The recent articles regarding the tow-truck tyranny refer.
I have dealt in a professional capacity with the mentioned Towing Company (alphabetical and numerical first), as have relatives of mine in their personal capacity, on three occasions. It is of utmost importance that the public be informed of the services rendered. Don’t be misled and later disillusioned. Remember – if the towing company is not authorised by your insurance company you are personally liable to pay the towing costs. Before your insurance company settles your claim, they first deduct the towing company’s cost and pay them. The following incidents happened and are herewith disclosed with the consent of the people who were involved, solely for information purposes:
A woman in her 80s, struggling to make ends meet, was in an motor vehicle accident. The very friendly tow-truck driver assured her that her insurance would cover all costs but insisted that she signed a document to” allow him to assist her”. She signed, only to discover later that this document had terms and conditions at the back thereof, printed in grey and in small print, binding her. This towing company’s cost was not covered by her insurance company. R7 000 was deducted from her claim towards their costs. All endeavours to negotiate with the towing company failed. The personnel were unfriendly and rude.
The same thing happened in another matter. The insured’s total invoice from the “on the scene towing company” was in excess of R16 000! The value of the insured vehicle was R32 000. The towing cost was R3 950 from Newlands to Industria; an admin fee of R1 000 was invoiced; R2 500 was charged for “recovery” (which I was told is for “time spent and labour at the scene”). A storage fee (for the time from date of accident to date of collection by the insurance company – 19 days) totaling R6 650 was invoiced.
My daughter was also assisted by the same towing company after a motor vehicle accident. The driver of the tow truck was very helpful. He called her insurance company on her behalf and handed his phone to her. She talked to the person on the other side and received the go ahead to make use of this company’s services (and even got a reference number). When her husband called their insurance company, they did not have any knowledge/ record of such call. This is, in my opinion, nothing but fraud.
Please remember – personally ensure that your insurance company will pay the first on the scene towing company’s cost. Most insurance companies nowadays have their own towing services.
– Personally phone your insurance company on your own phone or on a relative’s phone.
-Ensure that the insured vehicle is stored at your insurance company’s yard
– Admin and recovery costs are charged for these services.
