Condo Media - October 2019 - 30

TO TOW or Not to Tow?

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Develop a written towing policy.
"You want the rule to be as specific
as possible," McNabb says, with
language stating clearly the
board's authority to tow and
"what constitutes a towable
action." Clarity is essential in
condominium associations,
William Johnson, president and
CEO of Hampshire Towing, in
South Hadley, Mass., agrees.
In addition to having many
condominium association clients,
Johnson is president of the
Massachusetts Statewide Towing
Association, Inc. and chair of the
legislative committee of the national
trade organization (the Towing and
Recovery Association of America),
which gives him a broad perspective
on towing issues. Condominium
communities, he's found, create
unique towing challenges. Unlike
the owner of an illegally parked
car that is being towed from a city
street, he notes, an owner whose car
is being towed from a condominium
community is likely to insist, "You
can't tow me; I own this property!"
According to Johnson, "You
don't want there to be any question
about the board's authority to order
the tow."
Communicate the association's
towing policy to owners. A board
that is adopting a new policy should
announce it to owners long before
enforcement begins, McNabb
emphasizes. "This is a significant
rule. You want to blanket the
community with information so
no one can complain they were
unaware of it." Once a towing rule
is in effect, boards should remind
owners of it periodically-a good
idea with all rules, but particularly
important with towing, Johnson
says. "You wouldn't believe the
number of vehicles we tow from
condominium communities
because owners went on vacation
and forgot about the parking lot
being swept or forgot it snows
CONDOMEDIA October 2019

"You wouldn't believe the
number of vehicles we tow from
condominium communities
because owners went on
vacation and forgot about the
parking lot being swept or forgot
it snows in November and didn't
make arrangements to have
their car moved to make way
for the snowplow."
in November and didn't make
arrangements to have their
car moved to make way for
the snowplow."

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Hire a reputable towing company
and negotiate a written agreement
with it. Referrals from other condo
associations are always helpful,
but a contract with a municipality
is also a good recommendation
for a tow company, Johnson says,
indicating, at a minimum, that the
company knows and will follow the
statutory towing requirements and
has the facilities required to handle
private property impounds.
"If the company is keeping
a police department
happy," he notes, "it
will probably be able to
meet the association's
needs as well." As part of
their due process review,
boards should also verify that
the company has the appropriate
insurance and is licensed to do
"non-consensual towing," Johnson
adds. In Massachusetts, the
required license is a certificate
issued by the Department of Public
Utilities (DPU).
Johnson and McNabb also
suggest trying to find a company
located close to the community,

for three reasons: A local company
will probably be able to respond
more quickly to a towing request;
tow charges (based on mileage) will
be lower; and owners won't have to
travel as far to retrieve their cars.
"Towing is inconvenient
enough," McNabb notes. "You don't
want owners to have to go across
the state to get their cars."
A FEW MORE SUGGESTIONS
No matter how necessary, justifiable
or well-planned, towing is inherently
confrontational and there isn't much
boards can do about that. But there
are some things they can do to reduce
confrontation risks. Industry executives
offer these suggestions:
REDUCE THE POSSIBILITY THAT
CARS MAY BE TOWED IN ERROR.
The manager or board member
ordering the tow should provide
detailed information to the tow
company about the identity and
location of the car to be towed. Equally
important, Johnson suggests, make
sure association parking permits are
displayed where they can be seen. Hung
on the rearview mirror is not the best
idea, he says, because permits displayed
that way often fall on the floor where
they are hidden from view. He suggests
attaching permit stickers to the license
plate and using reflective material
that is visible at night.
DON'T TOW THE CARS
OF HANDICAPPED
OWNERS.
There are many reasons for
this advice, among them:
You don't know why the
handicapped individual has
parked illegally. The most likely
explanation, Brooks suggests-
he or she needed to be closer to
an entrance. "You don't want to
discover after the tow that the owner
parked illegally because someone
else was in his spot at the time,"
Brooks notes.
Condo Media - October 2019

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