Dalton's Towing and Recovery LLC

Dalton's Towing & Recovery [redacted] Lancaster, PA Phone: ###-###-#### Fax ###-###-####In Response to Complaint ID # [redacted] Most of the accusations in this report are unfounded so all that we can do to combat this is present you with the factsThe customer in question's Gold Jeep Liberty was involved in an accident on June 14th at approximately 12:00pmIf you would like, the police report number for East [redacted] Township is [redacted] Here is a photograph of our tow truck that showed up on scene that was clearly labeled with our business name and logoOur driver arrived on scene and gathered the customer in question’s information and, in the same conversation, gave her the location and contact information of our businessThe same information for our business is also readily available on [redacted] , ***, [redacted] and other major search enginesYes, the accusation that the driver did furnish the customer in question with our information on a piece of paper is accurate because he had run out of business cards and had no access to the office at the timeAs for our rates, they are published by the township and all tow companies that are on that township's no preference tow list are subject to the same ratesSo, in the argument of rates, we have no control over what we are furnishedIf the customer has a problem with this, that individual can call the township and file a complaint with them about the rates we chargeAny other tow company would have most likely charged more to account for the excessive storageAs a tow company, we are not required to contact an individual after performing a service for the townshipOur rates are, however, published on our lot and hanging in our office if a customer would like to visit our locationIn this case, the customer in question did notThe customer in question also did not know what type of Insurance coverage they had on their vehicleThis is not any tow company’s responsibility but the responsibility of each individual that purchases insurance on their personal vehiclesThis customer had no knowledge of the type of coverage they had on their vehicleThis is the root of why this individual had to pay the rates, and is so upset, because they waited for their insurance company only to find out the vehicle was not covered for the services we providedIn response to our company being closed on the weekends, we are open for our towing Services and individuals can come, by appointment, to retrieve their vehiclesThe customer in question waited nine days (until the 25th of June) to contact our company to retrieve their vehicleThey waited this long after admitting to having our contact information given to them by our driver, The customer then waited until the 30th of June to physically retrieve the vehicleThat totals days that we could have charged for storage feesWe only charged the customer days of Storage fees and genuinely tried to help this customer get their vehicle from our property at a reasonable rateThe individual filing this complaint never even stepped foot on our property, the individual in questions father is who actually came and retrieved the vehicle and also expressed his disappointment in his child's lack of knowledge of their insurance policyThe circumstances of this incident are unfortunate but all we can do is our best to try to resolve these situations and in our opinion we didThere will be no reimbursement or any changes of any fees in this case as they are set by a board of officers in the townshipI spoke to an officer and he also stated that the ordnance is a public document and if someone wants to know about the non-preference tow list and guidelines they can contact the township.***Below you can find the rates published to us by East [redacted] Township and also in the Supporting documentation to follow.Disabled Vehicle (non-crash) $80.00Crashed Vehicle $180.00Rollover Vehicle $Recovery Vehicle $ Storage Rate $ 35.00Administration Fee $ 40.00EAST [redacted] TownshipPOLICE DEPARTMENTDispatch ###-###-#### [redacted] *** Lancaster, PA 17602CHIEF of POLICE [redacted] M [redacted] Toll Free 1–###-###-#### Office ###-###-#### - Fax ###-###-#### CAPTAIN [redacted] ***EMERGENCY May 2013Dear Tow Owner/Operator:The East [redacted] Township Supervisors has approved an edited/revised policy for the East [redacted] Township Police Department regarding non-preference towingThis policy is titled The East [redacted] Township Non-Preference Towing Policy; the revision has been created to provide a single operating standard that is both fair and equitable to those tow companies that respond to non-preference tows.This policy affects all non-preference tows within the entire jurisdiction of the East [redacted] Township Police Department including both East [redacted] and Upper [redacted] TownshipsThe revised policy is effective immediatelyIncluded with this cover letter is a copy of the policy as well as a Form of AcknowledgementThis is not an application; please update your file with any changesIn order to continue as part of the non-preference tow list, this form must be signed, dated, and submitted back to the East [redacted] Township Police Department no later than June Tow Companies who respond after the deadline may be suspended from the list until their form is received.You are strongly encouraged to thoroughly read The East [redacted] Township Non-Preference Towing Policy and maintain a copy for your records and future reviewIf you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the Department.Thank you for your cooperation.Sincerely, [redacted] Chief of PoliceTo qualify as an Established Place of Business the location must be equipped with the following:Maintain a business telephone, with number published and activeA secure storage lot or impound yard from which vehicles cannot be removed without authorization from the Towing ServiceLotsyard must be owned or properly leased by owner of ETSBe capable of towing vehicles capable of towing standard size passenger vehicles, light to heavy pitrucks, light to medium size trucks, vans, and motorcyclesThe service shall maintain at least one (1) roll back style towing vehicleBe directly accessible twenty-four (24) hours a day by no less than one telephone number but no more than two telephone numbersThe employment of answering machines or paging devices is not considered making a business directly accessibleENo ETS may be listed more than once on any Township list and no tow company shall be permitted to lease its vehicles to another ETS in order to receive multiple listingsNotwithstanding the above, an Emergency Tow Service may appear on both the Upper [redacted] Township List and East [redacted] Township List either by (1) having an Established Place of Business located within one (3) mile of each townships borders; or (2) having an Established Place of Business within each Township.FThe Chief of Police shall provide written notice of the acceptance or denial of an applicationIn the event of a denial, the reason(s) shall be stated and notice to appeal givenThe denial of an application may be appealed in accordance with Section VIII of this Policy.GAny application must make their Establish d Place of Business and equipment open for inspection by the Chief of Police or his/her designee.HApplication Fee- A non-refundable fee of fifty ($50.00) dollars payable to East [redacted] Township is requiredThis fee may be reviewed periodically by the East [redacted] Township Board of Supervisors and adjusted as deemed necessary and prudent.IFees are to be collected only by the individual towing company providing the specified service as follows:Towing and Storage fees will be established using a flat rate, per vehicle, forall towed vehicles which result from the Non-Preference Tow List.Rates include: disabled vehicle (non-crash) $ Crashed vehicle $ Rollover vehicle $ Recovery vehicle $ Storage rate $ Administration fee $40.00These fees will be reviewed annually or as requested by the DepartmentThese fees must be posted in plain view to the public at the place of business, the impound yard, and made available in written form to any owner or person responsible for a vehicle being towedEmergency Tow Services must maintain a business operation for at least four (4) consecutive hours on Saturday and Sunday and/or federal holidays between 0800-hours in order to charge fees for vehicles on these days for any vehicle towed for the Department's Non-Preference Tow ListStorage fees may commence upon the towed vehicle being placed in the storage facilityThe daily storage rate shall cycle by calendar day.JApproval as an ETS shall last five (5) yearsUpon the expiration of five (5) years from the date of approval, the tow company must re-apply to be listed as an ETS and pay the Application Fee.VIISuspension and Removal of Towing ServiceEach tow company shall agree to fully and faithfully abide by the regulations set forthViolations of any of the provisions shall be handled in accordance with the following:AThe Chief of Police may suspend a tow company from the Non-Preference Tow ListSuch suspension shall not exceed two (2) years.BNotice of the suspension will be sent to the Established Place of Business of the Non-Preference Tow List within five (5) business days after such decision is madeThe notice will include the reason(s) for the suspension and a notice regarding the right to appeal the decisionThe suspension may be appealed in accordance with Section VIIIAppeal of Application Denial or Suspension.CThe following are considered to be valid reasons for the suspension of a tow company from the Non-Preference Tow List at the discretion of the Chief or Police or his/her designee:Three (3) instances of inability to ?old unless the inability was due to circumstances beyond the control of the tow serviceFailure to maintain the requirements for approval on the Non-Preference Tow List as set forth in this PolicyThree (3) instances of response time in excess of thirty (30) minutes in a calendar yearConsideration will be given during periods of inclement weather, heavy traffic congestion, companies currently on a tow job, etc