My reefer got towed!

If it’s under load they are required to… at a massive mark up I’m sure, but better then loosing a load

 

Yes they are. If they take responsibility for the equipment they take responsibility for the load, as well. They can't hold your equipment hostage and stick some fee on it that you didn't even agree to if you want access to your equipment and load to refuel your reefer. They don't have to let you on their private property to refuel your reefer, but that means they have to do it themselves. If the load goes bad under their care, THEY can be sued for the loss of the load.

I'm not 100% sure what the legal ramifications are of having trailers towed. If you are running a business and allowing the public to come in and park on your property for free, then you have to be REALLY careful about deciding, without proper signage, that you are going to have these units towed. I know this because I've asked Loves to tow trucks that were obviously parked on their property for weeks at a time, one was months, and they said "We don't want the liability if something gets damaged." They said they are required to place a notice on the trailer and STILL wait 24 hours before actually having it towed. I've NEVER seen a truck or trailer towed from a Loves unless I saw the driver running around the truck helping the tow truck driver (meaning it was a voluntary tow).

So if there was not proper signage saying you couldn't drop a trailer at that location, and then they randomly decide to tow it without making any efforts to contact the owner, they COULD be liable for the tow bill. I'm not 100% sure how this goes, and it might even vary state to state. But I know the "well its private property" defense won't hold up if you allow vehicles to park there. Then it's basically public property that's privately owned.

 

Assuming the vehicle was towed legally, the tow company is not legally required to 'maintain the vehicle', just prevent the vehicle from being 'unduly damaged'. Key word is vehicle - not cargo.

Further, under the Carmack Amendment, the carrier is specifically liable for the cargo carrier "is in fact held liable for damages to the goods it transported, without proof of negligence, unless it can prove it was not negligent".

For further reading please see Great West Casualty v Flandrich.