Independence tow truck companies violate Kansas City’s laws. Will the council fix it? | Opinion
When Michelle Brown’s vehicle was towed from Kansas City’s River Market to Autobots Towing in Independence, she was told to bring cash to retrieve her property, a violation of Kansas City ordinance and state law.
In Kansas City, a tow service must accept credit or debit cards and traveler’s checks, in addition to U.S. currency. But no such rule applies for tow operators in Independence, Autobots manager Charles Cosgrove argued.
We call foul.
Under Kansas City municipal code, any “facility owned, operated, leased or used by a tow vehicle service, whether that facility is located within or beyond the city” must operate under the same law.
Across Missouri, “valid bank credit cards shall be accepted in large cities except in cases of accident or arrest,” according to Missouri Senate Bill 560, a state law Cosgrove used to excuse questionable business practices.
Independence — its population was well over 120,000 people, according to the U.S. Census — is Missouri’s fifth-largest city, so something is amiss here.
On Monday, the Independence City Council voted 6 to 1 to refer the measure to a study session for further discussion.
We encourage Independence leaders to adopt a resolution directing City Manager Zach Walker to bring the city in line with Kansas City’s ordinance and state regulations.
Allowing tow service companies in Independence to violate ordinances in other cities reflects poorly on the city.
Independence City Council member Brice Stewart sponsored the resolution. Without singling out Autobots, (he doesn’t have to — we will) Stewart said regulating towing companies in Independence is just good public policy.
On more than one occasion in recent weeks vehicle owners were told by an Autobots representative that the business accepts only cash.
“We want to make sure tow companies in Independence are operating on the up-and-up,” he said. Autobots is not complying with the law, according to several transactions described to us by different vehicle owners.
Among the items Walker, the Independence city manager, must consider:
Methods of payment accepted by a tow service for retrieval fees
Vehicle label requirements for tow trucks
Notification procedures prior to a tow from private property.
A member of our board has witnessed or documented Autobots and other towing companies in the metropolitan area routinely violating the law by demanding cash payments. If the owner of a vehicle doesn’t pay with cash, they are threatened with costly storage fees.
At some point, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey should make it a point to look into complaints of illegal towing. Under state law, Bailey has the power to rein in bad actors in the towing business.
In Brown’s case, a mix-up — Brown entered a license plate number incorrectly into a parking app — led to the tow. Before she realized the error, the Kearney resident thought the tow company illegally towed her vehicle.
At the tow lot at 10047 E. Wilson Road in Independence, Brown passionately pleaded with a representative of the tow business: She’d paid and had proof of purchase.
The rep was undeterred and summoned officers with the Independence Police Department to the location.
With tears in her eyes, Brown, 52, begged officers to do something — anything, for crying out loud — about the unscrupulous nature of the tow.
Because the tow originated in Kansas City, the dispute was a civil matter, Independence officers told Brown, who paid $320 to retrieve the black 2020 Nissan Altima she drove.
After complaining with property owners Epoch Property Management, Brown was reimbursed for the fees associated with her tow. Others haven’t been as fortunate.
In Independence, the end of ambiguous towing ordinances could be near. If new towing regulations are approved, city leaders must make it a priority to cite tow service companies for breaking rules.
What’s the point in having laws on the books if they’re not enforced?
