Please be aware the City of Charlotte's towing/boot ordinance was changed last night after an unanimous vote by Charlotte City Council members. Know your rights so you do not become a victim of predatory towing! I'm only posting some of highlights so please read the entire ordinance to fully educate yourself.
This ordinance only pertains to private lots (i.e., apartment complexes, business or shopping center parking lots, parking lots charging a fee for a space, etc.)
~ SIGN REQUIRED: The notice must be in the form of a sign structure, not less than 24 in. X 24 in. and not larger than 6 sq ft. It must be constructed of metal, plastic or other type of material that is enduring in nature. The sign shall be prominently posted on the private property at each access or curb cut allowing vehicle access to the property and within five ft. of the street right of way line. The notice shall clearly display the following: “tow-away-zone” or “towing enforced.”
~ SET TOWING/BOOT FEES: The fee for a completed trespass tow (the complete removal of a motor vehicle from a private lot) for all motor vehicles shall be $120.00 or less. The fee for storing a towed motor vehicle shall be $15.00 a day and shall not begin for 24 hours from the time the motor vehicle enters the lot. The fee for booting a vehicle shall not exceed $50.00. A booting service must accept cash and all major credit and debit cards.
~ PRACTICES: Any tow service that has initiated a non-consensual trespass tow by securing the motor vehicle to the tow truck but has not completely removed the trespass vehicle from the private lot, shall upon the request of the vehicle owner or operator, release said vehicle without a charge.
Any tow service that is engaged in a trespass tow shall, upon request of the owner or operator of the motor vehicle, permit the owner or operator access to the trespass vehicle for the purpose of retrieving personal property from the vehicle without paying a fee.
Any towing service that engages in a trespass tow or any storage facility that receives motor vehicles that have been towed as a result of a non-consensual tow from private property shall accept cash and all major credit and debit cards.
Any tow service shall have a person on call 24 hours every day who acknowledges requests to retrieve a towed vehicle within 15 minutes of receiving an inquiry from the owner or operator. If the owner or operator wishes to retrieve the motor vehicle, then the tow service or storage facility must make the vehicle available within 45 minutes. The lot or facility to which a trespass towed vehicle is removed shall be located within the city limits of the City of Charlotte.
** I do not like to air my 'dirty laundry' on this blog but I do have to say that I am personally thankful for this ordinance change! Last October, SL Recovery tried to scam me out of $80 when they towed my vehicle from a Colonial Properties apartment complex in Charlotte all the way to Pineville.
I was horrified when they gave me the amount I would have to pay (CASH ONLY) to get my truck back. Thankfully, I went to the internet and found the city tow ordinance and realized this guy was trying to scam me by overcharging for the tow and storage, to the tune of $80.00.
Amazingly, Colonial Properties still uses SL Recovery for monitoring of all it's Charlotte apartment properties but that has to end now since SL Recovery is out of city limits...
