Abuses of Manila tow firms deplored

Motorists in Manila denounced the "Gestapo-like" towing of parked vehicles on city streets.

One of the complaining motorists, popular restaurateur Peter Lee, called the attention of Mayor Lito Atienza to the problem, saying these towing firms should be admonished.

Lee said he and a lot of his friends and acquaintances had brushes with these towing firm men who insist on towing vehicles that are unattended.

Lee pointed out that Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) traffic ordinances provide that only unattended and improperly parked vehicles can be towed by towing firms accredited by the MMDA and the local government.

Lee added that before a vehicle is towed, a tower should first make an effort to locate the driver if he or she is in the immediate vicinity.

The restaurateur narrated one incident where a tow truck of towing firm Hagar Transport towed his parked L-300 van that was temporarily parked in front of his restaurant as the driver dropped off some supplies for his restaurant.

Lee said the towing firm could have easily located him inside and spared him the stiff P1,500 fee and the accompanying inconvenience.

A businesswoman friend of his, Lee said, narrated to him an experience where her car was towed while her son was inside.

Lee said the woman had only left her car for a while to buy something from a nearby store when she came back to find her car and son gone. At first, Lee said his friend thought her son had been kidnapped. "Towing of parked cars should be reasonable. I hope the mayor will admonish these towing firms," Lee said. – Rainier Allan Ronda