Crow Tow Des Moines Iowa – A year after a Des Moines towing and wrecking company lost a Polk County contract amid allegations of predatory behavior, the dispute has sparked a broader debate about towing laws and drivers’ rights.
Crow’s Auto Service, Inc. (better known as Crow Tow) has been a towing and towing company for over 20 years. According to the now-defunct website, “Crow Tow is committed to providing quality and affordable service to the general public and local and state police agencies.”
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Email in a letter. “First we operated a parking garage in the city and in the district and from there we grew.
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Over the years, Crow Tow has dealt with unethical or illegal towing, carjacking for cash, car theft or vandalism, verbal abuse and intimidation of employees and refusal to provide proof why vehicles are being towed.
Drivers often vent their frustration online by posting reviews detailing their negative experiences. Oct 20 Crow Tow is rated 2.3 out of five stars based on 908 Google reviews, 1.3 out of five stars based on 70 Facebook votes, and one out of five stars based on 85 Yelp reviews. While every review is subjective and should be taken with a grain of salt, the negative consensus and recurring trends are hard to ignore.
“No one likes to have their car towed,” Crowe said. “The negative reactions online are a result of this. After receiving complaints and providing the necessary information, we will conduct an investigation. The statements are not supported by documented facts.”
Polk County’s towing contract was set to expire in 2021. On June 30, and the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously 5-0, Crow Tau lost the contract bid.
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“At that point, the question was whether we were going to give them an offer to Polk County,” Hooksmith said.
. “I made it clear at the meeting that we must accept the lowest bidder, responsible and accountable by law. Our office has received several phone calls and questions regarding some of Crow Tow’s activities.
Hockensmith said he and other regulators considered several factors, including public complaints, before making the decision. Meanwhile, Iowa resident Heather Gulbranson launched a Change.org petition calling on the city to end its contract with Crow Tow. Today the petition has more than 7,500 signatures.
“I personally don’t think it’s a coincidence that so many people repeat the same thing over and over again about their predatory behavior,” Hawksmith said. “Mr. Crows doesn’t seem to think they’re predators, but most of the people I’ve talked to haven’t had any experience with them.
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Crowe said the impact on the business was “not material”, but the executive criticized the board for canceling the deal in 2020, and dismissed Hawkensmith because of his relationship with Crowe Tao. Hockensmith said she attended Brownstones where she gave birth to her daughter. Help put two packages delivered to his garage while he was on vacation. He pulled into the street and in less than 30 seconds, he estimated, a Crow Tow truck was tied up with the driver’s door open and the engine running.
Crowe’s and Hawkensmith’s accounts differ, but Hawkesmith was not alone on the panel when the vote was taken.
“We have the right under Iowa law to determine if they are responsible participants,” Hockensmith said. “We found out that there are none. If I had the information before making the decision, I would make the same decision again.”
Although Crow Tau lost its contract with Polk County, the company has a contract with the city of Des Moines. The drag contest was first announced in 2014. The city’s current contract with Crow Tow, which began in 2020, ends in 2023. February 28. After that, the city and Raven will have the option to extend the contract to another person. years or republish the contract.
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“We have an excellent working relationship and we expect that to continue in the future,” Crowe said of the agreement with the city.
When asked about citizen complaints about Crow Tow, Capt. Daniel Bloom of the Des Moines Police Department said:
Emailed in the letter, “Each complaint is investigated and evaluated in accordance with the terms of the contract. None of the complaints received in 2021 were related to the 4,247 arrests of Crow Towing last year by the Des Moines Police Department. The complaints received are the result of Crow Towing’s non-contractual business.”
“The possibility of extending the contract with Crow Towing or putting the contract out for tender has not yet been discussed,” Blum added.
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Towing companies provide important services such as road cleaning after a car accident or car repair in the event of a breakdown. They are also profitable services that can be abused when profit is incentivized.
The US industry is worth $11.3 billion, and business is expected to grow, according to industry research firm IBISWorld. As safety features in new vehicles help reduce accidents, the industry is becoming more dependent on uncoordinated towing.
A 2021 towing survey conducted by the Property Insurance Association of America found that one of the biggest issues consumers and insurers face with towing companies is “creative billing practices,” as well as methods used to charge astronomical amounts for towing bills and daily storage fees. This makes it “difficult to recover the vehicle or even access personal items or commercial cargo.”
In May 2021, the Education Foundation of the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) published a report entitled “Getting Down From The Beast”. In an extensive study of state laws related to towing and enforcement, PIRG found in the US, “In most states, there is no protection if a consumer is entitled to a product or compensation if their vehicle breaks down.” Additionally, “Too many states have inadequate protections or the laws on the books are unclear or replaced and not accessible to the average consumer”.
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The American PIRG has compiled a list of 14 fair driving protections for drivers. According to their “common sense” recommendations, Iowa has the fewest protections against abusive towing practices, along with Alabama, Alaska, Mississippi, New Hampshire, South Dakota, and Vermont.
Iowa law does not require towing companies to take pictures of vehicles before towing them, accept credit card payments, schedule vehicle pickup times, or tow an entire vehicle for free or a small “start-up fee.” Pay drivers or allow access to personal belongings (including wallets, keys and emergency items such as medication) in vehicles damaged during the towing process.
Theresa Murray, Director of the US Consumer Protection Bureau PIRG, co-authored the second part of the report, “Rising from the Beast”, which was published on April 27.
“We were shocked at how weak these protections are in most states,” Murray said. “Iowa’s protection is the worst in the entire nation. We found no maximum towing rates, maximum storage rates, or even anything that towing companies have to list their rates on.
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The only protection in Iowa is that towing companies are required to notify owners or liens that their vehicles are being towed and reimburse drivers if the towing is illegal.
The American PIRG report also found no laws in Iowa requiring clear parking signs in private lots or laws prohibiting tow companies from patrolling (or “hovering”) private parking lots that drivers believe are illegally parked.
“It’s horror story after horror story that we’ve seen in many states where there are tow trucks that call the owners and patrol the parking lot at any time, day or night, and then let anyone tow.” If they think the tire is underinflated or the parking lot is skewed, they want it,” Murray said. “When you have these contracts, you encourage the towing companies to tow. Obviously it makes money. It’s predatory when you encourage drag for no good reason.
I parked my car for 5 minutes and a good crow parked my car on the bed. The driver didn’t answer my questions, repeatedly said he could pay the shipping fee, then shot me without letting me pay. I had my phone in the car with other valuables. — Espy (@espy2fly) May 2021 October 9
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