Towing Issues: Damage to Tires during a tow?, ford windstar minivan, 1999 ford windstar

Question
On the 8th of June 2007 our 1999 Ford Windstar Minivan was repossessed by Camping Companies in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  The van was repossessed from our home driveway in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

My wife later picked up the van around the 20th of June, 2007.  We paid all of the required fees and also reinstated our car finance account with Capital One who holds the note on this vehicle.

My wife did not pick up the van from the Camping Companies location on Southwest Blvd. in Tulsa but rather at Adesa Auction's location.

As soon as my wife drove the car away from Adesa she noticed how bumpy the ride was.  It felt as if there were something wrong with the front end of the van.

For this reason we only drove the van a few times and we made plans to have the van looked at for repairs.  

At the time that my wife took possession of the vehicle from Adesa she called me and told me about the problem with the car.  I immediately called Camping Companies and although I called a local Tulsa number I was rolled over to a Salt Lake City, Utah location.  

I asked the rep how cars were towed away during a repossession by Camping Companies.  She assured me that the problem with the van could not be attributed to the towing.  She explained that the cars are loaded using a wheel lift and this would not allow for any damage to the van.

I didn't think too much about this explanation because it seemed to make sense.  Later I wondered though how they were able to get our van onto any type of tow truck considering how close the van was parked with its front facing the garage door.  There were maybe a few feet of space between the front bumper and the garage door.  Then next to the van, on a very normal width driveway was our other car, a Toyota Camry.

Short of having entered the van to put it in neutral, which I don't believe they did, or towing the van across our lawn, I do not understand how it could have been towed without having dragged the van backwards in order to give the wheel lift some room to operate.

At any rate we took our car to a Tire and Wheel repair shop to see if a mechanic could diagnose the problem.  The manager of the shop came out and looked at our van and was immediately drawn to the tires.  He said he knew right away what the problem was and he asked us if we had slammed on the brakes recently and skidded the car some distance.  This has never happened to our car since we have owned it.

He then asked if the car had been towed recently and we told him that it had. In fact the van started driving this way just after it was towed away.

He showed us on the two front tires that there are two large flat spots.  He would estimate that the car was dragged with the brakes on or the car in park for about 20 to 30 feet.  This is what it would take for the tires to be damaged to the point they were.

We purchased two new tires and the van drove like new.

Tell me what the possibilities are in regards to the damage to the van and how we should approach the repo company?

I have tried to contact them and they have not responded.  I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau hoping to get a response but, we'll see...

Thanks!

Answer
Well based on what you have described then you are correct in assuming that it was dragged out to the roadway and rehooked from the front since it is a front wheel drive vehicle...

As to how they actually did the recovery, its hard to say but most companies have either dollies or " GO JACKS" to use to prevent damage to the vehicle when its not parked in a towing friendly position..

Do companies do things which can damage the vehicle, yes it happens from time to time. Do not dwell on it as it happened..

BUT, as to getting paid back for the tires, I think a lot of repo companies have a damage waiver system in place for when they are going after the collateral..  Contacting the towing service is good, but you might have more luck with your finance company. After all they are the ones that wanted it back and if its damaged then you are not getting what you are paying for in the condition it was before it was towed..

Better Business Bureau, well they are a joke, as they have no teeth to do anything but write a report that says they did not get someone to do something....  

I believe the the finance company is the best avenue for you to talk to about the damages...  Good luck..