Tow Zone

The information in the above in the above complaint is false*** *** states that the "purchase price" was $when in fact she was charged $($is the min impound fee, $for dollies and outside storage is $a day)The vehicle was towed on Friday (along with several other
vehicles)Upon towing her vehicle, we phoned it in to the police department to let them know it had been impounded All the other impounded vehicle owners picked up their vehicles that same night (therefor avoiding any additional charges)Tow Zone is a 24/businessI answer the phones and release vehicles 24/If by chance I miss a call, an additional cell number is stated on our answering machineI never received a single call from *** until Monday morningWhen she called me Monday, she stated she was at the office to pick up her vehicleI told her I was not there but that I would send someone to the office immediately and I didI then got a call from *** who was there collecting, that they wanted to talk to meThey told me they were not paying more than half the fees because they didn't know I was openI explained the phone policy and that the fees are posted on the outside of the office door as wellIm sorry *** feels our web page is inadequateit is only a couple months old and and a work in progressHowever, Tow Zone has been in business for years and made it that long without a web pagePeople normally pick up the phone when their vehicle is suddenly not where they parked it and either phone myself or the police department, both of whom knew it had been impounded. If you have any questions, I can be reached at *** ***

On 1-24-2017 Tow Zone Inc responded to an accident per Montana Highway Patrol request. We were told to tow a 1995 Honda Passport. The owner of the vehicle was not present at the time of our arrival. In cases such as those where the owner is not present to tell us where to tow the vehicle, it is our...

policy that we bring the vehicle to our lot. The vehicle owners mother called me a few hours after we towed the vehicle and informed me that they had towing coverage through State Farm. I then spoke with State Farm on the phone and faxed them the tow bill so they could pay us directly. Tow Zone does have a $90 minimum storage fee that covers 2 days of storage. I informed the owners mother that the storage would need to be paid but that I would wait for a check direct from State Farm for the tow bill minus the storage as it is the policy of most insurance companies not to pay storage unless the policy holder has collision coverage and in this case, they only had road side assistance which does not cover storage fees. It is our policy to get all fees paid or payment arrangements made prior to release of the vehicle. In this case, the insurance company made an agreement with me to pay direct and the owner pay the storage direct to us. I was fine with accepting the check from State farm and informed the owner of that. They then told me that they would rather have the insurance company reimburse them for the full amount and to get the vehicle out the following day. The $90 minimum storage covered them for 2 days. On the second day, they came in and paid cash (as per my requirement) and we helped them load the vehicle (typically a $50 min charge) free of charge. The tow bill they paid was $190. for the tow, $95 for dollies, $75 for the gate fee and $90 minimum storage. All vehicles brought into the yard are charged a minimum storage of $90 which covers 2 days of storage. Our Office is located at 2210 Lea Ave and our inside storage is located at 888 Hillside Lane which is 1.3 miles apart. Im uncertain why the complaint states its 9 miles apart. 
Gina B[redacted] for Tow Zone Inc

Review: Tow Zone does not post any of the necessary info online! I had my car parked next to my driveway on Friday the 22nd from 4:23pm until it was towed around 4:50pm. It was after 5:00 by the time that I realized my car was gone, so I got on their website to see when I could pick it up, and it simply stated that their office hours are Monday through Friday 8-5, and they are closed on the weekends. Therefore, I went in today (Monday, Jan 25th) at 8am to pick it up. No one was in the office, and when someone finally showed up they tried to charge me almost $300 because it had been their for three days! I refused to pay that much, and they said that until I pay the full amount in cash, I can't have my car back.Desired Settlement: This company has a responsibility to be honest and advertise it's prices, hours, and tow procedures. It is unfair to charge fees that customers have no idea exist. I believe that this company owes me a refund for all of the extra charges that they added on for my vehicle being held over the weekend. I also believe that this company should be required to post their daily charges online for all to see. Had they posted that I would have been able to get it earlier, I would have!

Business

Response:

The information in the above in the above complaint is false. [redacted] states that the "purchase price" was $280. when in fact she was charged $245. ($125. is the min impound fee, $50 for dollies and outside storage is $35 a day). The vehicle was towed on Friday (along with several other vehicles). Upon towing her vehicle, we phoned it in to the police department to let them know it had been impounded. All the other impounded vehicle owners picked up their vehicles that same night (therefor avoiding any additional charges). Tow Zone is a 24/7 business. I answer the phones and release vehicles 24/7. If by chance I miss a call, an additional cell number is stated on our answering machine. I never received a single call from [redacted] until Monday morning. When she called me Monday, she stated she was at the office to pick up her vehicle. I told her I was not there but that I would send someone to the office immediately and I did. I then got a call from [redacted] who was there collecting, that they wanted to talk to me. They told me they were not paying more than half the fees because they didn't know I was open. I explained the phone policy and that the fees are posted on the outside of the office door as well. Im sorry [redacted] feels our web page is inadequate. it is only a couple months old and and a work in progress. However, Tow Zone has been in business for 16 years and made it that long without a web page. People normally pick up the phone when their vehicle is suddenly not where they parked it and either phone myself or the police department, both of whom knew it had been impounded.

BEWARE!!! My car was towed on a Saturday. I called on Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday. No answer, no reference to the business on the answering machine, and no calls back. I twice visited the shop during regular business hours and no one there. On Friday I finally reach [redacted], who informs me my impound fee is $385 - $175 for the tow and $35/day x 6 for vehicle storage. I explain that I am not willing to pay storage when I in good faith made every reasonable effort to contact them. [redacted] was rude and indignant and shrugged off my complaints. Want your car back? She misquoted her payment methods, resulting in two trips to the bank because they only accept cash. She indicated someone may or may not be at the shop and at 4:30pm I would be charged an additional day. She hung up on me on the phone when I was returning from the bank. I ultimately requested a BPD civil escort to retrieve my car. Avoid this business at all costs.

Review: Last Saturday, November 16th, my son's truck went off the road when another car swerved in his direction due to snowy roads on a public road near Bridger Bowl (less than 15 miles from Bozeman). My son and his friend got a ride back into town, called a tow truck company and explained the situation to them. They offered to give him a ride back up there and tow it back to town for $140. On their way to his truck, they called Montana Highway Patrol to report the incident so MHP would know it was being taken care of. They were then informed that another tow truck company (Tow Zone) had already towed it.When my son went to the Tow Zone office to get his truck, they told him it was going to cost $575. He immediately called me and I spoke with the driver who explained their reasoning behind the high charge. He kept indicating that our insurance would cover it. I explained that we only had liability insurance on the vehicle and it did not cover towing. He kept insisting that when he asked my son if he had full coverage, my son said yes. I explained that my son does not understand the difference between full coverage and liability only. I shared with him that the other company agreed to tow for $140 and asked why the difference. He couldn't give me an answer. Then he mentioned that it had to be cash only. Given the fact it was Saturday, and I live out of state, it is pretty hard to come up with $575 cash. So we had to wire transfer money.When my son came in to pick up the truck on Tuesday when the funds were finally available, the driver said instead of $575 it was $650 as there was another $75 fee he forgot to tell me about, but told my son after we hung up on the phone. He was willing to accept a credit card for the small difference. I feel that this is an unacceptable charge and unfortunately we didn't have a choice because Tow Zone is who the MHP is in contract with.Desired Settlement: I feel we should be refunded a portion of our money as this $650 charge is exorbitant given the amount of time it took them to tow it and the fact that another company was willing to do it for $510 less.

Business

Response:

In this conflict, as in many, the lack of communicating and/or listening is the main problem. The first mistake after the accident was not notifying MHP as soon as possible as required. The next was not accurately describing the position of the truck to be towed. If it merely needed to be towed from 15 miles away and took one hour less then Tow Zone’s fee would have been $150. This complaint is contradictory when she stated “ I spoke with the driver who explained their reasoning behind the high charge” and later stating “He couldn’t give me an answer.”

Overpriced tow of a car after running off the road. They did not return my phone call and charged an outrageous amount for their service. They prey on unfortunate people and are unprofessional.

I had a very negative experience, They over charged me and hard to deal with. I did file a complaint with Tow Truck Resolution Committee. A few weeks before I went to court they settle with me, under my terms. I would not recommend them to anyone.

Review: My daughter was baby-sitting for a family in a subdivision within the Bozeman city limits. This subdivision chooses to employ the services of the Tow Zone to enforce parking and traffic issues. My daughter had never been to this subdivision before and was unfamiliar with any parking restrictions. She parked my vehicle in front of the house where she was baby-sitting. She looked out to see a tow truck hooking up my vehicle and preparing to tow it away. She immediately went out and asked the operator what was going on. He was very rude to her and told her that he was towing the vehicle because it was parked in a no parking zone. She asked him if she could move the vehicle to the owner's driveway or to another area, and again he was very rude and said he was towing it and she would have to pay $175.00 to get it back. Then he offered he take $125 cash if she paid on the spot and he would take it down off the tow truck. My daughter doesn't have $125 to carry around, I don't carry $125 cash with me. What this tow truck operator does is to cruise around the various subdivisions and look for unsuspecting victims to charge money by towing their vehicles. The signs that say No Parking are small, not as large as city requirements, and they are widely spaced so they are hard to see. The curbs are not painted yellow where these No Parking areas exist and it seems a lot like entrapment to me the way he operates. On any city street where the city enforces parking, if you park illegally you are ticketed and have to move the vehicle. You are NOT immediately towed away and your vehicle held for ransom. In my opinion, this operator is a very unscrupulous individual and he and his office staff are extremely rude and arrogant.Desired Settlement: I want this operator to refund my daughter's $125 to her and to apologize to her for his rude behavior.

Business

Response:

We would like to apologize for any rudeness shown although believe that our reluctance to release the vehicle for no fee was perceived as being rude.

Absolute negative experience with this company. My car was towed from a city street without warning (I was parked in between two widely-spaced "Tow Zone" signs and I was informed that the signs were my warning; I honestly didn't see them!). I was babysitting for a new family and in the process of looking for the address I passed one "Tow Zone" sign and didn't reach the other one yet, not to mention it was partially blocked by a tree. I parked in front of the home in a spot I thought was legal. If I had seen the signs, I would never have parked there. I wasn't trying to risk it or take my chances. Although I admit I neglected to read (see!) the signs I am more dissatisfied with the customer service displayed by all parties involved with Two Zone. I came out of the home as the Tow Zone worker(owner?) was preparing to tow my car. I asked him if he could unload it and I would move it and he responded with a short/rude "no". I explained that this was my first time in the neighborhood and didn't know the rules. He gestured to the side of his truck for me to call the company number to get a location for where to pick it up. After asking if we could make some sort of deal (I offered to write him a check for my day's wages), he explained I would have to get a ride to his shop. He even suggested I get a ride with the mother when she returned home. I explained the children would be sleeping and he said, "Well, don't they have car seats?" No way to describe this other then plain rude. I called the number minutes after he left asking him to turn around as I discovered I had left my wallet in the car, but he refused. Upon arriving at the shop a very rude woman demanded $125 cash, I gave her $140 and she said she needed exact change. Ridiculous! She even went as far to say that Tow Zone "helps" people as it moves unwanted vehicles from in front of homeowners properties. However, I was quick to point out that NO ONE called to report my car, rather the tow truck driver admitted to "patrolling the area" for cars. Would NEVER recommend this company! Beyond awful.