Stop Unfair Towing Practices by Tow Companies, HOAs, Property Managers, and Private Security

 

I am asking for fairer rules and stronger oversight of private towing practices, especially when towing companies work with homeowners associations, apartment complexes, condominium complexes, property managers, and private security companies.

 

My concern began after my own vehicle was towed from my condominium complex for a parking mistake. The situation became worse when the towing company refused to release the vehicle the next day because my registration had expired, even though I had already paid the registration fees online through the DMV. The company would not accept proof of payment from the DMV online portal, and I was forced to pay additional storage fees that felt unnecessary and excessive.

 

Now my household has gone through another unfair towing incident.

 

My girlfriend, who is disabled, came home late one night after visiting her son. Because she has difficulty parking in the garage, she parked in the resident/guest parking section of our housing complex. She normally parks in the garage and was not trying to avoid the rules. She simply forgot the next day that she had parked there, so the car remained there for a second night.

 

The posted signage in our complex states that vehicles are subject to towing after 72 hours. Her vehicle had not been parked there for 72 hours. It had only remained there for a second night. That means the posted rule did not clearly support an immediate tow. If the HOA, property manager, or private security company had a different rule for permits, that rule was not clearly communicated or fairly enforced. Residents should not be expected to guess which rule applies when the posted sign says 72 hours.

 

That night, private security had her vehicle towed because it did not have a parking permit. We had submitted an application for a parking permit but never received a response, most likely because we are renters and not owners or HOA members.

 

This is exactly the problem. Enforcement should not be inconsistent, selective, confusing, or financially devastating. Residents and renters should not be punished when the permit process is unclear, ignored, or not properly communicated.

 

We discovered her car had been towed when she needed to leave for a blood draw for medical testing. Because the tow company was closing soon, we had less than an hour to retrieve the vehicle. She missed her medical appointment, and because of the timing, we were charged overnight fees. The final cost was over $500 for a vehicle held less than 24 hours.

 

The invoice also showed a 1.25 vehicle pickup charge, apparently because her emergency brake was on. In other words, she was charged more because the car was parked safely. These kinds of added fees need to be clearly justified, limited, and subject to review.

 

The HOA or property manager could have contacted the towing company and requested the vehicle be released due to miscommunication, inconsistent enforcement, and the pending permit issue. Instead, the burden fell entirely on us.

 

This petition is not about allowing people to ignore parking rules. Fire lanes, accessible spaces, emergency access, and true safety hazards must still be enforced. But private towing should not be used as a harsh first response to ordinary resident parking mistakes, especially when there is no emergency, no obstruction, no safety issue, and no fair warning process.

 

I am asking lawmakers, local governments, HOAs, property management companies, and regulators to require the following reforms:

1. Private tow companies that tow vehicles 24 hours a day should be required to release vehicles on weekends and after normal business hours for non-law-enforcement tows.
2. Tow companies should not be allowed to charge storage fees during hours when their office is closed and the vehicle owner has no reasonable ability to retrieve the vehicle.
3. Tow companies should be required to accept proof of DMV registration payment from the DMV online portal when registration renewal has already been paid.
4. HOAs, apartment complexes, condominium complexes, property managers, and private security companies should be required to provide clear written parking rules to both owners and renters.
5. Renters should have equal access to parking permits, permit applications, and responses. A resident should not be penalized because a permit request was ignored or never processed.
6. Before a private residential tow, the HOA, property manager, or security company should be required to make a reasonable attempt to contact the resident, unless the vehicle is blocking emergency access, parked in a fire lane, blocking a driveway, occupying an accessible space unlawfully, or creating an immediate safety issue.
7. Private security companies should be required to enforce parking rules consistently. One resident should not be towed while another vehicle in the same lot for the same amount of time receives only a warning.
8. Towing invoices should be fully itemized, and extra charges such as vehicle pickup multipliers, special equipment charges, or added labor fees should require written explanation and supporting evidence.
9. HOAs and property managers should be required to create a simple appeal process for disputed residential tows and should be responsible for reimbursement when a tow resulted from unclear rules, inconsistent enforcement, administrative failure, or miscommunication.
10. Private towing from residential communities should be treated as a serious action with real consequences, not as a routine revenue tool.
11. Posted towing signs should control enforcement. If a sign says a vehicle may be towed after 72 hours, then a vehicle should not be towed earlier unless it is blocking emergency access, parked in a fire lane, unlawfully occupying an accessible space, creating a safety hazard, or violating another clearly posted rule.

 

Towing companies, HOAs, property managers, and private security companies have too much power when residents have little practical recourse. A single tow can cost hundreds of dollars, cause missed medical appointments, create work problems, and place heavy financial stress on families.

 

If a company can tow a vehicle at any hour, there must also be a fair way to retrieve that vehicle without being trapped by closed offices and accumulating storage fees. If a community requires permits, the permit process must be clear, accessible, responsive, and fair to renters as well as owners. If private security is enforcing rules, enforcement must be consistent and accountable.

Enough is enough. Please sign this petition to support fairer towing laws, stronger oversight of private residential towing, and better protections for residents, renters, disabled individuals, and families who should not be financially punished by confusing rules, selective enforcement, and excessive fees.