Who Tows My Car After an Accident in Fresno?
Fresno Police or the CHP will call for a tow truck from an approved tow truck operator if you ask them to. Your car insurance company may call for a tow truck for you. You may also contact your own tow truck business.
Being stuck in a disabled car along Highway 99 or on Kings Canyon Road after a collision can be a frustrating experience. Fresno authorities will require that your vehicle be moved to free up traffic, but who should call the tow truck?
There are procedures that every Fresno driver should know if they’ve just been in an accident and need a tow truck.
Towing After a Fresno Car Accident
After an accident, see to your safety and the wellbeing of others first. Once help arrives, you may have to be concerned with removing a disabled vehicle from out of the road or off the side of the road.
You may feel vulnerable to being overcharged and hassled about getting your car back, but the City of Fresno does regulate what tow truck companies can charge and how they operate.
These are the usual choices for towing after a Fresno Car Accident worked by the Fresno Police Department:
- Fresno Police will call a tow truck. They will contact a company the city utilizes unless you instruct them otherwise. You should be well aware of where your vehicle is being taken and who to contact to see about getting your vehicle back. Your responding officer should have a business card for the tow truck company.
- Call a tow truck company of your choice. You can choose to call your own preferred towing company. You’d also need to select the body shop you want your car towed to.
- Your Insurance Company Contacts a Towing Company. Your car insurance company may work with a particular tow truck operator and body shop in Fresno. If you can reach an insurance representative, this may be the best way to get your car towed.
Towing for Fresno Accidents Responded to by the California Highway Patrol
You may be in an accident along one of Fresno’s major highways or somewhere in rural Fresno County and have to depend on The California Highway Patrol for help. The CHP works with certain approved Fresno County tow truck companies to remove disabled vehicles and vehicles that have been in a collision. These qualifying tow truck operators respond to accidents in Fresno and across Fresno County.
Several tow truck companies are on an approved list and the CHP makes calls for service based on a rotation. On a yearly basis, the Fresno CHP area commander establishes guidelines for reasonable rates that will be charged. This is a look at the 2022 – 2023 TOW SERVICE AGREEMENT that the California Highway Patrol uses.
The objective is to ensure the public receives ethical and fair business practices on the part of private towing companies utilized by the CHP. This includes allowing vehicle owners to retrieve their cars in a convenient and fair manner.
Vehicle owners can decline a tow service called for by an officer, even after a tow truck has arrived. But the vehicle owner will still be responsible for arranging for the vehicle to be towed from the accident scene promptly. Car accident victims could call for their own tow truck service. A car insurance company for the accident victim could also make that call.
The CHP requires that tow truck companies and employees they work with refrain from acts of misconduct including:
- Rude or discourteous behavior.
- Lack of service, selective service, or refusal to provide service that the operator is capable of performing.
- Any act of sexual harassment or sexual impropriety.
- Unsafe driving practices.
- Exhibiting any objective symptoms of alcohol or drug use.
- The operator/tow truck driver shall submit to a preliminary alcohol screening test upon demand of the CHP if an odor of an alcoholic beverage is detected upon the person.
- Any acts of discrimination based on a protected group.
Tow truck companies can be disciplined and even removed from the Highway Patrol’s trusted list if they break these rules or it’s found they charge excessive fees.
Contact a Fresno Car Accident Lawyer After a Serious Accident
If you or a loved one suffered a serious injury after a careless driver’s mistake, please speak with a skilled Fresno Car Accident Lawyer. Martin Gasparian, the founder of Maison Law, has an extensive history of helping injured victims and their families recover the compensation they need to rebuild their lives after a major collision.
Mr. Gasparian offers a free consultation to all Fresno and Fresno County accident victims. It’s a no-risk way for victims to find out how much their injury is worth and how to avoid accepting less from a car insurance company. Medical bills, towing fees, and car repairs should all be fully covered by an at-fault driver’s car insurance provider.
