That didn't take long, with bonus phone call

[Argabarga]

Didn't take long for my first fake permit of the semester to show up. A mere 3 days after all our lots came back on from summer break hiatus, I got one. To their credit, it was one of the best forgeries I ever did see. Size was right, color was right, material was right, cut out job was right the only mistake they made was, while they were smart enough to change the serial number on the permit so that it didn't match the one they copied it from , they chose the wrong font for the number, (BOLD instead of NORMAL) aside from that one measly mistake, they would have got away with it. And maybe, if you've been getting your required vitamin A, if you looked reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeal close you could see that the name of the complex, which should be in black felt-tip marker (so they can print up 1 kind of permit for all properties and just write in the building name as needed) was actually printed, not real marker ink (a genuine permit must've been used to get a scan) , but I only noticed that because I did go in for a closer look.

Anyway, we had the car for about 2 hours before they noticed it gone and called in. When I tow in a forger, I just tell them "Yes, we have that vehicle, it will be $105 to pick up as long as you do so within the next 24 hours" and I don't mention WHY it was towed, just give em' a little verbal rope and see if they'll hang themselves and confess that they were using a fake permit without tipping my hand. (See? That internship with the Sheriffs office was good for something!)

Usual responses are play it cool - Yeah, I'll be in to pick it up

Or, play dumb - But, uh, I ........... uh, I had a permit.......


This one went a different route - Indignation


Me - Yes, we have that vehicle, it will be $105 to pick up as long as you do so within the next 24 hours"
Forger McFakeypants - Well, I think that was a real shitty thing to do! Towing my car! I mean, don't take it personally, but I really hate you now
Me - Excuse me?
Forger - Well, I know you gotta make your money, but, really, that wasn't a nice thing to do
Me - It has nothing to do with money, you parked on private..
Forger - *interrupting* It's just all about the money, towing people for money...
Me - Well...
Forger - *interrupts* It's okay, I totally understand, but it's all about the money with you guys
Me - Well, we wouldn't have towed you if you hadn't been parked there with a forged permit

-PROTRACTED SILENCE-

Forger - Oh! You're not calling the cops on me about that?! ARE YOU!?
Me - Not if you give us the fake permit and don't try that again I wont
Forger - Okay! Thanks, IMREALLYSORRYNOWGOODBYE!! *CLICK*

Protip: don't get huffy with the only person standing between you and a possible theft of services charge And what is it with the YOU ONLY WANT TO MAKE MONEY line as of late? Sure we do! We're a business!! Diesel costs about $4 a gallon, and it doesn't grow on trees (thank goodness, those would be some really stinky-smelling trees if it did) Another person who got their car towed also decided to go all ethical soapbox on the manager at the front desk the other day demanding to know how we could, in good faith, have no issues with towing people all day long.

"How many trucks do you have?" he asked

"Eight" said the manager

"And you're telling me, that the only thing you do with those trucks is tow people?!" he asked

"Well, it's hard to play ping-pong with em' " was the response

[Kristev]

Wow. I should be flabberghasted.

[NateTheChops]

Diesel costs about $4 a gallon, and it doesn't grow on trees (thank goodness, those would be some really stinky-smelling trees if it did)

Be one hell of a bonfire though.

It's funny, the parking lot at the college where I go to for Internet access was packed full on the first day of classes. Not even halfway through the day and two cars were towed. I kept wanting to run down to the tow driver and give them the website.

[Mytical]

Ok..now I have the image of tow trucks playing ping pong..*shakes head* That would be ... interesting.

[Victoria J]

And what is it with the YOU ONLY WANT TO MAKE MONEY line as of late? Sure we do! We're a business!!

You are also of course ensuring that the people who legitimately have permits can park, and therefore ensuring the ability to make money through permits for who ever sells them.

But that criticism really reminds me of way back in the mists of time for my 18th birthday my mother booked us on one of the week long cruises on the Nile. And it was pretty wonderful between the ancient Egyptian stuff, and the exotic places, and getting to watch the world just go by as you floated along. The downside was that the passengers included rather a lot of the kind of people who inexplicably like to travel, but not to experience anything new. You probably know the type.

One other passenger in particular complained constantly, with frequent racist overtones. When her travelling companion was sick she was too scared to go to the market on her own and my mother got me to take her. As it's a culture where you haggle and she repeated turned down the goods people were offering by just saying "It's too expensive" attempts to sell were somewhat pushy, but nothing worse.

SHe clearly found it very stressful - and when we got back to the boat she was complaining - the people were rude and pushy etc. Then she said "And at the end of the day they just want to sell you things !" as if shocked.

It's a market. They are market sellers. Of course at the end of the day they just want to sell you things.

You can say the same about Marks and Spencers.

She was a racist loon.

Any business that doesn't have a good plan to make money won't last long.

Victoria J

[dalesys]

...image of tow trucks playing ping pong...

Soup up the winches and they'd be pretty good at tiddly-winks.

[blas]

That just reminds me of Parking Wars when people scream at the meter maids and tow truck drivers "Don't you have anything BETTER to do all day?!"

[sevendaysky]

That just reminds me of Parking Wars when people scream at the meter maids and tow truck drivers "Don't you have anything BETTER to do all day?!"

"Why no, ma'am. But if you pay me what they're paying me, I'll be happy to draw on sidewalks with chalk all day, or teach cockatoos to whistle 'Dixie'! ... No? Well shucks, I guess I have to do my job. *proceed with tow, ticket, whatever*"

[fireheart]

Ok..now I have the image of tow trucks playing ping pong..*shakes head* That would be ... interesting.

I had the same image as well.

That just reminds me of Parking Wars when people scream at the meter maids and tow truck drivers "Don't you have anything BETTER to do all day?!"

For some reason, I kept conjuring up the WRONG type of meter maids

(For the unfamiliar, in Surfers Paradise in Queensland Australia, there's a group of "meter maids" who are owned by a businessman, that will go around and leave some coins in the parking meter and a calling card under the windshield. Oh and did I mention that they wore gold bikinis? )

[Pixilated]

LOVE the way her attitude spun on a dime when she thought you were going to call the cops on her ...

[bainsidhe]

Do you ever call the cops on forgers? Cause that's a little tidbit I'd drop into the conversation each time a forger starts throwing around attitude.

[manybellsdown]

My husband makes video games. Currently, he's got a Facebook game in closed beta. This last week, the designers asked him to implement some changes that have not gone over well with the beta players. One of them said "this is just a way for <Company> to get money!"

Yeah, dude. God forbid the guy working 70 hours a week with the flu to get this game running get a paycheck.

[Argabarga]

Do you ever call the cops on forgers? Cause that's a little tidbit I'd drop into the conversation each time a forger starts throwing around attitude.

We can't prosecute them, only the property owners can since from our standpoint, we're towing a car without a permit, the fact that its' got a forgery in it is academic. 99% of them (property owners) consider the tow and confiscation of the fake punishment enough for the forger as most people are either too embarassed they tried it and were caught or are too dumbfounded that their best efforts came to naught to ever try it again.

Only once did someone get prosecuted. We towed them in for having a forged permit. They raised a big stink behind our back with the property owner, claiming that we had not followed borough regulations on towing (didn't give them enough wait time, or something, I don't know WHAT they claimed) , but the property owner called us to touch base and asked when/where/why we towed that person, and much to nobody's surprise, the complainant had neglected to tell the property owner they had tried to forge one of their permits.

So, the property owner called them back and told them that not only was the towing company 100% in the right, but, they were now going to file theft of service charges on THEM for the forging UNLESS they paid $250 and BOUGHT a legit permit from the company for the semester. The person (a college student with serious entitlement issues) told them that they couldn't possibly do that, and hung up.

One week later, the kid's mommy and daddy got served with the papers informing them of the court date

The check for $250 landed on the property owner's desk by the end of the day.

[XCashier]

"And you're telling me, that the only thing you do with those trucks is tow people?!" he asked

"Well, it's hard to play ping-pong with em' " was the response

Great response!

And gosh, why should you want to make money? It's not like you have to pay for things, like rent and food and clothing and fuel...oh, wait...

It's always amusing when someone's attempt to skirt the law ends up costing them much more than it would have just to follow the law.