MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — There is more trouble for a Minneapolis towing company after a Ramsey County man filed suit against Cedar Towing, seeking class-action status.
Wayne Spar claims the company overcharged him and forced him to pay in cash.
His lawyer says he asked the tow-truck driver if he could move his car before it was towed. Spar claims the driver demanded $100.
When Spar went to pick up his car, he claims he was charged more than the maximum allowed for a tow under a Minneapolis ordinance. That maximum fee is $212 for a tow and $28 dollars per day for storage.
Cedar Towing is currently under investigation by police for overcharging people. The company hasn’t commented on the lawsuit or the current investigation.
Cedar Towing SUCKED 20 years ago, and I imagine it’s level of SUCKAGE has only grown.
One time my car wa stolen, after polics recovered it to Cedar Towing they had it for 7 days before I even recieved a notice. Thus was charged for the 7 days impoundment plus fees. My car was only worth $500 and they wanted this much so I let it go. Sad story for me concerning Cedar Towing.
That sucks. I don’t mean to defend Cedar here (I used to work for a competitor), but that’s the way it goes. Cedar provided a service to the owner of the lot where your car was parked. They have to pay for the tow truck, maintenance, gas, the driver of the truck, fees to the City, insurance, etc., etc. They don’t know if your car was really stolen or not. Maybe you didn’t want to pay and reported it stolen (I’m not saying you did, but that’s their reason).
Anyway, I hope you checked with your insurance company, they might have been able to provide some relief.
There is NO explanation nor defense for sitting on the car for so long before notification, padding their income. There should be a law (is there?) that they cannot charge storage fees beyond one day until they can prove they notified you.
The only way for them to notify the owner is by paying the state to lookup who owns the vehicle, then send them a certified letter. I believe legally, they need to send a letter within 4 or 5 business days. The vast majority of cars are picked up within 24 hours…