ComplaintsforH & R Repair & Towing Inc

• Initial Complaint

  01/25/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 01/17/2023, at approx. 2200 hours, my car had to be towed due to damage from an MVA. Damage from the MVA was only to the front tire. There was no body damage. John, from H&R Repair and Towing, towed my car, & caused significant body damage to the front bumper and side panel. John acknowledged that he caused the damage but said that he told my son that there may be a little damage caused to the vehicle. He did not have my son sign a waiver. I called John to talk to him about the damage and he said that my son gave him permission. I asked for the signed waiver and he said, "Everything is digital. We don't have the capability to have people sign waivers." He refused to have a conversation with me. I called on 01/24/2023 and spoke to a lady that answered the phone, Donna. I explained the situation and she immediately began saying that John had permission to tow and damage my vehicle. She refused to connect me to the owner (I think his name may be Larry) and she refused to give me their company's insurance information. She then hung up on me. I have notified my insurance company. But this tow company should not be able to get by knowingly causing damage to a vehicle, acknowledging that they damaged it but then saying that they were given verbal consent to do so. First, I do not know exactly what John said to my son (20 yo). And, my son had just been involved in an MVA and was really shaken up. John did not call to ask me, the owner of the vehicle, for permission to knowingly damage my vehicle. I have attached pictures. The pictures where the front passenger tire is sticking out like the vehicle would be making a sharp right turn in just after the accident but before the tow. If you look at the body, especially the front bumper, you can see that there is no damage. The pictures where the tire is somewhat straight shows the damage caused by the tow truck/driver. The front bumper is cracked and broken and the body panel above the wheel well is damaged.

  Business response

  02/28/2023

  Complainant was not our customer; the driver of the vehicle was.  He had an accident and due to the circumstances, was warned certain damages may be incurred by the tow and agreed to the tow anyway.  Apparently, he was the son driving the family vehicle with permission of the family, and although he was the AAA member, the family feels he did not have the authority to authorize anything having to do with the vehicle.

  This has all been thoroughly explained to the complainant repeatedly by the tow manager, but she keeps insisting that WE are responsible for the damage to the vehicle, not the driver or the accident he was involved in.

  We take all complaints seriously, but if the driver did not have implied or explicit consent over the vehicle, he should not have been driving it.

  She has since filed complaints with AAA and with our insurance company, and I'm sure they will cave and give into her unreasonable demands and just raise our rates.  We did as we were directed to do by the driver and AAA member, and this is just another cas of why small businesses are less inclined to accommodate unreasonable people.  It ends up costing us and our future customers who absorb the costs incurred by this idiocy.

  Complainant also needs to cease slandering us on social media and the like with false representations of the facts in the matter.

  We need to be clear; her bullying tactics will come back to biter her in the end.

  Customer response

  02/28/2023

  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:  I am the complainant because the vehicle that the tow truck caused damage to belongs to me. It is my vehicle, not a family vehicle. My son was an authorized operator of my car but was not an authorized agent. The damage from the MVA strictly caused damage to the front passenger tire and connecting parts. There was no body damage until the tow truck driver hooked up my car. The tow driver admitted that he caused the damage to the bumper and side panel, but said that my son gave him permission. The tow driver did not give my son any paperwork or an invoice detailing the cost and location the vehicle would be towed to. Also, the tow company refused to give their insurance information to me as required by law. I had to get the information from the DORA. The reason I am submitting this complaint is to share our experience with the public in case they are looking for feedback. Thank your time. 
  Katherine Hudson

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩