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Hi All ... It's finally done. My year long project of research and applying to have a Canadian tow operator added to the Wall of the Fallen is finally complete. This last Saturday, I had the honor and privileged to meet the adult children of, Edgar Arthur Pilon, a Canadian tow operator who died in December 1954. Christine and I met Mr. Pilon's family at the Wall of the Fallen memorial where the family drove 1,700 miles from Lancaster, Ontario, Canada to be in Chattanooga to witness their father's name being added to the Wall. And, with them, son Richard Pilon, brought with him (to show me) the watch that their father was wearing at the time he was killed. The watch was stopped at 6:10. Also, he brought his father's Zippo lighter which his father was carrying when he was struck ... the Zippo was heavily dented. These were silent reminders of a father who was killed in the line of duty. Christine and I spent the day hosting them to the Wall of the Fallen memorial, into the museum, and ultimately we went to lunch. If you haven't heard of this incident or this event, here's a link to an article written in Canada's Glengarry News. Link: https://www.pressreader.com/canada/the-glengarry-news/20190925/281479278137229 And, from my archives Mr. Pilon is the oldest, recorded Canadian tow operator killed in the line-of-duty. I now list 36x Canadian tow operators who were killed in tow related accidents and incidents. R.

If anyone has any connections with manufactures, I would like to send them a petition to make transmissions have an easier disconnect. If a rear differential can be engaged or disengaged with the flip of a switch, a transmission should be able to have the same feature. There have been several instances where I have personally been placed in jeopardy by having to pull a driveshaft in a dangerous area because the vehicle couldn't be moved without damaging the trans. Towers have to face too much danger as it is. These manufactures should not jeopardize our lives by having to choose between the liability of a transmission or our life. Your ideas and responses are encouraged. I know this is a long-shot battle, but it needs to start somehow. If everyone could reply with their name, company name, and date, it will be much appreciated.

Savannah is raising funds for her 2020 Mission Trip. At the end of 2018 we began raising funds for her 2019 Mission Trip to Poland and members donated more than $1000.00. While we realize this is not Towing related event it is something the Towing Community has supported in the past and I hope to continue with different efforts once Savannah Graduates High School. What do TowForce Members get for a donation, First and Foremost you are supporting a worthy cause. New Supporters are providing support for a worthy cause of ministry while showing support for our online community with a Patron or Sponsor Bar. During the last two months of 2019 the funds from All New Patron Members as well as Bronze Sponsors will go towards funding this Mission Trip. Check out the supporter levels here https://www.towforce.net/subscriptions/ For those who may not know Savannah has been conducting the drawing of member names for prizes here most of her life. If she is busy and I am busy we have to wait. Actually, I think it's more she is busy... In fact I wanted to add a video to this topic and she is with School Friends this weekend. Anyway, to support Savannah on her Summer 2020 Mission Trip. All First Time Patron Level member contributions will go towards her goal of $2900.00. This year a Goal of $1500 has been set from TowForce Supporters. If you are currently a supporter and would like to support this mission trip. Contact me and I will advise how you can provide such needed support. Should we gather more funds over what is needed, we will assist another student on their mission. Thank you Check out the levels here https://www.towforce.net/subscriptions/ In order to reach this goal TOWFORCE Bronze level has been added this year. "The camp will be an “international mix” of fun and learning for all thru sport, art, English and culture. The summer theme will be “THERE IS MORE…” and Bible teaching will focus on all that God adds to our lives. The Southeast team will have opportunities to add to camp through - building relationships with campers and our young camp counselors/volunteers, possibly sharing testimonies/devotions/short sermons with campers or camp staff, and helping lead sports, big group games, English lessons, art/craft clubs." If you have any question or are currently a Tow411 supporter please reply either in this topic or by private message. You are also welcome to send me a Text Message anytime. 502 376 3071 Thank you!

We find them stopped in the travel lane constantly, they become a little agitated when told to either drive it to safety or if it is a rear flat we will tow it on the flat. If it is a dollie then it has to go to the lot. Every now and then they will have driven it to the point it was shredded. Passing at least one exit and a few pull offs, they stop in the traveled portion of the roadway. If you know what it is going to take to change this speak up. Same with companies allowing their drivers to change tires along these same roadways. Roadways similar to where other drivers have lost their lives. Either intentional or unintentional I have to wonder why their drivers are placed in harms way. Tow First was a Good Program, Motor Clubs were beginning to recognize the dangers. I would hope such a Legacy has not been totally forgotten with Dave passing.

Although very difficult to do, I remain calm and even with my voice, try to give off a disarming body posture (without exposing myself more than needed) and plan for a quick exit or duck and cover should the situation escalate beyond control. Most people, even those acting in rage, just want to be heard. If you respond like you are listening instead of trying to match their force with your own agitation and aggressive body language you will usually diffuse the confrontation. I am not perfect and have not always been able to pull this off, but as I get older and it hurts too much to go fist to fist I have learned patience and peace go a long way. Deep and even breaths always calm me. Even when the other person is screaming and motioning violently, I try to focus on listening to understand (while looking for escape/cover) not just forming my verbal response before they have even finished. If you focus on what they are saying verbally, as well as their body language, you can remain calm and feel a bit more in control. If you let your mind wander into threatened/panic territory you will not be able to control your body language or other responses and will inflame the situation. I have had to remove myself from a few tense scenes, it is not cowardice to retreat. I conceal carry yet I have never once pulled a weapon on anybody and hope that I never have to. Pulling a weapon, whether a gun, bat, tire iron or other improvised piece will only serve to make the situation even worse. Unless you are 100% ready to kill the threat because you have no other option to escape never pull a weapon. The machismo of saying you will draw on them or hit them first so they can't hit you is not the professional solution. I remember as a young man accompanying my dad on tows and having a local competitor draw a gun on him to take a truck wreck from us. Back then scanner chasing was common, so was dialing your competitor from a pay phone and leaving it off the hook to keep their line tied up during snow storms and other peak times. Different world. Anyhow, this guy was threatening my dad with me right beside him, dad was carrying a .38 with a snub nose barrel and never once even reached for it. He simply smiled, walked backwards while holding my hand and climbed into his wrecker. I later asked him about that night and he explained that the profit from that one job was not work killing a man over, nor did he want to go to jail for it (even though it would have been self defense). He then repeated that lesson for me when we were running our Texaco station during the gas shortage and rationing period. Again, I was at work with dad and an irate commuter came in and used a gun to force dad to fill his tank when it wasn't his day for fuel. Again dad remained calm and simply pumped the gas with a smile, all while carrying his trusty .38 special. He never once had to use it but always had it, proving that you do not have to always meet force and anger with the same.

I've done a ton of rear tows lately, mostly on big vans owned by the State. Here's a few o managed to get pictures of

We did this recovery a couple of months ago. Driver suffered a medical issue and drove almost completely through the house. Luckily, nobody was injured in the house.

Garry Leach took time while in Chattanooga Tennessee to locate the burial plot of the FATHER OF TOWING! He visited the grave site with Jamie Davis & Alex Millar to pay their respects. Garry wrote on his FB page: Thank you MR. Ernest Holmes for everything you did in the development of what has become the most vital emergency road service vehicle to meet the needs of the Towing & Recovery industry. RIP He shared images from their visit:

This was my Rotator 25 years ago.

Most of these were 345's. Take some interior and inside box shots too.

They need to make All Wheel Drive cars front wheel only when no power is turned on. Volvo is like this and i believe the Honda's are also but not sure.

Brian, I have also thought about trying to make this a legislative issue during our summit in DC. Maybe that will be a way to grab our congress persons ear. Towers should not have to choose between the liability of a transmission or the liability of loosing our life!

OK, who do we have that is good at wording such a petition. Possibly Brian Riker, Jeffrey Godwin, Scott Burrows, Rudy Smith, Mike Pool, Michael McGovern, etc. Cause I know I am missing others, these are just member that have been around the message board longer. I know I can write it, if only I had the collective knowledge of the membership. Let's give it a try and we'll send it in the right direction. I got that part figured out! Problem is we will need more than 4000 verified tow companies participating. @brian991219 @FTI Groups @Scott Burrows @Rudy Smith @MNPOOL @Michael McGovern

2020 Kenworth T270 Paccar 300 hp Allison Auto Air Brake/ Air Ride Aluminum Wheels 10,000 lb Front Axle / 20,000 lb Rear Axle 26,000 lb GVWR Century 21.5' Series LCG 12,0000 lb Planetary Winch Dual Winch Removable Rails 15 Key Slots 4,000 lb Wheel Lift with Drop in L Arms SP 9000 Side Puller w/ 9,000 lb Planetary Winch Wireless Remote for Both Winches Front and Rear Strobe Lights Winch, SidePuller and Lower LED Work Lights 2 60" Tool Boxes Quarter Fenders Center caps and Lug Nut Covers V Chain Bridle 2 J Hooks and Chains 8 Point Tie Down Kit Wireless Tow Lights Located in San Antonio, Texas (chassis sold by Franchised Dealer)

We started out with AM 2-way radios in the 60's for dispatching; they were barely marginal; on a clear night we could talk to other countries but not across town. We went to FM radios and that was much better in the 80's and 90's. We also used voice pagers during this time and they worked fairly well. I remember when the phone company came out with call forwarding. Mom and Dad were no longer chained to the house after the shop closed at night and weekends. (the phone rang in both places so it was always answered.) When the digital message pagers came out we thought we had the tiger by the tail but were still writing down all the calls on 2 parts paper books. Then along came cell phones and text messaging. They worked better and in more areas than the 2 way radios ever did; they were much more private (our competition was more interested in what we were doing than what they were doing- they scanned our 2 way frequency like russian spies). The real game changer has been Towbook and i-pads. We now handle triple the volume of calls with ease. We issue every driver a company i-pad and also allow them to use their cell phones with Towbook. Our thought behind that is there is no excuse for not responding, replying taking photos etc, with our company owned equipment but they are allowed to use the cell phones as a convenience. We track every truck with Webfleet so the dispatchers can route the appropriate equipment from the closest available cutting down on wait time for the customers andless miles on our fleet. We have seen the need for 2-way radios maybe 5-6 times in the past 3 years but thats not enough for the$10k outlay to get back in the radios.

Topic Originally Created on Tow411 in December of 2009: I bent the teeth over on my B&B and Bill said he had never seen anybody do that before. He offered to send me new ones but I decided to build my own with removable spikes. This is what I ended up with. Jerrys Road Service said: Now thats bad ass. Aarons Towing said: Now that should get the job done! Gale25yrs said: I have bent teeth in the past but it was on a gravel road and the two that bent had hit a very large rock in the road bed leaving the others unsupported. rotator60 said: Yep..that should get a grip.. JRhd34 said: Are the spikes for the ICE? Towaholic said: Ice & Concrete.

So, they said buy a tow truck, they said, it'll be profitable they said..... Well, we did, about 90 days ago we bought a tow truck and put it to work trying to carve out just club tows, and go for volume. We could not have hired drivers and survive with out the clubs to lean on, and thats just a fact. Ive read all the horror stories about Agero. Fact is, if you bill honestly and do your job the way you're supposed to they are hands down the leader for work. If we had 2 trucks, we could run Agero jobs all day. Are we under paid, yes, but under payed running 21 hours a day is better then getting top dollar and running 3 hours a day. They get over on us from time to time, but that's experience. I spend A LOT of time on hold, hand holding to be sure we get what we have coming thru the proper channels. They are very difficult to be in contact with, and its a full time job just dealing with them. They want you to communicate, but they are too cheap to hire enough people to effectively manage a territory. We use Swoop to dispatch. Horrible company to work with, they have even less staffing, are impossible to get a hold of, their software has glitches that cost me money. If I could use any other software i would. They talk in circles, follow thru with nothing, and I pay them so I can get digital dispatch from NSD Quest and Swoop themselves. NSD took 2 months to get on with. and it took a post on here to get it done. Patrick, good guy. I dont' even mess with my regional as she is not at the top of her game. I go to Patrick, it gets done. Downside to NSD...they offer no volume. I could not survive on them while I could and can surviving w Agero, and NSD is filler. their billing is time consuming. Their calls are mostly, for us, either far to fetch and deliver, or just long deliveries, which loaded miles are great, but a 90 mile dead head is a 90 mile deadhead. and i can't take my bread and butter calls. Quest sends us nearly nothing, maybe 1 or 2 calls a week. Swoop, 1 or 2 calls a week, NSD 3-4 calls a week. Agero, 50-80 calls a week. Swoop doesn't pay their bills, and have recently told them not to even dispatch to us anymore. I was told that all Agero calls will go thru swoop and that going to towbook, I would start losing volume. Not a chance i can take, but Swoop dispatch, tech support, live support and phone support is HORRIFIC. Were on with a couple other services, but they send us nothing. Agero, while the list of bullshit is long, by far has the work. They do make it impossible to be better though. If you're honest about your eta, they hit you, if you tell them what they want to hear, they hit you. Swoop dispatch sends out surveys and i get 90% returned, Agero sends out surveys, i have 14 responses out of 364 calls. but they base our performance on this? Strange. there's no easy way to take your truck out of service for maintenance or breakage, you can do it, but it effects your performance non. without us, they are just a call center with people that need help and no one to dispatch to. That's my take on the first 90 days.

This is Joe's second unit from Metro Tow Trucks. We are very thankful for your repeat business and very proud to see your business grow the way it has. What better way to break in your brand new wrecker with none other than a wreck on the way home. Just 15 minutes from when he left I got a call telling me to get my butt up there to help him out! That will definitely be a good memory to look back on. Thanks again and cheers to more growth, health, and success, hard work pays off

While that's a creative solution, I wonder if his insurance provides coverage for that activity. A whole lot can go wrong in a parking garage. Richard

i use to work with a guy who called in late for day light savings time . . . . . but he was 1/2 a year off time for it and he was also on the wrong half of the time flip . . . 🤣🤣🤣

It's finally here, the TowMate TM-Flux Drawing. 29 Entries Qualified for this drawing and after a long wait to Winner was drawn tonight along with 5 T-Shirt winners in our weekly drawing. Watch the video to find out who won.

I work for all of these co,s cc up front or at drop off. Lower volume but never a problem with payment or Long time on phone. Use them as filler in between police tows. That’s where the real money is if I didn’t have police towing I don’t think I would still be in business. I’d rather sit home and lose money than work hard and lose money Buy the way, dispatch is extremely easy. The just send me an email with all the info. I can even resend it to my driver. Easy

Chattanooga, TN – October 22, 2019 – At its annual general meeting, the board of directors of the International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum (ITRHFM), announced an increase in the death benefit available to families when industry tragedy occurs. In recent months, the Survivor Fund has enjoyed some generous giving from many of its partners around the industry. Having applied its financial stewardship formula, the board reset the death benefit paid to each approved application from $5,000 per incident to $7,000 per incident. If the deceased was employed by a company who was a member in good standing of the museum at the time of the incident, or if the deceased was a member in good standing, the benefit increases to $9,500, up from $7,500. "We are blessed with a healthy financial position provided by the generosity of our industry,” said Jeffrey Godwin, Survivor Fund Committee Co-Chairman. “With an eye toward long term support of the industry, we implemented a formula a few years ago to drive our giving. The result is one where the support of the Survivor Fund by our industry has allowed us to make a significant increase to the amount we are able to provide families going forward.” The Survivor Fund is supported by individual operators, towing and road service companies of all sizes, motor clubs, industry suppliers and many more. The pledge program for the Survivor Fund works to replenish funds paid out at the time of industry tragedies and provides stability allowing increases to the benefit by gaining support from contributions as simple as those where individuals and companies pledge as little as $5 per death. “It is our hope that all companies across our industry will become members of the museum to preserve our history and to provide this meaningful protection for the families of their employees,” said Lee Roberts, Survivor Fund Committee Co-Chairman. The Survivor Fund, founded in 2006 and managed by the International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum, was started to offer financial support to the families that have lost a loved one in the line of service within industry. Since 2006 the Survivor Fund has approved and paid out hundreds of claims to support families in their time of need due to tragic accidents. The ITRHFM is working to build a perpetual fund while also supporting families as the fund is built. Increases in benefits to families are made based on the fundraising of the Survivor Fund and the increased security of the Fund based on its investment health. About ITRHFM The International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum, located in Chattanooga, TN, houses an array of displays and exhibits showcasing the history of towing and recovery. The rotating collection includes early equipment by Manley, Holmes, Vulcan, and Weaver. The Hall of Fame honors individuals who have significantly advanced the industry. The Museum includes a theater, a library, and a gift shop selling souvenirs related to the towing industry. On the outside grounds is the Wall of the Fallen memorial, dedicated to towers who died in the line of service. The ITRHFM Survivor Fund assists the families of the men and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of service by providing a uniform financial gift at the time of their loss. ITRHFM is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and accepts donations for its programs and operations from individuals, corporations and groups. Learn more at www.towingmuseum.com.

I've worn red wings loggers for the better part of a decade and they're the best I've found yet. I have been looking at some pull ons but I can't find a pair that I like yet.

That's really awesome Jeff. I guess that sets-the-tone for the amount to beat next year. Special thanks goes to all towers, owners, sponsors, and participants who opened their saving's accounts to purchase from the auctions ... especially all of those $100 dollar bills floating towards the podium. The quilt alone sale was amazing. Wow. R.

Pretty much any 3500/4500 (350/450) style chassis should get the job done, just have to go measure a few. Fold-down light bar brackets if you gotta have a light bar. If you run wrecks and have radios, you'll want to mount the antennas...somewhere...not on the roof! You didn't give much info though, are you looking for a brand new truck, used, what brands are you for/against, etc. with more info other members may give details of their setups for garage work (assuming that's why clearance is an issue for you.) Richard

This is Houston TX; a lot of the apartments that his company has contracts with are lower income properties (we've worked many of the same areas and have even had contracts bounce back and forth between his company and ones I've been with in the past.) We have a very large "undocumented alien" problem here, let's just go ahead and call them illegals, and many do not have drivers licenses, insurance, or even registered vehicles. Lots of them driving around with temporary plates that were bought off craigslist or other online sources that are not legitimate temporary plates, making it difficult if not impossible to track down criminals. I wouldn't be surprised if the murderous trash that took his life is already across the border. : ( Here's hoping they do bring them to justice, though. I doubt Mr. Martinez did anything to deserve dying over. Richard

Driver had two spinal fusions and is now sitting up but still not breathing on his own. Brain swelling is all but gone now we’re just waiting for the infection in his lung to pass and a pin hole in the lung to close up and he should be able to talk and doctors will have an idea of how severe the brain injury is.

We were called by our local PD for a single vehicle crash. They left out a few key details such as the car was on it's side, on top of the guardrail, with a debris field approximately 1000 ft long. The car failed to negotiate the softest curve a road has ever seen and blasted 2 poles. After clipping both poles down to about 5 foot tall, it started flipping through the grass. I counted at least 4 complete rotations, one of which took down a rotten dead pine tree that was 3 foot around. After the 4th flip the front dug into the ground hard enough to leave a foot deep crater, which pretty much stopped the car dead in it's tracks (finally). Unfortunately, it was still on it's side and it failed to clear the guardrail by a measly 6 feet. The field was saturated thanks to the 1.5 inches of rain that fell a few hours prior, so our access was limited to the road side of the rail. My first action was to roll it over as it wasn't too stable teetering on just the rail. I set it down as gently as I could because of course the gas tank was super close to the guardrail post. Luckily the car landed without hitting the tank and we moved to step 2, lifting and swinging the car off the rail. It went smooth until it got to the return at the end, it kept snagging what was left of the exhaust. At this point we set the car back on the rail and carefully wiggled it off the rail. What I did was roll the car towards the driver's side with a high line just enough to clear the post and pulled the car to me with a low line. Think WreckMaster's 4/5 Cherokee hitch technique but using both winches instead of a rope. Once it was clear of the rail I moved out and my dad backed the flatbed in to load. Because of the many missing pieces in the steering and suspension, I used my truck to "steer" the car up the bed. After wiggling it up the bed and cleaning up the massive debris field, we took the car to the police department's secure lot. I once again had to scoot the car sideways on the bed to get it to come off straight, as it kept sliding sideways instead of down. The job went about as smooth as I expected it would with so much going against us and we cleared the scene in a little over 2 hours.

Great answer ... remember now ... I was only havin' fun OK? R.

if we are picking then on your LE past can be be found guilty of killing someone with to many lima beans ? since they have traces of cyanide in them in raw form . 🤨 😀 Like many legumes, the seemingly innocent lima bean should not be eaten raw — doing so can be lethal. (And who wants to die in such an ignoble way as death by lima bean?) Also known as butter beans, the legumes can contain a high level of cyanide, which is part of the plant's defense mechanism. Here in the U.S. there are restrictions about cyanide levels in commercially grown lima bean varieties, but not so in less developed countries, and many people can get sick from eating them. Even so, lima beans should be cooked thoroughly, and uncovered to allow the poison to escape as gas. Also, drain the cooking water to be on the safe side.

Hi Brian ... now that you're feeling better .. I HAVE to pick on you just for fun. Through my LE experience and research, I've determined that Mc Donald's has 350 sesame seeds on each of their hamburger buns. Chemically speaking, sesame seeds contain trace amounts of morphine and codeine - substances found in opium and heroin. Consuming foods with sesame seeds won't have the same effect as these drugs, however, the traces will appear in a urine sample and give a false positive reading. I have to ask ... if I eat two Big Mac's before I test ... will I lose my job? At the moment ... I'm more concerned about losing the ability to have Big Mac's versus losing my job. What do you advise? R.

Congratulations Jeff for this year's events at the tow show, HOF, WOF and the auction. Although dinner was a bit of a debacle, none-the-less, you all raised an incredible amount toward the survivor fund. If it's not against any rules of disclosure, could you please tell everyone just how much was raised as a final total. Christine and I truly had a great time attending this year's events and it was really great to talk with you. I have a dollar amount that I remember hearing, but I don't want to overstep my bounds. Thank you and the entire board for all you do in the interest of the towing and recovery community. R.

Looks good, only thing better would have been a helicopter that would just hover above & pick it straight up. Every time I offer that service on scene the customer always declines...

Now that the San Diego fatality is known, I’m sharing some important information on this topic. A few years back, I covered this topic after an earlier fatality occurred when a tow operator was killed clearing snow between a raised carrier’s deck rails. I went into my fatality stats where I list three other instances of the same “crushing” fatality (South Dakota, May, 2009, Montana, Nov. 2016, and in Illinois, Sept, 2018). Soon after, while attending an American Towman tow show, I saw a safety device designed and built as a means to prevent crushing injuries like these. So, I did some early morning research to refresh this topic and I’m providing a safety message for tow operators working on the beds of raised carriers. Here’s a great link you should be aware of: Link: https://www.osha.gov/dts/shib/shib091806.html OSHA’s 29 CFR 1926.600(a)(3)(i) has specific narrative directed to the construction trade stating, “in construction settings, requires that dump bodies shall be fully lowered or blocked when being repaired or when not in use A second part of section 29 CFR 1926.601(b)(10),“… requires that in construction settings, trucks with dump bodies shall be equipped with positive means of support, permanently attached, and capable of being locked in position to prevent accidental lowering of the body while maintenance or inspection work is being done.” While OSHA’s narrative isn’t specific (yet) to flatbed carrier designs, there’s forward thinking to be aware of the requirement when narrative refers to “dump bodies”. In my way of thinking, a carrier’s deck technically works as a dump body. If my way of thinking is that way … so can that of an OSHA inspector Here are the links of two bed safety locks as mentioned above. Although they’re pricey (approximately $1,250), what’s someone’s life worth? Emerson Safety Wedge Lock https://www.mile-x.com/emerson-wl-10-wedge-lock-for-dump-beds-pair-made-in-the-usa/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw6KrtBRDLARIsAKzvQIHsW0C22QJ0XV4OGdqUHHlSl_3Z6GaU7o_XSE8INPEuz1idBXi1VBUaAkEKEALw_wcB Dump Lock https://www.diesellaptops.com/products/dump-lok-udl-dump-bed-safety-brace?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&adpos=1o1&scid=scplpshopify_US_1682241290311_16658451103815&sc_intid=shopify_US_1682241290311_16658451103815&keyword=&campaign=6617847350&content=386311263494&gclid=Cj0KCQjw6KrtBRDLARIsAKzvQIG4czqjSBphgHWvjse9UNBlOnb3QfFjc3SX8xUfryL5lFTIcSX3PRUaAg3GEALw_wcB If your company has flatbed carriers in the fleet, this the proper safety item to have in your shop. FACT: A length of 4x4, or a block of wood will and not does not provide adequate protection against slipping out and crushing a worker. FYI... I invite you to go to OSHA's website and review this information, to include several photos of proper and improper safety at the shop level. R

Brian ... send them on of your well-written letters expressing your dislike ... it's good therapy and doesn't cost you a thing. R.

Have a glass guy change the mirror to what you want? Sometime have to have the customer stand on the other side and tell me which way to go

In the old days ... VW "Moon Caps" and sawed off sections of Hobie Cat hulls were quick alternatives to dollies, skates and Go-Jacks

Yea we make a trip out of it, spend a couple days there. It's a great time....especially when you buy something! LoL Last year I bought a 79 Coupe DeVille... This one makes me smile just looking at it...

We recently purchased all remaining parts, drawings, and intellectual information of B&B industries Please be patient as we move and work on getting back to building parts and wreckers. Websites, email and phone numbers coming soon. Feel free to private message me any questions.

We were called just after 9 pm on 9/5/19 for one vehicle after a crash on Route 401 in the area of St Matthews Road. We were asked to standby at the church as wires were down on top of a vehicle. The driver and his son were trapped in the vehicle due to the live wires down. They remained in the vehicle until Peco arrived to verify that power was shut off. Once Peco gave permission we were able to winch the vehicle back to the roadway. The Peco crew helped us out by lifting the wires over the vehicle as Paul Jr winched it out of the ditch. The vehicle was loaded onto the Paul Sr’s flatbed and transported to our storage facility. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We just changed to Fattmerchant for our credit card processing. So far it has worked out great, the card readers are 75.00 each, but they accept, swipe, chip, and tap to pay. Also when we email an invoice, our company logo is on the receipt.

Today we were a little short handed and it got pretty busy. Luckily Matt from Fling's Towing Inc. was willing to give us a hand. At 6:09 pm we were called to Route 113 in front of the Lionville Middle School for two vehicles after an accident. Paul Sr and Dylan has just responded to another crash in Upper Uwchlan moments before and Paul Jr was the only truck close to Route 113. Once he arrived on scene he found two vehicles blocking the travel lane and a large amount of fluid and debris in the roadway. The initial plan was to use the wrecker to move both vehicles to a parking lot in order to open the road quickly until one of our other trucks could make it to the scene to help. Just as Paul Jr started to load the Volvo he saw a truck from Flings Towing stuck in the traffic backlog. Matt was willing to help us out and towed one of the cars. Matt loaded the Ford Mustang and helped clean up the fluids. Paul Jr loaded the Volvo S60 and swept debris from the road. Both vehicles were quickly removed from the travel lanes and transported to our storage lot. There can be a lot of competition in the world of towing. We really appreciate Matt and Flings Towing lending us a hand. Thanks for being in the right place at the right time!! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dtowingfl Wrote in December of 2009: First thing I will admit is I am not a tow guy. I come from an automotive background and the few recent months I have spent managing a tow company have been an eye opener for me. Long hours, lots of stress and tiny little profit margins seem par for the course! My situation is this. The co. I am working for does about 2000 calls a month, runs a fleet of 15 trucks including a medium, hvy and a landoll. They do some rotation work as well as have a small municpal contract. From what I have seen, they are not unlike alot of other towers. Problem (to me anyways) is that around 1000 of their tows a month are for AAA, with an average charge of $33 ea. We are bringing in about 125k a month in revenue and have 125k a month in expenses. Now of course all the new trucks they leased through Sterling a few years ago are miled up from all these low buck calls and are falling apart. To me, the writing is on the wall. If they keep up at this pace the fleet will deteriorate faster than the revenue comes in and this place will self destruct. I have done the math and if we dropped AAA cold turkey we would lose about 30k a month in revenue, but would actually drop 30k to 35k a month in expenses! This from what I gather is also not unlike many towers who blindly get sucked into the motor club business and never do the math to realize its not profitable. Problem is the owner is terrified to drop them. Try as I may I cannot get him to see the wisdom in letting go of this unprofitable, stress laden volume treadmill to focus on more profitable sources such as PPI's, commercial accounts and cash business. Have any of you found yourself in a similar position and how can you break someones irrational and destructive dependance on motor clubs before it takes them under? Adams Towing said: What are you going to do if those other sorces of income slow down? They always do. Maybe have a meating with your rep and discuss a better contract. If you are a quality provider for them they will understand you have to make a profit. You might be able to cut cost on your end as well, look at the big picture you might have more than one thing that you can cut back on. It's just my opinion but you got to do whats best for you. Dtowingfl said: Man you hit the nail on the head. I started towing for myself in 1996, and was contracted with all the motorclubs, and small P.D. Rotation list. I done this up till 2004, after the stress and costing me a mariage, I finally parked everything for about a year. During this time I was so scared that if I didnt have the calls the trucks would sit and I would have to pay the payments on the trucks out of pocket, so I thought I had to have the motor clubs to make the bacon to give it away. I only had 5 trucks now heavy nor landoll to make the other ends meet, just light duty, medium duty, and 2 service trucks that is not part of the 5 mention for battery service and what have you. Now since I have came back into the game through the divorce got to keep 3 trucks 2 paid for, and the service units, I am not as fast to contract, now I do contract with a hand full, but letting AAA go was a good thing no more stress no more reports of poor performance ect. Only thing I can say is good luck, I had people telling me the same thing for years of what you are trying to get across and never listen I knew best. How wrong I was after I add up what I lost in this process. wyomingtowpro said: You cannot make profit @ 33.00 per call. Those days are long gone. All you do is spin wheels and ware out trucks and drivers. This is a hard reality I faced at one point in my business, b4 I closed it. And fyi...it was closed due to wifes illness not financial issues. Now heres my suggestion. You must do a cost audit. In order to put thing in prospective you have to know basically what it cost to operate the truck (s). Luckily for me my wife is a accountant and auditor by trade. Once you have done a cost audit, you must cut your cost and eliminate unnecessary spending. Tighten the belt. You cannot operate a business without knowing the numbers and putting all you finances in prospective. Being able to sustain in business will be easier after you have done a cost audit. As far as AAA...You must contact them and explain your situation. Im sure there are other comapnies in your area that are on a waiting list to go tow at the same if not a cheaper rate. You can call them b4 you do a cost audit and possibly get a small increase that will give you some short term relief. But you have a better bargaining tool if you know where you need to be b4 you call them. Be prepaired for them to turn you down. Very few customers are loyal and compassionate to the needs of service providers. They have too many idiots that will work cheaper. You have to find out what it cost to operate, and set your rate based on that cost, and stick to it in order to make a profit!!!!!!! I found that it is truly ok, to fire a customer if they cannot or will not give you an increase based on you true cost of doing business. You will find that once you shed yourslef of the unnecessary expenses, and you get rid of the cheap rate customers you can keep you head above water. This may cause you to downsize your fleet. You need to replace the cheap customers with new customers. You will need to start a mass marketing campane in your service area. Both national accounts and local customers. Its a lot of work to turn a business around but with the support of the owner you can build a better model of the same company. If you need advise on cost audits and stragities give me a call. 6154895749. Jeff C. / Buffalo, Wyoming tlwtowing said: I think the total is a bit higher than 33.00, my brother gets more than that for a hook up with AAA. He has a repair shop also. I would say with enroute and loaded miles it has to be over 40. figure 40 dollars you have one hour of labor at 10.00 and 2 gals of fuel at 6.00 that leaves 24.00. 1 truck runs 10 calls that leaves 240.00 after fuel and wages. take out 15.00 for workmans comp and 11.00 for insurance you get 216.00 profit per truck. 216 times 30 = 6480.00 per truck minus 480.00 for maintenance equals 6000 dollars profit per truck per month. Provided you dont run out and buy all new equipment and watch you overhead I showed you your are making money. If you cant make it with each truck bringing in 6000 a month your living beyond your means. Insurance is based on what I pay for garage keepers 1,000,000 liability and 50,000 on hook at 330.00 a month. so if you run 600 calls a month the profit would be 12,000 dollars thats 2 trucks 10 calls a day heck even take out another 2,000 for rent and a part timer your still clearing 10,000 a month. Dtowingfl I think your math is off 2000 calls times 40 is 80,000. But lets say the do bring in 125,000 a month, I dont care if all the equipment is new the most in payments should be is 40,000. say 6,000 for insurance and 8,000 for fuel is 54,000. wages for 15 guys say average 500 a week. 30,000 thats 84,000. set aside 7500.00 for maintenance and 2500.00 for workmans comp now your up to 94,000. say 2,000 for rent and 3,000 for utilities your at 99,000. The owner is clearing 26,000 a month. maricle1 said: You are grossly under-insured if your on hook is only 50k,A king Ranch F-150 will cost that, Much less if you are carrying doubles.Your numbers in your example are also unrealistic for a tow.Try using REAL LIFE numbers and see if your still making a profit!!! The best advice I can give is do exactly as Jeff said and do a cost audit. Know what it cost you every time the key turns, every mile the truck runs factor in everything and contact the clubs be point blank let them know what you NEED to continue the level of service they have become accustomed to.I do this each and every year (my mom is a accountant and wife is going to college for it) So far No club has refused and if they did I'd drop them! really it's as simple as that YOU have to make a REAl profit and you can't make it by drivers for 10.00 like suggested.........Kenny Kenny Miracle ''Miracles Do Happen Here'' wyomingtowpro said: Nothing personal tlw towing, But....your math is wayyyyyyy off. He stated 2000 call a month and 1000 AAA were an "average of 33.00 per" And in your comparison math you need to remember that there are a lot of other expenses besides the obvious. A cost audit will require not only for you to look at quick books or your accounting programs accounts payable, but to look at the check book and see where you wrote checks that are not accounted for, and what about all those " Cash calls"?? All the expenses that you paid and didnt keep the receipt. A true cost audit will take you so deep in your personal and business finances that you will be amazed how you can save money once you look at EVERY DOLLAR you spent in physical 2009 vs EVERY DOLLAR you made in physical 2009. That Why you need to wait until after the year end. You need to do all 3..End of month books, End of quarter books, and the close out the year, get your taxes prepped and know what you tax liabilities are. The reason most businesses struggle is because they cant break the cycle of wasted spending ....and they don't look out side the box. My 1st cost audit was in my 3rd yr in business. I did 10 more after that. Every February after we closed all previous yrs books we re-ran the numbers. It made me a lean profitable business. In this economy you HAVE TOO budget not only personal finances but business finances as well, and stick to that budget not varying off course and spending money on eye candy items and wants ..Only spend on your needs and stop buying crap you don't need or can live without. tlw towing said: Kenny your thinking about what you pay for heavy haul, say even 100,000 on hook only adds 200 dollars a year to the insurance. and your not going to be hauling doubles for AAA. And how many jobs do you know of these days that start at 10 dollars an hour? If you re read what I posted I covered everything from fuel to maintenance to workmans comp to insurance. I am using real world numbers based on my state of ohio. And I was just using this as an example. I looked at my policy and I do have 100,000 on hook and I pay 330.00 a month for 9 months. that's all. So go ahead and add 2 or 3 dollars an hour to my example and you would still be making money. And I don't need a computer program telling me I am making money when I can figure that up myself. If you study what I laid out you are making money. does not take rocket science to figure that out. And I also used 40.00 a call net. 33.00 is unrealistic that is probally the hook up fee not counting enroute or loaded. And what tax liabilities? If you show the IRS every dollar you bring in you wont be in business long. Back to you kenny if you cant make it making even 5,000 clear per truck I don't know what to tell ya your living to large buddy. In Memory of Charlie Amann who said: i run hard and i make money all motor clubs started 5yrs ago with 3 trucks now we have 15 trucks all motor clubs i reinvested the money in the business so i make money doin it too wyomingotwpro said: There are ways that you can deduct , depreciate , and write off...on your taxes. I never made any mention to the above quote , and never will. Any atempts to Cook da Books, is a risk you may choice to take, but not me, my freedom is not going to be taken away because of my need for greed and illegal business practice. Yes ur CPA may have some creative adjustments with in the letter of the law but im not gonna push that envelope. Anyway..... I do not care who you are...Top Level Patron and Sponser on Tow 411, newby or old school tower, greenhorn business owner or United Freeking Road Towing Nationwide anybody ..YOU AINT MAKING PROFIT @ 33.00 OR @ 40.00 DOLLARS A CAR. You might make crap loads of money when u hide it from the irs and screw uncle sam his part''...You have lost ur mind to go out and buy 15, 20, 40 , 60 trucks at todays intrest rates on installment payment or one of those sucker i c u coming leases and haul for that cut throat rate..... the comments in this post are mine and only mine which under the 1st amendment of our constitution are afford me be out spoken on this post... tlw towing said: Wyomingtowpro, I showed you that you can make money at the 40 dollar average. If your too blind to see it I cant help you. Obviously Charlie is making money. And you also put the cart before the horse and assumed someone run out and bought or leased 15 trucks. I know charlie and he is exactly like I am. You buy used, pay cash, and rebuild them from the ground up. A heck of a lot cheaper than payments. Its obvious you went down this road and failed hence the bitterness toward club work. The are folks who do club work and those who dont. Its all a choice that the individual makes. My company is growing, Charlies is growing, And my brother has been running AAA for 25 years so somebody must know how to make some money. And guess what we didnt need a program to tell us how to do it. Maricle1 said: From 50k to100k cost me 358.00 a year per Truck.On my heavy I carry 250k. My total premium for 12 months is over 16,000 for 5 trucks.For this state it's a good rate as I just shopped it and no one could match it.You'veer gotten a AAA call and the member was pulling a trailer?My drivers make 20.00 per hour and 25% after 6pm.Hell the guy that mops my shop floor makes 14.00 per hour.(And worth every dime)A employee being paid 14.00 p/h with matching with holding will cost the employer around 20.00 P/h .You example does not show all cost of doing business.And it doesn't take a ROCKET SCIENTIST to figure it out.(Office phone,cc processing,lights,cell phones for drivers,computers for the office and the list goes on)I'm not saying you can't make it on Motor clubs.I'm saying you have to be paid for what you do and what your worth.I do everything above board. I do not hide money from the IRS.They have no sense of humor,So you don't play games with them or you will not be in business long.As for me ,I will not be content making 5000.00 per truck,If I should have made 15,000 per truck.I charge for what I do and what I'm worth and what my guy's are worth and I've been pretty sucessful doing so.It's about MAKING it.It'sut GROWING AND PROSPERING.You can make it working at WalMart. AS FOR LIVING TOO LARGE,I DON"T THINK SO!! I own my equipment and shop and homes outright no bank note attached and I pay my help a wage, they can raise their families off of. And I even pay my TAXES and not try to cheat the goverment.In my opinion,It's people running for pennies, when they should be charging dollars that have hurt this industry and have forced many a great company out but that's for another topic.Bottom line is if your going to give examples, Give accurate, complete examples and if you don't know ask someone that does.Someone on here will know.........Kenny Kenny Miracle ''Miracles Do Happen Here'' wyomingtowpro said: Let me say up front ..I have never, and will never as an owner or (previous owner) worked for AAA or any other motorclub. My 13 years in business was not a failure, It was a choice to close it, when my wife was on her death bed in the hospital. And the long recovery was more important that making money. I feell very comfortable in my financial status in life, and choose to werk smart and not hard for a 40.00 reward. I relocated to Wyoming and started plans for retirement. Back in the early 70's my father was the owner of a large company in Nashville, rates were 17.50 local, in mid late 70's i can remember 22.50 and 25.00 per car. Rates went up over the years until in the late 80's AAA started this crap of dangling volume werk for cut throat rates. He never did it either. Now I know for a fact that there is a company in Nashville who is one of those AAA premium service vendors. He has 9 rollback, 5 self loaders, 1 med 1hvy, 1tator, 4 equipment haulers. I have heard he say, and i quote..." Need more werk," hard to make payroll, ect..This is because he chooses to work AAA at 23.oo starting rate. Brother those rate went out the window along with Disco, and urban cowboy fades. I work as an employee in a place where everyone has AAA. We see about 250 to 300,000 visitors a year by car come thru here going to Yellowstone, and about 25,000 to 30,000 RV's a year. My employeer DOES DO ALL Motorclubs. BUT>>>>>>>>the start rate in 50.00 plus mileage. There are no sweetheart deals here, and even RV Plus rates @ 150.00 per hour to start. One motor club / dispatch forwarder CCM 55.00 plus 3.50 a mile one way. Im a heavy duty operator, I do very little light duty towing , but in a bind ill jump in a truck and gogogo. The rates are "fair" Ive gone 3o miles out on a gas call it pays about (to the company) 137.50. I have told thge owner , if its a 40 dollar call and I'm on 30% dont wake me up at 2am for 12.00. That's some crap..... I have alway been a believer that the business I own is just that , Its mine. I refuse to let ANY potential client or customer tell me what they are gonna pay me to do a job. If they need my service to do a job, they will be given a rate. If they don't like it, shove it. go find that guy that runs junk equipment, has untrained and non-certified drivers come work for you. Get paid for the job based on fairness not based on whatthey are willing to give you. They don't and never will have your best intrest at heart!!! Everyone has the right to run their business as they see fit . If you are making money good for you. If you choice to buy junk equipment, rebuild junk equipment and do cut rate towing and be under insured or rite at the legal limit, good for you. You have to account for your time u spend in that business, and I place a great value on my time. You have spent a great deal of time werking on that junk equipment to make it road worthy , to do towing for A 40.00 rate that was obsolete in the early 90's. good for you. Best of luck in your business as you spend time turning wrenches, rebuilding junk equipment for that a 40.00 tow.... Unknown Member said: My head hurts from all this reading,and we are at the same place in this discussion that we were in the beginning! Can't we all just get along? wyomingtowpro said: I can get along with any one, I'm not a Hater at all, but i also reserve my rite to speak my mind as does the other members on this post. I do feel that is not gonna change anything. In every industry you will always have some one who chooses to do a job cheaper. That's a trend nationwide. Why some people will work for almost nothing is beyond me but if it works for you by all means be that guy who cuts the rates to get he job or work for those customers who dictate how you run ur business by demanding or strong arming you to accept thier rates or not get the job. When you surcome to thier demand you might as well hand the the keys to everything you own, because they now run your business when you allow them to set your rates .I just refuse to accept chump change for a job that should pay a fair market rate.... Randall L Dawson said: Every time a tower finds out that doing motor club work is at best a break even venture and asks how to drop them , the same couple of " m/c cheer leaders " post how they make money doing m/c calls , which was NOT the question the gentleman asked. I'd prefer not to have to pay taxes either but , I don't want Bernie Madeoff as my roommate. Please work safe, We've lost to many already this year. Randy. Maricle1 said: Yes Sir,I wonder if they are not the motor club reps sometimes or just have really bought into the BS that some clubs feed them.I actually do make some off of M/C calls though.Only because I refuse their rates and they agree to mine.I still face the same issues as everyone else that does club work.The ever present short pays!!!!!! Kenny Kenny Miracle ''Miracles Do Happen Here'' jal70 said: All, A few items which are being left out of this post, which offer a slightly different viewpoint..... First, I would respectfully disagree with the original author of this topic in that mc business is a "habit". I am wondering if he is aware of the sheer volume of work globally that the mc industry represents?? Between CCMC, Signature, Geico, NSD, RAMC, Asurion and various others, estimated annual dispatch volume is in excess of 7.5 million episodes and this does not take into consideration AAA... It would be very difficult to imagine that this level of business is a habit or would simply evaporate, when you truly understand the value these products delivery to the clients. Additionally, much has been made about low rates as compared to retail, but again here the " entire" picture is not being painted for the community, so let me help. Most of the rates being discussed here are NOT the avg total invoice amount being paid for the service rendered, obviously we are all aware that typically club contracts offer a rate PLUS both en-route and loaded miles. When these amounts are paid for services over time, you will realize that the avg revenue per service is considerably higher than simply pointing out the base rate. Of course the mc industry is aware that the rates are not retail, however with the aformentioned dispatch episodes, we would be considered a corporate account in any industry, warranting some preferred rate be negociated between the parties. This is common practice in almost every business within automotive, towing and just about any B2B I can think of at the moment. Let us also not forget the opportunity that additional exposure to mc clients bring your businesses, for example to name a few: Driving repair shop refferals to your shop or perhaps a shop you may have a business arrangement with, opportunity to market your retail services to these customers, mobile battery sales, tire sales (commerical lines) , collision repair refferals, specialty vehicle towing (heavy , cycles), etc... In the end, this is a business decision which must be made by knowing all the facts about your own operation and what type of accounts mc's can be. But let's please not paint all mc's with the same brush... As with towing operations, not all mc's are created equally.... Joseph tlw towing said: Joe, Its like this, Most dont realize between motor clubs and insurance control 60% or better of the tow volume. And Allstate is giving away memberships now that will bump the number up some. Its the evolution of the industry. Ever changing. Some of these guys will let evolution pass them by. fairway said: Yes, m/c's should be warranted a preffered rate, I would say it should be about 70 to 75% of the retail rate, not 30 to 40% like it is. What is a common % off of retail for wholesale customers? 25% or 65%? Also, the percentage off of retail should be based on the actual volume received, not promised. If you are feeding me one call a day, you should get less of a discount than a customer feeding me 15 calls a day. Also don't forget that along with the generous discounts and preferred rates, you are also not paying at the time of service. Maricle1 said: I agree motor clubs control a percentage of tow volume However,The real problem is many towers are naive and think they are making money at the low rates clubs pay.If all towers stood their ground and demanded a decent pay scale,The clubs would have no choice or they would go out as they would have no contractors doing their calls.The sad fact is they contract with other company's and pay their contractor less then half of what they collect in many cases.I contract with quite a few clubs but,only ones I can make a fair profit on.There is no sense in doing a call and only making 3-4 dollars profit,It's nuts!!!! I think we all understand clubs have to make a profit.Now they need to realize, we require profit to.Personally I dislike motor clubs,I feel like they are a cancer sucking the life out of the industry.Many calls that use to pay a decent rate like wrecks are now handled by motor clubs and a low ball rate.Dealership tows same thing.It just blows my mind at the number of towers, who just pucker up to these clubs and agree to do calls for less then half of retail on a promise of great volume.It just seems some of you THINK your making money, when in fact Clubs are taking MONEY right out of your pockets By involving themselves with accidents,Transports from storage yards,and such.They are tapping into the only real profit source we as towers have and putting OUR PROFIT IN THEIR POCKETS.Bottom line is they don't know your goals,overhead,or your business plan They shouldn't be dictating your rates. Joe ,Since you do seem to have answers for everything.What is the AVERAGE profit clubs make per call ? I really don't think you'd let the clubs little secrets out.The clubs seem to have a pretty good idea how much profit we make so why is it a kept secret what they make?I'm pretty sure though,It's possible to pull up a financial for them that should show payouts and profits. Kenny Miracle ''Miracles Do Happen Here'' Original Topic Creator Dtowingfl said: Whoah, looks like this thread got a bit of discussion going! Thanks to everyone for their input and thoughts. For any who took offense, I wasnt intending to bash any M/C's, its just that as a stand alone tower with no repair facility or body shop, I have seen no way for us to make money running these $30 and under calls. More importantly, I was stunned by the degree of denial that the owner was in and after investigating it a bit, it seems that many towers have the same mindset and have grown dependant on the M/C cashflow without understanding how detrimental it is to the health of their company. Finally it seems after making it clear that M/C's generate 30% of his revenue but encompass 60% of his expenses, he has finally stopped drinking the kool-aid and agreed to shed some overhead. I'll resurrect this thread in 3 months or so and post the results from dropping over half our M/C business actually accomplishes. Wish me luck! Falcon1 said: I worked for a towing company that had over 75 units on the road, after a year of doing no M/C calls we noticed that we did less calls BUT that we were available for the retail customer! Calls were down, income did'nt change and profits were up! DodgeTowGuy134 said: Ok, I will chime in foe a brief moment, Wile I do TOTALLY agree with those who said that you need to know what your operating costs are, I agree with the Road America rep, that NOT all motor clubs are equal, as one club for one tower may be the best ever, they may be the worse for another tower that is many states away in a different region. That said, I think that a business owner/accountant/office manager, SHOULD know the cost of doing business and know that is costs $$$ per call to do a call and even go as far as knowing that you need to make $$$ per mile/per minute, etc and then when calls come in base yates on your cost plus your profit margin to determine what you charge per call. Now, with motor clubs, I agree that since they do send some volume and we can market other services to their custoomers, that they get a discount. A also agree with what was said that you have to also include not only the base rate of a call, but also the enroute/loaded mileages, cause if you get a very high enroute and/or loaded mileage rate, then it can offset a little lower on-scene rate, BUT... I do agree with the other towers that the motor clubs should NOT strong arm us towers into things like including taxes in the base rate of a call, cause in our area we charge tax based on the county rate ans we service 5 counties, all with different rates and additionally, it is ILLEGAL for the tax to be included in the base rates of a call and tax MUST be calculated seperate and shown as such as according to state law. The exception is items such as gasoline and diesel fuel.. Additionally, I agree that motor clubs should get a discount, but NOT a 75% discount, as that is just too much.. They should get a 25% discount base and then if the volume over that month is really high, then they can get a higher discount for those calls due to increased volume sent to the tower. This was already stated by "fairway".. Another thing about motor clubs, is that I TOTALLY DISAGREE with them putting in their contracts and "requiring" a tower to accept a certain percentage of calls from them and if they cant accept a call that it counts against a tower... Come On!!! Some days we the towers are running our rears off cause we are soo busy, and work is sometimes more than we can do or days without a call, so if we cant run a call for whatever reason, then sorry, but it should NOT count against a tower in a negative way and that in turn affects the overall rating of the tower and then the motor club sends lett business to the tower... cause during the blizzard we had here this winter, we had to take certain calls over others due to many reasons, from priority due to safety/location of the vehicle to be serviced, to it being a car stuck in the driveway of the custoomer isnt a high priority compared to a car that has a yound single mother with a newborn baby that slid off into the ditch... I think that motor club reps SHOULD be polite and understanding and actually, really LISTEN to towers and not just blow them off, now some motor clubs reps do, but others dont, as I have my #1 motor club and their rep works with us, but another motor club we just dropped cause their rep was an overall "asshole" and he wouldnt listen to us and would ACTUALLY hang up on us, not return phone calls or emails, so we dropped them!... So, this is my lil ramble on the subject to start my day off, now back to morning office stuff before the day gets rolling! ~later yall tlw towing said: I agree with you Dodgetowguy. They want you to do a certain percentage or your volume goes down. Had that happen to me also. I talked to my rep and due to me having the shop opening next week I decided to cut down some of my zips. I decided to do zips that keep me 30 minutes of my shop or about a 10 mile radius. That way acceptance will go up since I am one man and I wont be stretched to thin. On a brighter note I towed in an engine job to start on next week. Man I would have to do a lot of tows for the labor thats paying me.

Paying your employees with a 1099 is a big NO-NO. A big one. you will get yourself into hot water fast with the IRS. They are an employee, not a contractor. I have always felt that 25-27% is a fair commission rate. You can also use safety/ performance bonuses to add incentives. When the Streamlight Stinger flashlights first came out, I received one of them as a safety bonus. I have it to this day. It looks like it was outside the space shuttle and went to the moon and back, but it is still fully functional. I strongly recommend that you read the book by Dave Ramsey entitled Entrée Leadership. One of my favorite lessons of the book was how their organization is so selective in hiring. They actually take the prospective employee out to dinner, on their dime to a meal in order to assess how the employee conducts themselves with their significant other, how they treat the waitstaff, and their general demeanor. Be selective in who you hire. Having an attitude of a seat for every ass will get you in hot water as well.

Not more than 15-minutes ago, I just posted these same words ... Christine and I send our prayers and support to the tow operator's family and the company he worked for." I watched this news link in its entirety. This is perhaps the BEST on-scene presentation and live-coverage that speaks to the reality or what tow operators and first responders face. OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt, provides a plea for motorists to slow-down and pay attention to whatever harsh driving conditions are present. In this crash, there is one-lane travel in each directions where motorists can't move-over, but they sure can slow down. The report said the tow trucks were on-scene with their emergency lights on. I believe this news link should go viral. I'm posting it on my Facebook page to send it to everyone I know and ask you do the same. R.