Towing Issues: Wheel lift towing damage, tow truck operator, steering wheel lock

Question
Thank you for your answer.
Yes the car was towed for a parking violation.
No there was no damage to the transmission (fortunately).
However the front bumper was damaged so was the driver's door which was forced unprofessionally, I guess to release the hand-brake.

The person who towed the car asserts that it was towed from the rear, however when I retrieved the car it was parked with its rear against a femce. I am just trying to collect technical information as I will be taking this person to small court to retrieve the $350 damaged done on the car.

I must acknowledge that the tow was done either by wheel lifting or by raising the vehicle from underneath with a bar (no flat bed).

If you have any other information that could help me build my case in a fact-based manner this would be appreciated. Thank you

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Followup To

Question -
I have a manual transmission Mazda 3 that was damaged by a wheel lift tow truck. If the Mazda front wheels were turned to the side and locked by both the steering wheel and an anti-theft device 'The Club' can a wheel lift tow truck operator tow the car over a few miles on a paved road by lifting the rear wheels? Or would the front wheels create so much resistance that one would have to lift the front wheels and tow the car from the front? Thank you

Answer -
Interesting question here.

First of all,  Wheel lift tow trucks lift the vehicle by the tires and do not touch any body parts, so I am thinking by your question that the transmission was damaged.

Now if the wheels were locked by the steering wheel lock pin and a club antitheft device, I am assuming that the vehicle was towed from a parking lot for some sort of violation.  

Ok now onto some practical answers.  The vehicle could be towed by lifting the rear wheels, but if the front wheels were turned then it becomes a safety factor as the vehicle could be traveling partially in another lane.  It could hit telephone poles or parked vehicles.
Now to solve this problem, dollies should be used which are the small wheels you see on the back of the trucks.  That way the wheels are lifted off the ground allowing the vehicle to be towed safely. This also does make it where damage does not happen to the vehicle..


Now the recommended specifications on towing a Madza 3 (I used the 2004 - 2005 models ) state that when towing either a standard or automatic transmission with the drive wheels on the ground (as you asked ) is ZERO MILES at ZERO MILES PER HOUR ..  This is not to say that you can not tow it backwards for short distances to get to the other end to tow it.  

I hope this helps you, if not then make another post with more information  

Answer
Ok , well the vehicle parked rear to the fence sure helps prove that at one point or another it was towed from the front.

You might go to a web site that I use from time to time and print out the towing instructions for the vehicle you have.
Check out  http://www.towspec.com for information.  

This is what the manufacturers recommend for your vehicles towing ... If you can also obtain a copy of the AAA tow manual for that vehicle also it might help.

Now as to the drivers door,  hard to say what happened there.  But in most all attempts to enter vehicles it results in no damage done.  But like all things, it happens from time to time.

The front bumper damage, hard to say with out seeing pictures of the damage done what could of caused it.  

If you want to send me pics of the damages I will try to offer answers.   You can send them to me at flatman57@aol.com    Be sure to mark it as all experts follow up  so the spam filters let it though.

Hope this helps a bit more.

Richard