Shady tow truck operators prey on crash victims thanks to lax rules

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As stories pile up about unscrupulous tow truck drivers swooping in at the site of auto crash scenes, politicians are right to step up to the defence of victims.

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Calgary Coun. Peter Demong recently said bylaws could be changed to prevent what he called “predatory behaviour by towing companies at vehicle collisions.”

It’s been suggested, for example, that towing companies would not be allowed to operate without being summoned by emergency officials within a certain radius of a crash site.

While tweaks to city laws would be a welcome start, it seems quite clear some more robust and widespread action is needed.

Changes can’t come soon enough to prevent people already traumatized by auto crashes from being taken advantage of by tow truck owners who don’t have their customers’ best interests at heart.

Increasing calls for regulation of Alberta tow truck industry

The current dearth of regulations covering the sector means there is no limit to what a towing company can charge to haul a vehicle away and to store it.

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Speaking with a Postmedia reporter recently, a vice-president with the Insurance Bureau of Canada urged the province to establish a fee schedule for such services to prevent customers from being gouged.

B.C., Ontario and Manitoba were cited as provinces where such rules exist.

Meanwhile, a group representing legitimate tow truck operators openly wondered why the insurance industry itself didn’t do more to refrain from offering payouts for exorbitantly priced tows.

Its representative also called for more regulation, asserting the looser rules here are attracting shady companies that are having a harder time operating where rules exist to protect consumers.

In addition to whatever Calgary city council might be looking at, municipalities and the province should also consider implementing a ban on random towing on major highways and roads.

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Such rules exist for provincial highways in Ontario and Quebec and potentially on many city-maintained roads as well, meaning there isn’t a race between tow truck drivers to be first at the scene of a crash and earn someone’s business.

Some of the behaviour reported of late has been truly appalling.

In a statement supplied to one of my colleagues, a Calgary Fire Department spokesperson said firefighters have observed tow truck operators arriving at crash scenes unrequested and pressuring those involved in an accident to have their car towed away.

Meanwhile, Calgary police said it’s best to wait for emergency services to attend to a collision before agreeing to have a vehicle towed.

No reason for crash victims to be ambushed by towing companies

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Although in at least one case, that wouldn’t have mattered: In Edmonton, a criminal charge was laid against a tow truck operator accused of outright taking a damaged vehicle from the scene of a collision and essentially holding it for ransom at an impound lot.

While there are many instances where smaller government is desirable, this isn’t one of them.

There is no good reason for the government to allow sketchy towing companies to ambush unsuspecting motorists who’ve just been in a crash and twisting their arm to take their vehicle away for storage somewhere for a huge fee.

Responding to a request for comment from a Postmedia reporter, the provincial government expressed its concern over possible towing scams but washed its hands of the entire file, acknowledging the lack of legislation regulating the tow truck business.

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In the absence of full government oversight, the spokesperson went on to suggest anyone who feels they’ve been victimized should reach out to their local police to make a report, with the hope it will spark an investigation.

That’s not good enough.

Just as it doesn’t take much for a towing business to teeter over the line separating the innovative from the predatory, it’s a similarly thin line separating needless red tape from crucial, necessary regulation.

Government needs to be the guardrail to keep unscrupulous tow truck operators away from drivers when the latter are at their most vulnerable.

rleong@postmedia.com

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