D&J Towing & Recovery

Excessive charges, failure to disclose full price prior to service, refusal to release vehicle without full payment in cash
About 8:30 pm on 10.15.13 my wife had a collision on Highway ** in [redacted]. The responding officer suggested D & J towing when my wife asked if they had a local tow recommendation. D & J did not disclose their full pricing prior to the tow. There was a brief hookup (non flat bed) and then a 3 mile tow to a nearby garage parking area. No special equipment was used. Calling in the morning to determine how to retrieve the car, my wife was informed that (i) the charge would be $440, (ii) must be paid all in cash or she could not get the car, and (iii) that daily storage charges would continue to accrue. The charges were broken out as $145 for the tow to come to the site, $18 for mileage, $85 for (unused) dollies, $55 for labor, $55 for truck time, $35 for cable and $47 for a 12% "mountain fee". (totaling $440). We called Denver West Towing in [redacted] to determine if they could get the car. They called D & J and convinced them to accept a charge card, and then picked up the car and returned it 18 miles. Their tow charge was $80 with $3.50 per mile (18 miles) totaling $143. They also accepted our credit card. In our experience, tow charges are typically competitive and would be expected to have both a pick up and a mileage fee. $100 or so would be typical for the pickup and $4 or $5 might be a typical mileage charge. The charges from D & J are the worst example of predatory pricing for unsuspecting and vulnerable buyers. There was never full diclosure of the pricin. They billed for matters that were not performed nor would be typically charged in the industry. They imposed cash only restrictions (delivered in person) before the car could be released. Only through the good efforts of Denver West Towing, could the car be retrieved. The bill from D & J Towing to release was obviously paid under duress, but we would be willing to pay the same amount we paid Denver West Towing for a much longer tow to resolve the dispute. We would like a refund of the excess, immoral, unscrupulous and undisclosed charges.