Travis County resident Pat at Johnson probably hears more about illegal towing than anyone in the state. Everyday, the voluntary co-founder of Texas Towing Compliance takes phone calls and emails from residents with horror stories that bear similar plotlines: their vehicle had been taken from its parking spot, they figured out where it’s at, but were told they have to pay a large sum of money or else they’ll never get it back, and the longer it takes to pay, the more money they owe. The place that has it claims they just “towed” their car legally, but the now-vehicleless driver is confused and without recourse or help, wondering how the situation is any different from auto theft.

Through his Web site at www.texastowingcompliance.com, Johnson has heard stories of residents being charged upwards of $800 to not marked in accordance with state law,” Johnson tells one victim, calling from a university campus, after listening to his situation and asking questions about signage and the towing company. “You are the victim of a crime.”

While non-consent towing is a necessary solution for keeping fire lanes cleared and parking spaces open in downtown areas, Johnson said there’s a darker, criminal element to the towing industry. And, he said, county commissioners and peace officers can play important roles in combating those who are abusing the system and victimizing residents. Commissioners courts can regulate non-consent tow and storage fees in their jurisdictions, and peace officers can investigate claims from offense reports.

“All law enforcement agencies need to do that. Take a report for $20,000 after their cars were hijacked from apartment complex or business parking lots, even though owners of those lots never asked for the car to be towed. He’s heard of tow truck companies setting traps for drivers, parking vehicles in private lots so that it appears as though cars there won’t be towed, then watching the lot until it begins filling up and towing all the takers.

Johnson lists his cell phone number on his Web site just so he can give information to victims. He estimated that he talked to 15,000 people last year, all complaining about illegal tows or excessive fees (his site generates more than 10,000 page views a month). Johnson gives callers standard advice: Take photographs of the parking lot and signage, and file an offense report with the local 311 service or law enforcement agency. Often, Johnson said, he hears reports from residents who say they were told they can’t file an offense report because it’s private property or a civil complaint. He always tells victims that an illegal tow is a criminal offense and only the courts can decide whether a crime has been committed.

“When you call 3-1-1, you tell them you want to file an offense report for an illegal tow, you tell them the space you parked in was an illegal tow. Y You don’t know whether it’s illegal until a detective investigates it,” Johnson said.

There are also several new tools to help protect residents against shady towing companies: new licensing and regulation laws that took full effect Sept. 1, as well as the support of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).

Now all tow truck drivers and companies must obtain certification through one of three accredited agencies. They must also obtain licensing through the TDLR, and drivers are now subject to criminal background checks and drug testing. Those who do not have the proper credentials are subject to criminal citations. In addition, each vehicle storage facility employee must be licensed, and each tow truck must have a permit.

Tow trucks and companies used for non-consent tows have more stringent licensing and permit requirements than tow truck companies authorized for consent tows only. Any tow truck listed on a county’s non-consent tow list must have an Incident Management Towing Permit; tow trucks used to perform non-consent tows by private parking facility owners must have a Private Property Towing Permit. If a tow truck operator performs tows without the proper permits, licensing and certification, he or she is subject to a Class C misdemeanor.

The code also gives guidelines for how much tow truck companies are allowed to charge for non-consent tows from private property, even in areas that do not regulate fees: 150 percent of the fee that the towing company would have been authorized to charge for a non-consent tow made at the request of a peace officer. In areas that do regulate fees for private tows, the tow truck company is only allowed to charge 125 percent of the fee charged at the request of a peace officer.

If a tow truck company or vehicle storage facility requests that a person pay greater than those amounts, they are subject to a criminal misdemeanor penalty and a fine of $200 to $1,000 per violation.

“If the person taking the money at the vehicle storage facility does not have a license, that person needs to be issued a citation,” Johnson said. “Deputies need to know that they can pull over a tow truck for any reason. They have the right to check the truck for a cab card and insurance and whether that driver has a driver’s license and TDLR license.” More information can be found in the Texas Towing Act, Occupations Code Title 14, Chapter 2308.

Mike Y Yuhr, the tow truck program specialist with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, said TDLR must rely on the assistance of peace officers when it comes to enforcing the new licensing regulations.

Legitimate tow truck and vehicle storage companies helped drive the legislation, Y Yuhr said, so companies that are not compliant are problematic. About 1 percent of the truck operators who applied for licenses have so far been turned down after drug tests or criminal background checks came back positive. Others still have not applied and are in violation of the law.

“It’s the industry that solicited the changes,” Y Yuhr said. “It has to do with safety. The criminal element has been in the towing business because it’s an easy business to be in. Before, anyone could just get a license, and since these laws went into effect we found that there were a large number of individuals who have now been vetted at the very least, so we know what types of crimes they have been associated with.”

So far, several counties and law enforcement agencies have taken the initiatve to contact TDLR when confronting tow-related problems in their areas, including Dallas, Harris, Tarrant, Hidalgo and Nueces counties. And, the TDLR has conducted sting operations in several areas, with the help of local law enforcement jurisdictions. One sting operation in Hidalgo County ended with the arrest of an unlicensed tow truck driver who showed up to tow a vehicle under the influence; he was arrested on a DUI charge, Y Yuhr said.

“Once you have the ability to take someone’s license away or to significantly penalize them for illegal activity, it’s going to help prevent illegal charging and towing,” Y Yuhr said. “Now we have oversight.”

But many agencies may still not know or think about the TDLR as a resource to turn to whenever a driver or company has been issued a citation.

“Our hope is that when a sheriff’s deputy writes a citation, or a constable writes a citation, they will inform us, so that we can take action and get that person licensed,” Y Yuhr said. “That will help us greatly with compliance. We have about 70 people that are out in the field, but we are not necessarily local.”

Butch Davis, the chief deputy for the Walker County Sheriff’s Office, said many tow truck companies in his area quickly complied with the new regulations.

“Most of the tow operators on my county rotation had no problem with it. They went in and took the test, they got their license, they got their trucks up to speed,” Davis said. “I sent out a letter to the companies when TDLR took over and gave them the requirements that they had to meet to be a tow truck company on county rotation.

I made them produce the documents that they had to have, the markings on their vehicles, the reflective vests. The seven tow truck companies we have on our rotation list are fully compliant.”

But previously, there had been up to 13 companies on the list.

“The ones that are not trying to play by the rules will kind of leave the scene,” Davis said. “If they don’t comply to the rules and regulations, any peace officer can give them a citation.”