Previously, I asked what might happen to cars which were abandoned on evacuation routes by drivers who ran out of gas; in particular, would they be stuck for sizable towing fees, as the friend of a correspondant said he was. I have since received an email from Melissa Noriega, who did some digging in response to that post. She tells me that at this time, only the City of Houston has addressed the concerns of towing fees for cars left abandoned by Rita evacuees who ran out of gas. The State of Texas has not asked any other municipalities to follow Houston’s lead, so if you’re unlucky enough to have been towed by someone other than a Houston SafeClear wrecker, you’re on your own. My best suggestion for getting a reimbursement or reduction in the towing and storage fee, based on what Melissa says, is to contact your State Rep’s office and ask for their help. You might also inquire with them as to whether this issue will be raised at the state level.
If you were towed in Houston, the number to call is 713-308-8580. Obviously, the sooner you take care of that, the better. My sincere thanks to Melissa for the followup. If anyone else knows of an evacuation-related towing, please let me know what happened.
UPDATE: Phone number for Houston towing issues corrected. Thanks to M in the comments for pointing it out.
Towing fees followup
Towing fees followup
713-308-8580 is th right number
He/she is right–it is 713-308-8580.
Thanks for the follow-up. I wasn’t directly affected, but was sure irritated about the possibilities…