Any creative ideas on how to keep our car from being towed? We drive the car six days a week, but park it in the street in front of our house (perfectly lawful, no problem in this neighborhood). One day the police put a sticker on it saying that it is "wrecked, inoperable, or has an expired tag" and they will tow it if they find it again.
It is operable, not wrecked, and has a 2010 tag on it! We have no other place to park it. We did call the police to say that we are still driving it, but they claim to have no records or information on it. There must be some creative way to show that a car is still in use or to discourage tow truck drivers from taking it! All suggestions are welcome!
You say "a 2010 tag" - in PA we have to have both a current inspection sticker, and a also a current tag on the license plate(which matches the registration papers). They can be on different months. I think some states tie the two together, but would it be possible that you also have 2 things to keep current?
Probably you know all this, but if you are new to your area it might have slipped by you. Also, I assume you don't have to have any special tag from the municipality to park on the street?
I don't know if it will help at all, but this is what I would do: 1. make sure you have photographic records of the car in good condition, showing that it is not wrecked or inoperable, and with all its valid tags and stickers, perhaps along with a signed statement from your mechanic that the car is operable; 2. keep those in a safe place along with copies of your up-to-date vehicle registration; 3. keep copies of the tow-notice sticker left on your car and any police report/report number concerning the sticker.
If your car gets illegally towed by an independent tow company, even after you have proved the car was legally registered and legally parked on the street in front of your own residence, you can probably bring a lawsuit against the towing contractor for the cost of the tow, any damage done to the car by the illegal tow, and any lost wages because of an illegal tow. Hope you don't have to use the info, but if you do, hope it helps!
I totally agree with all the above/below statements, if that does not work, go to the local fishwrap (newspaper) or write a letter to the editor about your situation, maybe the whole city will get involved, that really will bring change. Hope all will get solved soon.
Olive Oyl makes a good point about it possibly being an independent tow company! Take the sticker to your police department and ask them if it's from them or an independent sub contractor or a jerk company that might be trying to 'shake you down' :-( Keep a photocopy of the sticker for yourself in case needed in the future! Regardless, make sure you file a police report about it and ask for a copy of the police report and/or police report number when filing it to protect yourself! No need to put a silly sign on your vehicle as long as you have 'back up proof'!
Great idea about the sign! I'm sick of paying taxes myself, but I will enjoy threatening others that we'll be the next to start living off others' hard-earned tax money! Toni
Make sure you vehicle is correctly licensed through your courthouse. Then I would make a sign on safety orange colored paper--stating, "please do not tow, without the use of our vehicle we can not get to our jobs,therefore we wont have jobs,then we will be forced to live off your taxes"! Put in your window every evening until the problem goes away. Good luck.
Go to the police station and ask again. Follow up with your town hall or city hall. Ask which city department would have placed that sticker and try to contact them. It might be an independent towing company hired by the city. Sounds like your city is trying to generate revenue by towing cars, then you have to pay a large fine to get the car released.
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