QuestionAt 9:15 am in Tempe AZ our landlord tagged are truck for tow stating it was in operable(untrue it starts) no plate (is registered)storage not allowed on sticker he backdated the sticker called tow company an had it towed by 10am.when we call towing company they stat it was towed as an abandoned vehicle. which that does not match tow sticker what do we do or can we do
AnswerYou always have the right to go to small claims court and have a judge decide if it was towed legally. There are laws which tow companies have to follow, and if they are broken on any parties part then there are penalties.
Tempe has some good laws along with the laws of the State of Arizona...
But this one is the Tempe laws..
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Chapter 32
TOWING FROM PRIVATE PROPERTY[1]
Sec. 32-1. Definition.
For the purposes of this chapter, "private towing carrier" means any person who commercially offers services to tow, transport or impound motor vehicles from private property without the prior permission of the owner or operator of such vehicle by means or use of a truck or other vehicle designed for or adopted to that purpose.
(Code 1967, 33A-1)
Sec. 32-2. Maximum charges and fees; release of vehicles.
(a) No private towing carrier shall hold or attempt to hold any vehicle towed from any location within the city without the consent of the owner or operator thereof as security for accrued towing and storage charges. Any such vehicle shall be immediately released, regardless of impound location, to the owner or operator thereof upon the production of proof of ownership or agency, as hereinafter defined.
(b) For the purposes of subsection (a), proof of ownership or agency shall be deemed proven when the claimant displays an actual or photocopy of a vehicle registration or title, whether current or not, for the impounded vehicle and one of the following is provided:
(1) The claimant of the vehicle displays a driver's license or any government piece of photographic identification, whether current or not, issued by any state or other sovereign empowered to issue such a license or identification, such license indicating the same last name as that in which the vehicle is registered; or
(2) The claimant displays any piece of photographic identification and written authorization from the owner, which includes a copy of any government piece of photographic identification of the owner and the keys to the impounded vehicle.
(c) Pursuant to A.R.S. § 9-499.05 and this chapter, private towing carriers within this city shall be subject to such maximum charges and fees as the council shall establish by resolution (see Appendix A) at least every five (5) years. A private towing carrier is subject to such maximum charges and fees and other regulations established in this section if the vehicle being towed, transported or impounded is towed from private property located within the corporate limits of this city.
(d) A private towing carrier may require a claimant to provide a current address and telephone number to assist such private towing carrier's billing and collection process. No private towing carrier may require as a condition precedent to the release of any vehicle documentation or proof in excess of or different than that described in subsections (b) and (e) of this section.
(e) A private towing carrier shall require any claimant to sign a receipt for the vehicle claimed; however, such receipt shall contain no language other than the following:
(1) The name and address of the claimant;
(2) The name, address and letterhead of the private towing carrier;
(3) The date and time at which the vehicle was claimed;
(4) A description, including the license number, of the claimed vehicle; and
(5) A statement of the unpaid balance, if any.
(f) A private towing carrier shall provide the claimant with a copy of the receipt and the private towing carrier’s billing and collection procedures.
(g) Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions, no private towing carrier shall release any vehicle after having been advised by any law enforcement agency that such vehicle has been reported as stolen.
(Code 1967, § 33A-2; Ord. No. 999.2, § 1, 1-24-85; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
State law reference—Authority to regulate maximum rates of towing motor vehicles from private property, A.R.S. § 9-499.05.
Sec. 32-3. Repealed.
(Code 1967, § 33A-3; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-4. Notice to police.
No private towing carrier shall tow or transport any vehicle without the express permission of the owner thereof, unless the private towing carrier has notified the city police department within one hour after towing or transporting the vehicle and provided the following information:
(1) The name and address of the owner of the vehicle, if known;
(2) The vehicle license number, vehicle identification number (VIN) and description;
(3) The reason the vehicle was moved without the owner's permission;
(4) The location where the vehicle was taken; and
(5) The name and address of the person or company that towed or transported the vehicle.
(Code 1967, § 33A-4; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-5. Authority to tow.
It shall be unlawful for a private towing carrier to tow or transport a motor vehicle from private property without the permission of the owner or operator of the vehicle unless such private towing carrier receives a request from a law enforcement agency or the express written permission from the owner of the property or the agent of the owner, who has complied with requirements of this section. The owner or the owner’s agent shall either sign each towing order or authorize the tow by a written contract which is valid for a specific length of time. The private towing carrier may not act as the agent of the owner. A copy of the written contract shall be made readily available to the law enforcement agency upon request and include the owner’s or owner’s agent name and current telephone numbers.
(Code 1967, § 33A-5; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-6. Notice to public of right to tow.
(a) The owner or person in possession of any private parking area shall be deemed to have given consent to unrestricted parking by the general public in such parking area unless such parking area is posted with signs as prescribed by this section which are clearly visible and readable from a distance of fifty (50) feet away and at all points of entry. The owner of a subdivision or area containing private streets may prohibit parking on one or both sides of the street if signs as prescribed by this section are posted at each entrance to the subdivision or area and near every intersecting street at a location where the sign is visible and readable upon entry to any such street from the intersecting street. Such signs shall contain, at a minimum, the following information:
(1) Restrictions on parking;
(2) Disposition of vehicles found in violation of parking restrictions;
(3) Maximum cost to the violator, including storage fees and any other charges that could result from the disposition of his vehicle parked in violation of parking restrictions;
(4) Telephone number and address where the violator can locate his vehicle; and
(5) Each sign shall state, "Tempe City Code, Section 32-6."
(b) Signs will be a minimum of twelve (12) inches by eighteen (18) inches in size and will be mounted at a minimum height of five (5) feet and a maximum height of ten (10) feet above the ground.
(c) No private towing carrier shall tow a vehicle from a private parking area unless the signs are posted as required by this section and conform with subsections (a), (b) and (e).
(d) This section shall not apply to any vehicle left in a private parking area for over seventy-two (72) consecutive hours. The owner or person in possession of any private parking area in which a vehicle has been left for over seventy-two (72) consecutive hours shall comply with § 32-4 provisions of this chapter before towing such vehicle.
(e) The private towing carrier shall post a sign with a minimum one inch lettering with the maximum charges and fees as established by council resolution (see Appendix A) at the main business entry of the impound location.
(Code 1967, § 33A-6; Ord. No. 992.3, 3-28-85; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-7. Charging excess fees.
(a) No private towing carrier shall charge any fee or charge in excess of those established by resolution enacted pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Ignorance of the maximum charge or fee established by council resolution shall not be a defense in any prosecution brought under this chapter.
(c) No private towing carrier shall charge for or seek compensation for any service not specifically listed or set forth in a resolution enacted pursuant to this chapter.
(Code 1967, § 33A-7; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-8. Service calls.
For the purposes of this chapter and of any resolution adopted pursuant to § 32-2, the phrase "service call not resulting in the towing of a vehicle" shall mean any occurrence or set of circumstances wherein the vehicle subject to towing has not been removed from the property upon which such vehicle was unlawfully or improperly parked prior to demand for the release of such vehicle by the owner or operator thereof. If the driver or owner of the vehicle returns prior to the removal of the vehicle from the property, the private tow carrier shall release the vehicle and no fee shall be charged.
(Code 1967, § 3A-9; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
Sec. 32-9. Violation; penalties.
Violations of this chapter shall be punishable as set forth in § 1-7 of this code, except for violations of § 32-5, which shall be subject to a minimum civil fine/penalty of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) and a maximum civil fine/penalty of one thousand dollars ($1000).
(Code 1967, § 33A-10; Ord. No. 992.2, § 1, 1-24-85; Ord. No. 2001.17, 7-26-01; Ord. No. 2006.77, 1-4-07)
