Cost(s) to tow

So yesterday I witnessed a company that shall remain nameless getting their flatbed trailer towed from the local Walmart rest area where I live. Mile marker number 191 off I95 in Viera FL. apparently this guy likes to bobtail home and leave his trailer. I had seen that trailer there for right around four days unattended and I knew something like this was bound to happen if if the driver did not come back.

So my question is how much does this cost the company and the driver? Can the company hold the driver liable for said towing costs? how much is the dispatch for the wrecker? How much is the lot storage fees? I've never seen this happen. also, I think this would be a good lesson for potential new drivers to know the severe consequences.

those who live in Brevard County Florida will know who the towing company is when I mentioned that it's off Eau Gallie. this guy had the whole Kit N Caboodle meaning a three axle wrecker.

 

A local Walmart rest area?

 

Yes. I believe they have 10 spaces that allow overnight parking.

 

Wrecker costs will vary on location but 250-500 for the hook up and anywhere from 150-300/hr or $3-6 per mile.

A w2 driver can only be charged for this if he signed something beforehand agreeing to it and some states still won't allow a deduction to take place.

A 1099 contractor can (and most likely will be) charged for it if he agreed to such fees in writing.

 

In Dunn, NC, there's a Walmart with a massive lot, can easily hold trucks there but that location doesn't allow truck parking for longer than 2 hrs or so. They have a guy that works for a tow company that keeps an eye on that lot in the event a driver goes to sleep there. I went to eat at the Waffle House nearby. Dude said he saw me but he decided to let me eat lol. I tried to nap afterwards, and he made sure to run me off, but he told me of a hideout nearby. There was a Swift driver that did exactly what you're laying out in your post. He dropped his trailer and either went home or went to see some girl, but I can't remember. They towed the trailer and the driver reported it stolen to the police and to Swift. Swift didn't send someone to get the trailer for nearly a month! It was a trailer that was barely a year old, and it was about to be up for auction out of that impound lot. They finally found out where the trailer was, sent someone to get it, paid the impound fee of something like 6 grand, for the other driver to pick it up. The driver that originally dropped the trailer was fired after getting caught in that lie. I think he even got in trouble for wrongfully reporting the trailer stolen. That Walmart has the tow company information decorated around the lot too. So the driver in your post may not have to pay those costs because he will probably be fired.

 

My company stopped allowing us to park at grocery store lots because one guy that just gotten out of orientation parked in a Kroger lot in Kentucky and a wrecker hauled it off charging the company $9,000. The driver was 1099 but he just quit when that happened.

 

Far too many people have posted on this forum, usually in response to a "where can I park my truck for hometime, they park at grocery stores and other stores. JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN PUT A TRUCK & TRAILER SOMEPLACE DOESN'T MEAN YOU ARE ALLOWED TO PARK THERE.

 

If the towing company is following Brevard County non-consent towing rates, as they should be, then it will cost a couple hundred dollars for the towaway and impound. Brevard County Towing Rates

 

That's BRAVE.....