'Predatory Towing' Will Be Taken to Court, City Attorney Thorne Says

In the context of a new wave of towing of vehicles of patrons of City of Falls Church businesses, Falls Church City Attorney Roy Thorpe told the City Council here Monday that the towing companies involved will have to "defend their actions in court" about their practices, often referred to as "predatory towing," including providing detailed records of their contracts and transactions.

While companies may be acting generally legally, he said, there are numbers of unanswered questions about exactly who is authorizing the towing and who is legally empowered to order any particular tow.

He noted that "predatory towing" refers to cases where a towing company has a scout at a parking location that calls the company the minute a target for towing is identified. Tow trucks often arrive within minutes after a car is parked, leaving almost no time for the vehicle's operator to return. They violate the law whenever they remove a car prior to notifying City police.

In a late development, yesterday two members of the Falls Church City Council confronted towers engaging in "predatory towing" in the lot behind the Broad Street Grill, and learned that the owner of the property contracted for their services. Vice Mayor Marty Meserve and Council member Lindy Hockenberry were eyewitnesses to the towing practice, which they said none of the businesses on the property wanted.

Thorpe added Monday that jurisdictions throughout the region are getting together to devise a uniform set of ordinances to delineate the legal boundaries of the companies' actions. He said the jurisdictions will be more aggressive against the practice of "predatory towing" following a court ruling in Prince William County recently that upheld a county ordinance against the claim by a towing company that it was protected under federal interstate commerce statutes.

"In considering towing," Thorpe said. "It is important that private property be respected. That is, the property of the business owner's lot as well as of the business customer's automobile."

Among other things, Falls Church Mayor Dan Gardner said that the amount that companies are fined for violating the law should be stiffened significantly.

Gardner cited special concern for overcharging by the towing companies, noting the City has set a limit of $85 per tow that the companies can charge individuals whose cars have been towed. In at least one case, he noted, a vehicle owner was charged $125. The towing company claimed the $40 surcharge was for other services not covered under the City's limit.

"There is no excuse for predatory towing," Gardner said. "It is a disgrace."

"This upsets me so much," said Council member Hockenberry. "It's abhorrent. It is not good for business. If it happened to me, I would never set foot in that business again.

Council member Ron Parson said, "I am outraged about this. I think we should read aloud the names of those towing companies and businesses who authorize such towing practices to protect our citizens."

Vice Mayor Meserve called the latest spate of towing incidents "another epidemic of towing."

"This past week, there have been towings at the Giant, the Broad Street Grill and Applebee's lots. We need to look into the coincidence of these. It has got to be stopped. It is not good for business in Falls Church," she said.

City Manager Dan McKeever said he'd been in touch with the president of the Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce about the problem, hoping that leaders of the business community can work together with the City and its law enforcement arm to address the problem.