I don’t need to tell you that the tow industry is unique.  A lot of the work performed is done away from the tow lot and at odd hours, often in the middle of the night.  For this reason, tow truck drivers taking their trucks home at night is common place for convenience reasons.  If a wreck occurs in the middle of the night, often times the driver is better able to respond from his house than from the lot. But, believe it or not, the practice of taking the truck home at night does create some legal issues.

Some of my favorite cases are tow companies that are either selling their business or purchasing another business.  The reason I enjoy this kind of work is that (usually), no one is mad or sad.  No one has been stiffed on a tow bill.  No one has been hurt or killed.  Instead, the parties are entering into a transaction which will hopefully make them money, which makes them happy.

Believe it or not, some of the most contentious cases I’ve had for tow companies have been legal issues surrounding their municipal zoning. Zoning and ordinance are designed to control what kinds of activities can occur within a particular “zone.” Some uses, such as residential or light retail activities, are permitted in almost any zone. However, other uses, such as salvage yards or waste disposal facilities, will only be allowed in isolated areas that are heavily regulated.

Perhaps the 4th of July has me feeling a little nostalgic…and a lot thankful.  In 2004, I was one month into my first ever lawyer job.  The firm I worked at represented nothing but huge insurance companies.  There was no client contact.  As such, I didn’t feel like I was helping anyone, which was the reason I told myself I wanted to be lawyer.

The United States Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) regarding the ELD Mandate.  Though there are additional efforts underway to further challenge the Mandate, according to several news sources, these efforts are likely to fail.  Thus, tow truck companies would be wise to understand the ELD Mandate and consider compliance options.

Down time claims are hard for a number of reasons. The first reason is that the tow company might be a financial pickle because one of its truck is out of service. After all, a tow truck is a tow company’s principal revenue source. The second reason down time claims are hard is because insurance companies often fight paying a down time claim tooth and nail. This means that the road to recovery is a long one at a time when tow companies could really use the money.

Nowadays, towing companies send a lot of e-mails and faxes. I have noticed that many of them contain automatically-inserted confidentiality disclaimers at the bottom of the communication that read something like this: The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain proprietary, business-confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient of this message you are hereby notified that any use, review, retransmission, dissemination, distribution, reproduction or any action taken in reliance upon this message is prohibited.