‘Taking money out of children’s mouths,’ drivers scream as cars are towed at night and held hostage for $500 in cash – many plan to move

Security camera footage captured a tow truck pulling a resident’s vehicle from the garage park in the middle of the night.

Several neighbors complained about the same thing – in addition to paying hundreds to have their vehicles returned.

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Three Rivers Mobile Home Park in Hastings, Minnesota, has seen a number of vehicles towed in the middle of the night, sometimes from private driveways.

Ashley Perry, a longtime resident of the park, had security camera footage of her nanny’s car being ripped from her driveway at 4 a.m.

The babysitter was parked in the garage while Perry was out of town just days before Christmas last year.

“They woke up and their vehicle came out of my driveway,” Perry told the ABC affiliate. KSTP.

“So they thought it was stolen.”

The reasoning was due to the expired tags, as the park has regulations against vehicles with expired tags and it cost hundreds of dollars to remove the car from the impound lot.

A few days later, Jessica Schmidt, another park resident, had the same thing happen to her.

“[The tags] 18 days have expired,” Schmidt said.

“So I drive the SUV and it has three car seats for all three kids we have in our house.”

Schmidt was left without a car to take his children to daycare and was unable to work.

She also had to pay $500 to have her car returned, as well as the cost of new registration stickers.

“A lot of people have had the same, if not worse, situations with their cars,” Schmidt said.

Perry told reporters that towing without warning deprived residents of the ability to care for their families.

“It’s taking money out of children’s mouths, along with their Christmas presents,” she said.

“And it’s just very disturbing to me.”

In Minnesota, it is not legal for towing companies to tow vehicles with expired registration if the tags are less than 90 days old.

I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. I just want this to stop. You should get together as a community and talk about this and maybe have a meeting and discuss, like what needs to change or what the proper rules and regulations should be for towing, but instead they completely dismissed everyone who had complaints.

Ashley Perry, park resident

However, it is legal for private property owners to authorize the towing of vehicles that are not legally parked on their property.

Perry said park supervisors should have been more proactive in warning and protecting residents.

“I’m more upset with the park management because they’re supposed to be protecting us,” she continued.

“I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. I just want this to be over. You should get together as a community and talk about this and maybe have a meeting and discuss, like what needs to change or what the appropriate solution is. and regulations were supposed to be for towing, but instead they completely dismissed everyone who had complaints.”

Schmidt and Perry told reporters that passive-aggressive actions, such as towing vehicles without warning, inspired them to move elsewhere.

What to do if your car is towed

Unfairly or not, recovering a towed vehicle can be a hassle.

If your vehicle is towed after parking in a “No Parking” zone or other legitimate reason, there are some steps you can take to get it back.

Steps to follow when your car is towed:

• Try to find out why your car was towed. Haven’t you seen a “No Parking” sign? Did you miss your car payment? Have you returned to a lot where there were unpaid citations? Finding the reason may narrow down the phone numbers to dial.
• Locate the vehicle. Most states, cities, or counties require towing companies to leave some type of contact information via a posted or mailed sign.
• Recovery dates and times depend on the company that towed the vehicle, but these times will be posted on the website or may be provided by a representative.
• Pay the fees. Be careful to be as quick as possible, as some towing yards may charge per-day storage fees.

If you believe your vehicle was improperly towed, you can dispute the action by following these steps:

• Be quick – many states have a small window of time in which it is acceptable to file a claim against a company that improperly towed your vehicle.
• Gather supporting documents: photos, emails, receipts, police reports, and witness statements, if applicable. The more evidence, the better.
• Familiarize yourself with local laws, as laws for towing companies vary by state.
• Try talking to the towing company. Sometimes it may have been a simple oversight and the matter can be resolved quickly.
• Contact your local Justice of the Peace as they may have more information or resources to help. They are often used for towing cases.
• Speak to a lawyer. Many lawyers offer free consultations and, depending on the case, it may be worth calling on a lawyer.

Source: Oregon Department of Justice, National General, Rak law firm

When KSTP reporters reached out to management for a statement, their response was as follows:

“Three Rivers management is committed to providing all of our residents with respectful and professional management, well-maintained communities, and attainable homeownership,” they wrote.

“We employ a towing company to ensure that shared roads and community spaces are free of vehicles that are not properly registered or maintained, as we make clear in our leasing contracts.

“We provide advance notice before taking action and our residents are aware of the measures we have taken to ensure their safety.”