for more than a hat rack, get the broken-down car towed to some place where it WON'T be impounded.

[Greenday]

He claimed that he "couldn't move my car in a safe manner." The correct statement is "I didn't want to pay for a tow truck."

I'm going to call BS. Argabarga could get a car out of a dorm room without a scratch.

[dalesys]

I'm going to call BS. Argabarga could get a car out of a dorm room without a scratch.

Jester's our magician. He got that Hummer into the room. KhirasHY is talking to someone's credit card company...

[mathnerd]

I once had to leave my car in a gas station parking lot that's notorious for towing cars. I had to leave it because the road I lived on was completely snowed in. Wreckers weren't operating at the time. I went into the gas station and talked to the clerk. He called his GM and got the all clear to leave my car overnight. I stuck my boots back on and trudged through knee deep snow on foot for about a quarter mile and got home. The next morning the roads were cleared and there were a whole bunch of pissed off people in the gas station lot because their cars got towed and mine didn't. The difference was that I asked permission and got the ok. The other people just dumped their cars. I made a few enemies out of my neighbors that day.

[eltf177]

I once had to leave my car in a gas station parking lot that's notorious for towing cars. I had to leave it because the road I lived on was completely snowed in. Wreckers weren't operating at the time. I went into the gas station and talked to the clerk. He called his GM and got the all clear to leave my car overnight. I stuck my boots back on and trudged through knee deep snow on foot for about a quarter mile and got home. The next morning the roads were cleared and there were a whole bunch of pissed off people in the gas station lot because their cars got towed and mine didn't. The difference was that I asked permission and got the ok. The other people just dumped their cars. I made a few enemies out of my neighbors that day.

My neighborhood is lucky, the Safeway doesn't mind if we park in their lot overnight just so long as we park on the side street end away from their building, leaving the prime spots open. And where they allow us to park is closer to our subdivision anyway...

[bhskittykatt]

- Car is sitting on mechanic's property with note in the windshield "Had a no-start condition at a commercial parking lot, got it towed here, will contact you Monday when you're open for business in order to arrange repairs" - car doesn't get impounded, ESPECIALLY if you called your mechanic's cell phone to give him a "heads up".

Moral of the story: Use your head for more than a hat rack, get the broken-down car towed to some place where it WON'T be impounded.

Most mechanics have a key drop for after-hours drop-offs. Most tow companies around here will actually let you pay for the tow in advance and they will take the car and the key to your mechanic of choice and drop the keys for you if it's after-hours at your mechanic (and one even dropped Hubs off at home on the way, too!). Towing is an extra expense and it sucks, but it's still much less than an impound fee or a "Littering-Abandoned Vehicle" fine!

[wolfie]

Most mechanics have a key drop for after-hours drop-offs.

I never use such drop boxes - always come in and make arrangements in person. What happens if you're dealing with a sole proprietorship mechanic, and (unknown to you) he had a heart attack?

When I was with my previous carrier, there was a shop in the compound (very convenient) that had a drop box. Just as well I didn't use it - the shop went out of business, and there was no sign to show that it wasn't merely "after-hours" closed.