" I Lost my 1950 Ford F-2 Saturday $1000.00 BILL

Spring has finally arrived here in Kitchener Ontario Canada. And like every other year the weekend before the start of May i go to my storage place and get my two trucks out of storage.

Anyway last Saturday, my son and wife head over to my friends Apartment underground here in Kitchener to get my 54 Studebaker and my 1950 F-2 Ford out of storage.

First we get old Baker (54 Studebaker)which fires right up after we put the batttery back in and remove the jack stands. Then its time to go to the Lower Level to check on old ""Bowser"" my 1950 F-2.

We head down to the spot where I left it October 26 /09 and the place I have been using for the last few years. Remember I store these two Antique trucks at my friends Appartment building lower Climate controlled garage.

Anyway to my Surprise my truck is not in its usual spot... I call my friend who does not answer his cell phone. I contact the Superintendent and find out something that ruined my day. I find out that my friend moved out of the Appartment one month ago.

Now let me tell you that I do not see this guy that often but he has been a friend for the last 5 years and is my Gas repair guy for my furnace and Pool heater.

Anyway I find out from the Superintendent that the truck had been towed. The fat Fuckin bitch will not tell me when it was towed. So this leads me to a trail to call the Towing company and I do find out that the truck is safe and sound at their Impound lot. He tells me he cannot answer any questions and to call back Monday morning.

All weekend I am trying to get in touch with my friend who I had last seen in February. No luck at all.

Monday comes and I call to find out that my 1950 Ford F-2 was towed from the Building November 19/09 and that the Towing Charge and Lot fees are $8,175.00 up until April 26/10.

WOW

It is now Wednesday and I find out last night from another friend that my friend used the money to purchase drugs and never paid the Superintendent for the parking spot. This truck was to be traded to a fellow this spring who was going to do a new Kitchen for my wife and now I am shit out of LUCK.

I cannot find the guy. Hard to believe that a good friend would FUCK you over for $180. and they lie to me each week telling me my truck was fine in the garage when he knew all along that the truck was towed November 19/09

Sorry For the RANT


ps. I have been storing my trucks in this garage for the last three years. The Asshole who I thought was a friend was always looking after my trucks for the last three years. He paid for the spot for my Studebaker but for some reason which I cannot understand he did not pay for the Ford's spot this year. He has been an honest friend for 5 years without any problems. Its just last night that I find out he has Drug issues. The Towing company is not allowed to search for the owner. Like I said I have had no problems in the last three years with storing my trucks there. He has always looked after them for me. What I cannot believe was when I talked with him and had coffee with him in February he never said a word about problems. I just cannot believe this has happened and its just like a BAD FUCKIN DREAM

Update to ALL

The truck was insured for Fire and Theft during the storage months, November to April. The truck is in my name and I have the ownership for the truck. The truck has up to date plate till September 2010. The towing company has never contacted me at all during this span of time. Like I said I had contact with my ""so called friend"" up until the end of February and just found out Saturday that he had not paid the fee for the storage. funny thing is he paid for the Storage of my Studebaker. The towing company here in Ontario cannot contact the police to find out who the owner of the truck is as per what the Towing company has told me.

 

dont even know how you can still say friend...... that blows.

 

Man that stinks, maybe you should talk to a lawyer because your friend had no right just letting it go and the charges etc seem very high, I hope they kept it in dry storage at least.

 

Report it as stolen, you have the title, right?

 

I would think the towing company would have called you 5 months ago when the truck was towed.

 

You keep using the term "friend". If you have any more "friends" like him the next thing you know your house will be gone. Repeat after me, "he is not my friend and PROBABLY NEVER REALLY WAS".

Frank

 

Man... That's gotta suck!! Report it stolen!!

 

I hate to say this, but if you left it at a so called friends apartment garage (not a secure storage lot) and did not at least check on it monthly that you have to take some of the responsibility for this. Sounds like you are lucky you did not lose the Stude also.

 

I'm with talking to a lawyer. The towing company should have made an effort to contact the registered owner. Most places in the US have rules regarding how much they can charge for storage and the efforts they need to make to contact the owner.

The bottom line is (though due to your "friend") the truck was parked illegally. As with any illegally parked vehicle, they can tow it, but they have to notify the registered owner.

 

Could you wait until the towing co tries to sell or auction it off? It might be cheaper to buy it back (if you REALLY want it back that bad) than to pay the towing fine. Or barter them down? Or just by another truck cheaper?

Otherwise, a ball peen to the knee caps might work on your "friend." Gary

 

This whole situation REEKS of legal issues and you have LOTS of ground to stand on. Talk to an attorney in your area and take action. Don't just sit back and let them do this to you.

 

Sounds like you didn't keep too close an eye on it anyway. I wouldn't store anything I own in a random apartment complex. I say random because YOU had no agreement directly with the owner of the garage. It was an irresponsible move on your part too. What could have happened just did, that's all. Your lucky he didn't sell parts off it for months. And you'll be lucky to get it back without spending more than what it's worth on storage and lawyer fees. On the other hand, the OWNER of the vehicle must be notified. You at least do still own it.

 

Sounds like some steep lot fees and towing charge. I have heard of places towing vehicles then putting some ridiculous price tag on it to get it released. Hence the towing company ends up with a lot of cars for free. Arent these towing companies regulated as to what they can charge you?

 

X2 Contact a lawyer.

 

1. Call a lawyer
2. Report it stolen
3. Put out a contract on your 'friend'... only joking...

r

 

Wow. I have to agree with the crowd on this one. Lawyer.

 

Interesting. I use to run a tow service and we were required by law to send an impound notice by certified mail to the titled owner within 30 days. Was it titled in your name at your current mailing address? That would often be the case where I couldn't find the titled owner. Of course the law may be different where you live but it would be worth looking into the regulations that the tow company has to deal with in your area.

 

Man,that sucks big time..sorry to hear this shit goes on..
Guess that's the reason they don't let us have guns in Canada..

Damn lawyers in Ontario will eat up as many $$ as they can..

Worse case senerio is you have to buy the truck back at a public auction..
Towing company will only keep it so long..

Put the word out and let everyone know in kitchener who this scum bag is..

Good Luck.

Rick

 

Yeah! Where I'm from, we make offers that can't be refused! Tell'em Guido sent ya!

 

Not sure if reporting it stolen would do it any good. It's probably would not be considered stolen, it was towed as "abandoned" as the rent wasn't paid for the space it was in.

 

I'm uneasy at times with things I have stored on MY property, lol. I've stored cars, trucks, campers for friends before, when they wanted the item back, it was here. Plus they could drive by and see it at any time and work on them. Most of my friendships go back 30 years or more.

I'd get a lawyer and look at legal action against the towing/storage company. Looks like you have some recourse.

Bob

 

You still own this truck and you know who has it. Hire a good local lawyer. Using somebody that is in with the local legal crowd will be an advantage. It's going to cost you more money than it should.

 

dont know how they do things in canada, but here in the us:

you'd have big problems if you report it stolen, as you know it wasn't. that would be the stupidest thing you could do.

in cal, there are limits to how long and how much you can charge for storage, and time limits for filing a lein sale.

also the dmv sends a letter to the reged owner.


sounds to me like the truck isnt currently reg;d in your name, or you likley would have got notification.




your best bet is to check on your laws, lawyer or otherwise, then try and work somethig out with the tow yard.

you basically have no action against the tow yard so far, id try the nice guy approach first, unless you find that they violated any laws.

and worth saying twice, dont consider reporting it stolen at this point unless you want additional expense and troubles


good luck

skull

 

This really sucks! Maybe if you explain to towing co. owner, he might give you a break? Good luck and I hope you get it back.

 

Ummm, yeah. Being unfamiliar with laws in Canada, I have to ask, under whose authority can a company tow someone elses property with NO obligation to contact said owner?
Not to mention 8.2K in fees for a 5 month period? Something stinks.......

 

Have gun, will travel

 

Looking into local impound limits might show the tow co. is overcharging. Short of that, it's a towed, abandoned vehicle.
Buy it back at the tow co. auction and chalk it up to a lesson. really sucks though.

 

I'm guessing OP does not have the title in his name or does not have plates on it...

That situation sucks, though he must have been paying for the spot up to a certain time otherwise the landlord would have given him a notice.

 

Ok..what IF;

It appears stolen, (abandon to them)..
Must be insured ,if it's licensed
Go to insurance company,report it missing..
call police..report stolen..

But tell them it's been "found", at impound yard..

Because it's still registered to YOU,it's still yours..but has a lein on it now (impound yard fees)

It SHOULD put the pressure on the towing company/impound yard to release it..as they made no effort to contact YOU,the registered owner..

At the very least, they should negotiate a deal to get rid of it..and back to the rightful owner.

This is why I never store stuff in other locations.
Good Luck
Rick

 

I think there is a lot you can do before consulting a lawyer and adding additional costs to the problem.

As stated above, check with other towing/impound companies and find out what the going charges are and what the regulations they have to follow. Check with your local government body to verify what the laws are. Document everything. If you find out that the towing company that towed the truck is overcharging and not following proper procedures confront them with the facts you have compiled, written down. Mention contacting the government regulatory body that oversees his operation and getting a lawyer to help settle this problem. It might help to at least negotiate the cost down to something more reasonable. If it doesn't it's time to get the lawyer involved.

As for trusting a friend, that's not your fault. We all have to trust some one, you can't go through life being suspicious of everyone we know and checking every little interaction we have with each other. It just happens once in a while. I got screwed by my brother over an inheritance, even after I tried helping him. Everything seemed to be going OK until the end then he just turned on me and my sister and screwed us out of over $100K. Money and drug do funny things to people we think we really know. No drugs involved in my situation, just greed.