New towing rules a step closer 7.5.11

WISH TV

More changes have been made to a proposal to regulate towing in Indianapolis. It's a move to restrict what's been called "predatory towing" or "non-consensual towing" - when a car is taken without the owner's knowledge.
Tuesday night, a committee of the City-County Council accepted a series changes in that concept.
And it wasn't heard to find tow truck operators who don't like the proposal. 
When James Olmstead, with Olmstead Wrecker in Indianapolis, stepped forward at the hearing, he spoke as a one-man operation.
He told us he has just one wrecker. But he's been in the business for 35 years. And he told the committee - as he told us - he doesn't believe the new law is necessary.
"We do not need the City Council to step in and make a law just for everyone in the city when this practice was done by just a very few people," he said.
He contends the council is responding to public outrage generated not by need but by news stories.
But Council member Ryan Vaughn said he's seen towing company abuses. That's why Proposal 157 is before Mike McQuillen's committee.
"Now there's going to be a clear set of guidelines for towing in Indianapolis," McQuillen said. "It'll cut down on the problems of predatory towing."
The proposal would require better signs at parking lots and would set limits on fees that can be charged. It would also impose much more liability on parking lots owners.
"The owner of the parking lot will be responsible for any damages, if the vehicle isn't properly towed," said Adam Collins, with the Department of Code Enforcement.
McQuillen said the aim is to weed out those causing the problems: "To make sure that [owners] hire good towing companies who will not let that happen."
The committee approved the modified proposal, but it still needs to be considered by the full council before the changes can become law.
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