Everyone towed by Metro Parking Solutions without their consent from within the Euless, Texas city limits are urged to file an online complaint with TDLR and call the Euless Police Department (Lt. Starnes 817-685-1532) to file a offense report for violation of the City Wrecker Ordinance, if your vehicle was stored at 4115 Goddard Road, Fort Worth, Texas.
According to Euless Police Chief Mike Brown, any vehicle towed from their city from private property must be stored at a storage facility no farther than 3 miles of their city limits. In addition, towing companies are prohibited from randomly patrolling parking lots as well, as every tow must be called or faxed in by the parking facility owner or manager.
The storage facility that Metro Parking Solution is towing vehicle to is 10 miles from Euless.
What got our attention with Metro is that a victim of criminal illegal towing called about his vehicle being towed for an expired inspection sticker with only an orange warning sticker given.
What got our attention with Metro is that a victim of criminal illegal towing called about his vehicle being towed for an expired inspection sticker with only an orange warning sticker given.
According to the property manager of Murfield Village Apartments (that was recorded) which is managed by Apartment Association of Greater Dallas President Elect Barbara Middlebrook's Westdale Asset Management.
"The towing company stickers the vehicles as part of their "service" agreement", which is a statutory violation of the Texas Towing Law committed by whoever signed the towing agreement. State law states: a towing company or booting company may not directly or indirectly
give anything of value to a parking facility owner in connection with the removal of a vehicle from a parking facility, and a parking facility owner may not directly or indirectly accept anything of value from: a towing company in connection with the removal of a vehicle from a parking facility.
You can clearly see in the above photograph, the warning sticker printed by Anchor Graphics of Lewisville has Metro Parking Solutions name and phone number on it. The parking facility is prohibited from receiving any financial benefit from the towing company in connection with the removal of a vehicle. This statutory violation in itself would entitle the vehicle owner or operator to collect $1000 plus triple whatever you paid to retrieve your vehicle from the apartment complex owner and/or management company. So you can better understand the issue, read the Attorney General Opinion JC0554.
But the President Elect of the Apartment Association of Greater Dallas believes it's okay to accept criminal solicitation from towing companies and she is exempt from the Code of Ethics for their Association that elected her. Sends the wrong message to apartment management companies that accepting something of value from a towing company is okay, when it fact is will be costly.
In regards to filing a complaint with TDLR; this complaint should be against the storage facility for failing to provide the name of the "person" who authorized the tow, not the name of the apartment complex.
From an email of this latest victim of criminal predatory illegal towing:
On October 9, 2013, at approximately 1:40 AM, or so the orange sticker
says, I was left an orange sticker by a representative of Metro Parking
Solutions in Fort Worth on my car at the Murfield Village Apartment
complex at Westdale Hills in Euless, TX on Monterrey Blvd. claiming that
my car had an “expired inspection” and that it was “abandoned” under
Texas Transportation Code. I have not been able to afford the repairs to
bring it up to speed and it’s my only way to get to and from work. It
indicated a 10-day notice. I received nothing else and heard nothing
else…I kept on using my car on and off…..until the early morning hours
of October 25th when my car was removed without further
notice. I heard nothing else, and then I found the sticker and called
Metro Parking, who verified that my car was in their possession and I
would have to pay $293 to get it out. I went to my apartment complex
who said that the "law didn’t apply to them" because they are private
property and they refused to do anything. I even pointed out a specific
lease clause that requires the apartment complex to provide 10 days
notice to me. They stated that the "towing company’s notice" on my
windshield was sufficient.
State Law and the courts says the orange warning sticker means nothing for expired inspection or registration sticker notification, watch this video and see for yourself that Signature Towing company of Plano was fined for the same exact illegal and criminal behavior by Metro and Westdale.
Since this original email was sent, the Euless Police Department has opened a criminal investigation into the matter and expect to file criminal charges against the property manager and tow truck operator that towed the vehicle without probable cause.
Complaints with TDLR have also been filed by this victim against Metro Parking Solution's towing company and vehicle storage facility license for failing to provide the name of the person who authorized the tow and an unlicensed employee doing the vehicle inventory at their storage facility.
Anyone else towed from this apartment complex should file a statutory hearing against Westdale property management instead of a tow hearing, regardless when you were towed by Metro, there is no filing deadline and the filing fee is only $36 in JP Court.
Another issue, which will have to be addressed is why the President Elect of the Greater Dallas Apartment Association believes the law doesn't mean anything to her company. Their involvement with Metro Parking Solutions, the former salesman, Scott Gorby and saleswoman, several of their drivers are former employees of Abandoned Vehicle Enforcement that was closed down.
