On Time Towing

To Whom It May Concern:
Good Afternoon,
On-​Time Towing towed my car on 6÷4÷16. I have to admit that I was parked on Book Binders private property; however, the owner of On-​Time Towing, with whom Book Binders is in a contract with, is extremely disrespectful and demeaning. When I contacted the number on the sign located on Book Binders property, the owner was immediately rude and disrespectful. I attempted to retrieve my car and speak with the owner but he was extremely verbally abusive. I attempted to explain that I needed to pick my children up from Highland Springs High School Prom at midnight and he stated «call your kids and tell them to take a taxi home.» The owner also stated «sleep outside my building all night and wait till I get there.» I had to contact the police to be able to get my car but On-​Time Towing was very deceitful when speaking to the police. He informed the Richmond Police Supervisor that he opened at 9am on 6÷5÷16, however he failed to mention that he closes at 9:30am. When I contacted On-​Time Towing at 9:40 am 6÷5÷16 to retrieve my car the owner immediately snapped «NO»! I attempted to explain that he never mentioned that he closed at 9:30 am. He then informed me that I could retrieve my car at 12pm and also stated, «don’t be late because you won’t get your car.» He said this in a rude tone of voice and then disconnected the phone. I arrived to his lot on 6÷5÷16 on time; however, he was 15 minutes late. While waiting, another customer who was trying to retrieve his car (he is a VCU/​MCV employee) contacted On– Time towing and the owner stated «I’m doing ya’ll a favor by opening up so you can get your car.» Not only is the owner rude and disrespectful, cars can be easily damaged by On-​Time Towing (which Book Binders allows to tow from their property). Cars towed by On-​Time Towing are parked like sardines in a can. I had to squeeze in on the passengers side door and climb over the seat to the drivers side because On-​Time Towing blocked the driver side door with another car. I am emailing Book Binders to inform that they contract with a towing company that does not deserve a contract. They care nothing about customer service. On-​Time Towing is disrespectful, rude, and belittling to others once their cars are towed and they use deceitful tactics to hold cars hostage. I have contacted the BBB in regards to On-​Time Towing as they are not affiliated with them and other customers need to be made aware of their poor practices. I’m not upset that my car was towed because I was parked illegally. It was how I was treated by the owner of On-​Time Towing.

This towing towed my friends car and a worker named RELL proceeded to steal my purse out of the trunk which had my keys to my car and apartment and my wallet.

Downright predatory. Gone from car not even 5 minutes and it had already been towed. Charged the maximum allowed by Richmond just to get it unhooked 2 blocks away… company was rude and unsympathetic on the phone and in person. Makes Richmond a very frustrating place to live in and visit.

Lot behind Sugar shack We were out of our car 20 seconds while we were walking to the sugar shack my son called me to look back and our car was being hooked up to tow vehicle. My husband ran after the truck he refused to stop. This is criminal! 125.00. Which is maximum allowed by law.

I filed a complaint with the BBB. Here it is:
Complaint Type: Consumer to Business Complaint
Nature of complaint: The inappropriate behavior by customer service personnel.
Problem description:
I was visiting from out of state and had stopped for a cup of coffee at Sugar Shack. I parked my car next to about 5 others in a side lot, adjacent to the business. It was visually connected to the business– no fences, no ‘do not park here’ signs, aside from a ‘private property’ sign which I assumed was the business I was purchasing from (the information was in small print and not obvious enough). I come out of the store not even 5 minutes later to find ALL of the vehicles, including mine, gone.
I call up the number on the sign and speak to someone about the situation. He tells me (and he seems pretty rehearsed in this matter) that my car has been towed to the back lot of Kroger’s.
1– I do not think that Kroger’s allows their back lot to be used for loitering tow trucks waiting for frantic car owners to pay an extortionist’s car release price ($ 130). I will be contacting them to let them know that their private property is being used for a non-​connected source of revenue.
2– I also do not believe that the parking lot located across the street has given free range of their private property for this non-​connected source of revenue either. I will be contacting the owner of that lot about the misuse of their property. I noticed that the tow truck loiters on their property until they see a person unknowingly park on the private property beside Sugar Shack. Pretty hypocritical if you ask me.
3– As I dealt with the $ 130 price tag that was required in order to unhinge my car from the grips of this dastardly company, the driver aggressively acted out towards my significant other. He acted as though he would get out of the truck and use physical force. That resulted in quite the yelling match, with threats included. Once my card’s charge was processed, the tow truck driver haphazardly unhinged my car and peeled out of the Kroger’s back lot, squealing tires whilst flipping us off.
EXTREMELY unprofessional and absolutely repulsive as the representative of this towing company.
——
I will be contacting the multiple businesses about the abuse of the private parking lots for this demeaning handiwork and will be looking into the IRS for the proper recording of the revenue for the 7+ cars they tow on a daily basis.
This is an obvious trap laid out for unsuspecting victims, as the owner of the property, as well as the towing company, have some sort of percentage of revenue agreement. A fence or more obvious signs would be productive, but I suppose when you’re making bank on people trying to support a local business, you’d willingly overlook it.
Desired Settlement: Refund-​Credit Card Credit
Desired Outcome:
I expect a full refund of the $ 130 for the degrading treatment from this driver (will update review with outcome).
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UPDATE: I received a snide-​like response and they deny any wrong doing on their part. I was not debating my mistakenly parking in the private lot. I was disputing their employee’s behavior. The company apparently records all transactions by video. However, it’s not a surprise that the aggressive behavior and the flipping off were not recorded. No refund, although I will still be contacting the other businesses and looking into the IRS.

Predatory towing company. Definitely towed my car that was parked legally and had no issues with registration or anything like that. Was extremely rude when I simply asked why it had been towed. Terrible people preying on anyone that they can.

my car wouldn’t start so I called them to come flat bed my car and take it to the auto shop. very accommodating of my schedule and very polite people. I don’t know why there are complaints about costumer service because the gentlemen who helped me was amazing! decent prices as well. I would definitely use them again if I had anymore issues with my car that required a tow!

RICHMOND V. Hit the nail on the head. Poor customer service!

2 hours late from my appointment to pick up the car and it was way more $ than they had told me on the phone. Poor attitude and excuses from the workers — what a scam. I feel sorry for anyone who has to deal with them.