Apex Towing

Thursday 19 July 2018

SO, TOWING TRUCKS INCUR RS 1,400 LOSSES A DAY?

On Thursday, Mirror trailed a towing van for two hours across old city areas, and found it picking up many more vehicles than in the records (PICS: MANOJ BIDKAR, NIKHIL GHORPADE)

Traffic cops would have us believe a truck tows only 20 two-wheelers a day. Mirror tests the claim, only to find that they pick up a lot more, make huge profits, pocketing most of it

In a matter of two hours, a two-wheeler towing van from the traffic police department picked up nearly 30 vehicles crammed into no-parking zones in and around Laxmi Road on a rather lean Thursday, far belying the traffic police’s sorry claim of just 20 in an entire day.

Soon after a Right to Information (RTI) application prodded the traffic department into disclosing its daily towings — the costs involved and the earnings from fines imposed — a Mirror team went on a two-hour drive to check how many vehicles are actually being picked up by a towing van, which works on a contract basis. The survey busted quite a few of the myths the traffic police spun.

For instance, fines were being merrily collected by the contractors operating the vans, who were clearly not part of the traffic divisions and hence not authorised to collect any fine from commuters whatsoever.

“There is a huge nexus between the traffic police and the van operators. The police records show fines collected for only 20 vehicles per van per day. The rest of the amount which the operators amass from commuters does not go into the police revenue kitty, but into their own pockets and those of some traffic police personnel,” disclosed activist Azhar Khan, head of NGO Lokhit Foundation, who had filed the RTI with the Pune traffic police in September, seeking information about how many vehicles are picked up by each van.

In its reply to Khan’s query, the traffic department gave a break-up of the action taken by towing vans, claiming that every van picks up 20 vehicles in the whole day. The van operator gets Rs 50 for every two-wheeler, which adds up to a daily income of Rs 1,000 for each van operator. In the same reply, the traffic police also gave a break-up of the expenses incurred by the van operator, insisting that it was far more than the income. “The traffic police stated that the operators pay salaries to four assistants he employs and, taking into account the van maintenance and diesel expenses, the total expenditure goes up to Rs 2,400. This meant that every van operator was incurring a loss of Rs 1,400 per day. But, it’s difficult to believe that all the van operators are continuing to provide the service, despite incurring losses of Rs 42,000 per month,” Khan contended.

The Mirror team tailed a tempo attached to the Faraskhana traffic division in the afternoon and saw it picking up nearly 30 two-wheelers in the area around Laxmi Road in two hours flat, contradictory to the figures given by the traffic police. When one of the traffic constables was contacted, he let slip the actual figures on the condition of anonymity, saying, “In one round, we pick up six vehicles. And, we take at least six such rounds on a lean day like Thursday. We pick up around 60 vehicles in a day.” This was three times the numbers recorded by the traffic cops.

What’s worse, the employees of the van operator, whose job is only to pick up vehicles and bring them to the traffic division’s office, were seen collecting fines from the commuters. On Mirror’s queries, another traffic constable tried to justify the act. “We are facing a shortage of manpower. So, the pick-up van boys collect the fine money sometimes; but it is only the traffic police which issues the challan,” he maintained.

But Khan clearly spelt out the rules, saying, “Only the traffic police in uniform are allowed to collect the fine. They should also provide and additional receipt of Rs 50 as towing charges. However, most of the time, they do not bother with any such receipt. And that is on the rare instances when they actually collect the fines themselves. It’s mostly the towing van operators who gather the money.”

Deputy commissioner of police (Traffic) Pravin Munde gave Mirror the usual reply when apprised of the situation. “There are clear orders that no other person except police officials should be collecting fines and giving receipts. If persons other than police are collecting fines, I will conduct an inquiry and those found guilty will be punished.”

Till then, between themselves, traffic cops and van operators, have a fair amount of money in tow.

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The post SO, TOWING TRUCKS INCUR RS 1,400 LOSSES A DAY? was originally seen on Apex Towing - Dublin Blog

More Tow Trucks Prowling Arlington? That’s What the County Board is Proposing

What to know if you need a tow

Illegal parking touts now using tow trucks to extort money from victims

Pix for representational purpose only. — AFP

KUALA LUMPUR: The next time someone wants to tow your illegally-parked car and demands payment, beware as they might just be out to make a quick buck.

Giving this warning today, City police Traffic Enforcement and Investigation Department chief ACP Mohd Nadzri Hussain said police arrested a drug addict for extorting money from car owners in exchange for getting their vehicles released.

Nadzri said acting on a tip-off, police deployed traffic personnel to the scene and nabbed the man who was driving an unlicensed tow truck.

"Checks on the suspect revealed that he is not licensed to operate a tow truck, plus the road tax of the truck had expired in 2012.

"The 35-year-old man tested positive for methamphetamine," said Nadzri.

The victims' vehicles were towed from a road near HKL, but not by the authorities.

On top of that, they were issued "compounds" for RM150 or more.

"When the owners refused to pay, the suspect would not release their vehicle," said Nadzri.

Police are investigating if the suspect was operating under the orders of the hospital, the parking management of the hospital, or member of a syndicate.

Nadzri said the suspect was handed over to Dang Wangi police for further investigations.

The case is being investigated under Section 385 of the Penal Code for extortion, Road Transport Act 1987 and the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.

He urged motorists who have fallen victim to such cases to lodge a report at the nearest police station to assist investigations.

Meanwhile, Nadzri also urged motorists not to pay parking touts and instead inform the traffic department at 03-20719999 if they are harassed by touts.

"I advise the public not to bother paying the touts, if they pay it is like encouraging them, so park at the proper car parks," he said.

As of Nov 7, police had arrested 181 touts involved in illegal parking activity in the city and some have been charged in court.

"From Monday up until this morning, 28 people including six Indian nationals and an Indonesian have been arrested. Out of the number, 15 have been charged in court," he said.

The immigrants will be investigated further under the Immigration Act on suspicion of misusing work permits.

Nadzri said he does not rule out the possibility that some hotspots were controlled by underworld gangs but to date, no connections were found that linked them to the activity.

"The arrested foreigners claimed they worked individually but it is impossible for them to work individually plus the money collected is not kept by them. We believe someone would make his rounds to collect the money from these touts," he said.

Nadzri said stretches of roads housing entertainment outlets, such as Jalan Alor, Jalan P. Ramlee and Kg Pandan roundabout, are among the hotspots for the parking touts.

Shopping spots such as Jalan Chow Kit, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Jalan Kenanga are also hotspots for the touts.

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The article Illegal parking touts now using tow trucks to extort money from victims See more on: http://dublin.apextowing.ie/

Tow truck stolen from business

An employee of Stanford Automotive at 66 Youngs Mill Road claimed his 1995 GMC work truck was stolen from the business between Thursday and early Saturday morning.

The man told LaGrange police officers the truck was last seen on the Madison Avenue side of the shop.

The vehicle also contained more than $8,000 worth of various towing tools and equipment, according to the employee.

The white GMC truck has “Stanford Automotive” stamped on the sides, a white camper shell on the back and strobe lights on top, a report stated.

The vehicle was valued at $3,500.

Convicted felon allegedly threatens to shoot relative

One man remains behind bar accused of threatening to shoot a relative with a gun at a home in the 900 block of Houston Street just before 1 p.m. on Friday.

Dion Fonterrell Jackson, 43, was arrested when LaGrange police officers found a handgun hidden inside a microwave in the house, a report stated.

The gun also was reported stolen more than two years ago, officers said.

The relative told police Jackson threatened to “blow her brains out” if they attempted to leave the home, according to the report.

The relative managed to get away, jump inside a car and drive to a secure location where they called police, a report read.

Jackson pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault in Nov. 2004, the report stated. He was sentenced to six years to serve two years behind bars; which Jackson completed.

Jackson was taken into custody on Friday and charged with simple assault under the Family Violence Act, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm during certain crimes and theft by receiving.

DUI

• One woman was arrested after a LaGrange police officer observed her 2005 Lincoln Navigator weaving in and out of lanes on South Davis Road about 5:45 a.m. on Saturday.

The officer stated he also smelled an odor of alcohol when he approached the SUV.

The woman failed a field sobriety test and blew a .227 during the preliminary breath test, a report stated.

She was charged with failure to maintain lane and DUI less safe.

• A driver was taken into custody by LaGrange Police after he crashed into a mailbox and a parked vehicle in the 700 block of Colquitt Street just before 2:30 a.m. on Saturday.

The man failed a field sobriety test and blew a .14 into the officer’s Breathilyzer, according to the report.

The driver was charged with DUI less safe and failure to maintain lane – both misdemeanors.

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The blog post Tow truck stolen from business Read more on: dublin.apextowing.ie

Advantage Funding Expands Tow-Truck Finance Operations

Advantage Funding added Todd Chase to its growing sales force. Chase will serve as a sales manager of the company’s vocational truck business, specializing in tow-truck financing.

“Todd brings a lifetime of industry experience as an operator, advocate and financer that further enhances the Tow and Vocational Truck team at Advantage Funding,” said Kristian McCausland, head of sales for Advantage Funding. “Our clients expect to deal with people that understand their business and with Todd we further add to our team of industry experts.”

Prior to his appointment with Advantage Funding, Chase served as business development consultant for Northbrook, IL-based Beacon Funding. Earlier in his career he was the general manager of a family towing business.

Chase serves on the Executive Cabinet of the Towing and Recovery Association of America (TRAA) and sits on the board of the Massachusetts Statewide Towing Academy, where he is a tow-operator trainer. Chase has also served as vice president of the Massachusetts Statewide Towing Association for 16 years.

“I have extensive experience with all aspects of the tow-truck market—operating, selling and financing,” Chase said. “I look forward to expanding Advantage Funding’s market share in this industry and establishing many new relationships.”

Advantage Funding is a ground-transportation finance firm which focuses on companies in the commercial, vocational-truck and dealership spaces.

Advantage Funding Expands Tow-Truck Finance Operations was first published on dublin.apextowing.ie/

Wednesday 18 July 2018

From first snowfall, numerous vehicles in the ditch, even an ambulance

For the last three decades, Murray Kelly has been responsible for tending to about 98 per cent of the towing calls at Kelly Auto Service, and it seems he hears the same story one too many times, “everybody drives too fast.”

Later on in the evening, between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. on November 19, Seaforth and the neighbouring regions were given a taste of winter, which is officially not until December 21, as a couple centimetres of snow coated the town - along with temperatures reaching -2 throughout the week.

This is the busiest time of the year for tow truck drivers, especially when having to cart vehicles out of the ditch. Kelly, 51, said the condition of the automobiles tires plays a role in some of the accidents as well poorly maintained vehicles. “The one I pulled out Sunday, a little Toyota with all four tires bald as the cement floor.”

Since the snowfall, Kelly has been dispatched to about 10-15 accidents where the driver has lost control and required assistance.

“It’s more of no common sense, not paying attention and to realize ‘you know it’s actually wintertime,” stated Kelly, November 24. “It’s (nearly) December in Huron County, maybe I should slow down.”

“We are going to have snow, we are going to have ice, we are going to have slop.”

Despite the numerous calls no one was seriously injured, Kelly said the vehicle owners were more shaken up in the whole ordeal. Through for the most part, drivers were stressed from the aftermath, since the damages would not be covered by insurance.

In roughly 72 hours from the first snowfall, Burkholder Auto Body and Towing Ltd. saw virtually double the calls compared to Kelly Auto Service with one of those being an ambulance on Highway 8 between Clinton and Seaforth.

Leaning towards their competitor’s statements, Brussels native, Shane Burkholder from BABT said only one factor justifies the numerous accidents - speed.

The OPP issued winter tips to the community mid Wednesday afternoon due to the numerous collisions in Huron County relating to “weather and road conditions.” The OPP referred to the wintry weather as “problematic” for drivers in the area. From November 19-21, the authorities revealed there were 12 motor vehicle accidents.

Out of the dozen collisions, nine were as a result of gusting winds and snowy/ice covered thoroughfares, in addition there was a fatality, where weather was not the factor and the other two had to do with deer on the roadway.

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The article From first snowfall, numerous vehicles in the ditch, even an ambulance is republished from ApexTowinging - Galway