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Impound Lots and the Legality of Them
Quadrophenia
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Okay so I'm actually really curious here and this isn't a "fuck the man" post by any means. So my friend got his car towed the other day for parking in the "employees only" section of his job's parking lot. The manager didn't know it was his car (since he was recently hired) so it was towed. His car is being held in an impound lot and he has to pay money to get it released. Now, my question is what makes it legal that a company (I'm not sure if it's a private company or if it's run by the local government. I've heard of private companies doing the towing and impounding for towns) can hold his property and make him pay for its release?
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Quadrophenia on
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The tow truck company can probably also hand you the bill to a fine for having parked there, although they typically can't enforce the fine in exchange for your vehicle. Unless they're contracted by the city, then usually you'll see them do that too.
Anyhow, this is all generalities. If you really need to understand it from a legal standpoint, call a lawyer.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
but yeah, it's legal
This is true, because I know for a fact that what pheezer has described here is not the case in Saskatoon, SK. That doesn't mean it's not possible that his description wouldn't be true elsewhere, since he says he's encountered it... but my advice is to absolutely look into it wherever you are.
This.
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I would do this. He parked where he was supposed to and his car was towed due to no fault of his own. The manager was negligent and should be held accountable.
Re: your process, try to handle it through the job first. If the manager doesn't resolve, go to the manager's manager. If that doesn't work, you or "your friend" probably have no recourse but to pay.
Sounds like the manager is over-eager, and probably needs to be counciled about being less of a parking lot fascist. Then again, this may be the only control he can exert over his world. His wife probably beats or cuckolds him. You should point, laugh, and spread rumors about his small penis and his lack of virility.
If you're going to call out posts in H/A you'd best provide your reason for doing so. My post addressed the basics of how impound lots work everywhere I've seen. Your car can be towed if the owner of the property has not given you permission to park there, and they can tell the tow truck company to bill you for their expenses.
And I can't imagine what's different from that in Saskatoon. Details would be a good thing there, too.
Since your friend was not in fact parking on the lot without permission, obviously the fault for the tow lies with the guy who screwed up and called for it. In any case where this happens, you can try to get the lot owner to pay the tow truck company for you, but if you need the car, it'll be faster to pay for it yourself and invoice the company who mistakenly had your vehicle towed. Depends if it's easier for you to carry a $200 debt or whatever the fee is until you get reimbursed, or to wait for your car for what could be a while.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
Okay.
OP:
Pheezer:
OPs friend was perfectly within his rights to park where he did. Nobody had to tow the car, as you claim and he was not at fault, again as you claim. He was not asking how impound lots work if you park somewhere that youre not supposed to. He was asking what to do when your car is towed when you legally park somewhere and what recourses his friend had since the manager screwed up. Your original post addressed none of those issues. That's why I called it.
Oh, really?
See, that part about his friend? That was the background to the situation. His actual question, quoted above and hinted at in the thread title, concerned how impound lots work legally. And my answer addressed the general legal basis for impound lots. What makes that legal? Well if you're parked on someone else's property they can have your vehicle removed at your expense and the tow truck company can hold your property until you reimburse them for their work.
But hey, points for being stupid AND rude at the same time. Next time you approach the situation that way in a thread I'll just toss you an infraction.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
It was a hypothetical scenario meant to illustrate the manner in which impound lots operate with specific attention to the legal basis behind this under the majority of general scenarios. I'm very sorry that you didn't get that from the fact that I was addressing the thread creator instead of speaking about his friend in the example. Your chosen manner of reacting to a post that you failed to comprehend would have been inappropriate in H/A regardless of whether or not you understood the post you're responding to correctly, and your apparent inabilities in that regard don't help your argument.
So we're going to drop this now and you're gonna both work on your reading comprehension and also your patience in replying to others. Thanks.
CUZ THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE AND IT'S GIVING ME A RASH
It's cool to see you take criticism without being a dismissive, condescending dick about it, Pheezer.
Go to a manager higher and seeing is a good next step. After that, it's a good next step to lawyer up or go to small claims court. I'd think any judge worth their salt would laugh at the employer and tell them to pay up.
I would also suggests AGAINST calling a lawyer as the money spent on the lawyer will be more than anything he could get from the business, unless the judge orders the business to pay his lawyer fees (which I have no idea how common is).
Finally, if the next higher level of management dicks him over the same way - he should get the hell out immediately. This company will screw him over in other places too if they are this picky about repaying a towing bill that THEY caused.
Couldn't you get around this by having a sign posted saying that by parking in the lot you agree to be towed at owner's expense if you do not have proper permits?
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Maybe it requires explicit permission as opposed to implicit permission?
Either way that is wierd as hell. How do pay-to-park parking lots work then if you can't get towed? Here in America, that law would last all of 5 days before it got repealed.
Well with pay-to-park you're generally paying to leave the carpark, you don't usually pay up front. The leaving fee is associated to how long you've stayed there. So you pay your ticket to get the barrier lifted so you can leave. I suppose there's a possibility that the carpark can't legally detain you or your vehicle but if you yelled at the guard until he let you go, then they'd have your licence plate and would just send you a bill and hound you with lawyers until you pay on the grounds that you agreed to the parking fee when you drove into the carpark.
Interestingly, though, private carparks in the UK have to explicitly display fines and repercussions. A PRIVATE PARKING sign is basically just a polite request not to park here and has no legal force. If they actually want to inflict fines or get your vehicle towed, they have to have signs clearly stating that they will take these actions, detailing exactly what the fine will be (and the fine has to be reasonable and proportionate as well, so they can't fine you £5,000 even if they say they will) and if they intend to tow unauthorised parkers, how much it will cost to recover your vehicle.