ESPN's Britt McHenry is Not Nice....

I'd want to see the unedited tape before giving a dime.

 

The towing company, towing companies in general, or the practice of overpricing for car recovery, really isn't the issue here.

The issue is completely McHenry's reaction to frustration.

 

I've never been towed for illegal parking, but have had to get the car towed because of breakdowns. Last year I broke down on the way to work and had to get towed about 25 miles. Talking to the driver on the way, I think we figured up it would have cost somewhere around $250 if I hadn't had the AAA platinum package that covered the whole thing.
Most places it's at least $100 the second they hook it up to the truck and then a couple of dollars per mile after that, and that's when you call them. So I don't know that $200 to $300 is that far out of line when you have the car towed for illegal parking. The annoyance factor, of course, is off the charts.

 

No, they're raping your wallet.

Parking tickets are fair punishment.
Escalate the fines for repeat offenders.

 

Except private lot owners don't have the authority of the state behind them to enforce parking tickets. It's far easier to say,"this car is on my lot, it's not authorized to be here, tow it." For a business owner that is 1,000 times less of a hassle than trying to enforce a private parking ticket for $50 or $100 through small claims court on a dubious contract theory. And good luck getting a local government to issue a parking ticket for someone illegally parked on your property.

 

I believe a private propety owner can put a boot on an illegally parked car then charge whatever to have it removed.

Same as a city, which, incidentally, my city does for repeat parking offenders.

I have been towed. I was parked at her apartment complex and my front bumper was in the fire zone while the rest of the car was fine.

I parked there on a Saturday night and when I got up Sunday morning it had been towed. The towing company was on the prowl for what they considered illegally parked cars and grabbed them during the night.

I went and got it that morning. It was $250 to get it out. Cash. No cards or checks. If i had waited a day, it would have been another $100 as it was a hundred bucks a day for "storage."

I haven't seen her video but if I had been recorded that day, it would been something as I used every bit of profanity I knew, dropped every name I knew, told them I worked at the paper and was going to do everything I could to put them out of business.

A couple of months later, the city changed its ordinances and that ended the towing practices of those companies. I can't claim any credit as I was just hot that day and I complained to her apartment complex on Monday and they gave some break on her rent.

If someone offered me a million bucks, I still couldn't pick her out of a crowd but she my sympathy. She, in essence, just had her car stolen and people expect her to have patience for the people holding it hostage? That's utter insanity.

No one could be expected to maintain their cool in that situation.

 

I'd like to see a photo of Gina too. It would be great if she is prettier than Britt.

 

Stoney,

Do you mean asshole (adjective) employer, or employer of assholes?

I guess both assholes fit.

 

Towing is most definitely a huge racket. Example: The $20/day "storage" fee. The city has a huge lot that holds probably 1,000 cars. They decide to tow your car in the evening, after the tow lot's hours of business. You go the next day -- the very first possible day you can pick up your car -- and you get hit with the $20 fee. It's bullshit. It didn't cost them a fucking cent. Say your car was towed at midnight and you picked it up at 9 a.m. That's the earliest possible time anyone can pick up their car. Yet you get hit with the extra $20. And how about if your car gets towed on Friday night and the lot isn't open for pickups till Monday. You get hit with three days of "storage" fees.

Another example: Your check engine light is on so you can't pass the emissions test when your plate renewal is due. If you're driving and get pulled over for an expired plate, you get the ticket and go on your way. If you're parked on a city street and they notice, they give you the ticket AND tow you to their impound lot -- and, of course, charge you for "storing" your car, along with the outrageous fee for the tow itself.

But I do have a great story about Madison, Wis., and how they do things: I met a friend for a drink after work on a Friday afternoon. Parked perfectly legal on the street, but didn't notice a sign that says at 4 p.m. it becomes a no-parking, tow-away zone. Came out and the car was gone. Saw the sign then (nice timing). It being Friday, I'm looking at not being able to pick the car up till Monday. I call and find out they have a very interesting policy I'd never heard of -- they towed it to a different street and left it in a legal parking spot. They give you the address, and then you simply have to pay the two tickets (parking violation and the tow) that they leave on you windshield. I was so shocked by how cool that was that I almost didn't mind paying the fines.

 

Why would anyone want two assholes?
The vegans would self-destruct over fiber content.

OK, that's one reason ...

 

In the great majority of cases, the people towing the cars are the assholes. They deserve a little assholery directed back at them.

In the towing industry (towing parked cars, not breakdowns) the business model is "the bigger an asshole you are, the more money you make."

 

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