Another Recovery question
Discussion
cotney said:
Why couldn't the recovery company leave it on the OP's drive which was 200 yards away when asked to.
They could then have still charged a call out fee, but not needed all the additional fees for storage etc...
And have no possesion to 'bargain' with to get their costs back from someone who could be unwilling to pay.They could then have still charged a call out fee, but not needed all the additional fees for storage etc...
My son's 50cc motor bike was recovered after being stolen 200m from our home. Instead of walking across the road to let us know they recovered it using their agent to a depot 15 miles away. The bike had been out overnight in heavy rain so I was more than surprised by their explaination of recovering it in this way as, in their own words, 'phorensic examination'. Especially as the bike was stored while waiting examination outside and uncovered! It could have been stored in my nice dry garage if they wanted.
Surprise surprise, no phorensic evidence obtained whatsoever and my son had a £150 bill for recovery and storage.
When I went to recover the bike the place was crawling with plod enjoying themselves to what looked like free coffee and snacks whilst on their breaks. Say no more!
This was Cheshire plod by the way.
Surprise surprise, no phorensic evidence obtained whatsoever and my son had a £150 bill for recovery and storage.
When I went to recover the bike the place was crawling with plod enjoying themselves to what looked like free coffee and snacks whilst on their breaks. Say no more!
This was Cheshire plod by the way.
Why on earth do people try and defend this sort of blatant corruption, when they're not even getting the backhanders themselves?
This is why I always try to totally avoid getting the police involved in anything like this. My youthful automotive gardening excursions were recovered by my dad's Land Rover for the fee of eternal shame.
This is why I always try to totally avoid getting the police involved in anything like this. My youthful automotive gardening excursions were recovered by my dad's Land Rover for the fee of eternal shame.
AJS- said:
Why on earth do people try and defend this sort of blatant corruption, when they're not even getting the backhanders themselves?
Is it blatant corruption though?Take the £150/£250 recovery fee and then take out the diesel used,wear and tear on the vehicle,drivers wage and company overheads that have to be covered by profit.
TPS said:
AJS- said:
Why on earth do people try and defend this sort of blatant corruption, when they're not even getting the backhanders themselves?
Is it blatant corruption though?Take the £150/£250 recovery fee and then take out the diesel used,wear and tear on the vehicle,drivers wage and company overheads that have to be covered by profit.
Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
AJS- said:
No they don't because he was quite able to recover it himself, to his house 200 yards away rather than a £20 a day storage facility 12 miles away.
Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
So why did he not get it recovered?Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
Answer.he made no attempt prior to the police arriving and there was a risk his reovery would have taken longer.
If it was only 200 yards away why did his family not come out and tow it,call for recovery etc.
Was it too badly damaged,was it stuck on the roundabout,was it leaking oil etc
We do not know all the information here which is one problem.
Then if they have got a charter to charge this way, and can pretty-much make up rules to massively profiteer from unfortunate drivers who are pretty-much FORCED to use what is provided (which I suspect is because they think an insurance company have deep enough pockets to fleece with massively over-egged pricing), surely it up to those that have been stung to make this as public as possible, and the newspapers would love stories like this. Get enough and (we hope) that it will be treated in the same way as private parking companies - i.e. some politician sees a 'win' and makes it a campaign to eradicate the overcharging...
..I think the some police are rather dim on this, and perhaps do not realise or indeed care that each time they impose a recovery, they are supporting such over-inflated charges to the detriment of either the insurance company (why care???) or the driver as in this case. Essentially because of their authority over the scene they are in effect, although perhaps unwittingly, colluding with the recovery company. About time this was raised with senior CCs.
...but then, I do live in my own little ideal world.....
..I think the some police are rather dim on this, and perhaps do not realise or indeed care that each time they impose a recovery, they are supporting such over-inflated charges to the detriment of either the insurance company (why care???) or the driver as in this case. Essentially because of their authority over the scene they are in effect, although perhaps unwittingly, colluding with the recovery company. About time this was raised with senior CCs.
...but then, I do live in my own little ideal world.....
AJS- said:
No they don't because he was quite able to recover it himself, to his house 200 yards away rather than a £20 a day storage facility 12 miles away.
Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
Zzzz, these contracts are worked out from head offices countywide or nationally to prevent that happening, that is why they have 'rota' call outs so the local officers get little or no input.Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
TPS said:
Unfair really.You and i were not there and do not know why they carried out the actions the way they did.
What could have happened is the police had already waited for recovery before on another job and knew there was a delay that night so put the option to you of you sorting it out quicker.
Maybe unfair, but based on the information given it seems that the police had decided on their course of action and that was that.What could have happened is the police had already waited for recovery before on another job and knew there was a delay that night so put the option to you of you sorting it out quicker.
In my case, they had no idea it was going to take so long, and purely put it to me as it might be better to organise it myself from a financial perspective.
TPS said:
AJS- said:
No they don't because he was quite able to recover it himself, to his house 200 yards away rather than a £20 a day storage facility 12 miles away.
Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
So why did he not get it recovered?Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
Answer.he made no attempt prior to the police arriving and there was a risk his reovery would have taken longer.
If it was only 200 yards away why did his family not come out and tow it,call for recovery etc.
Was it too badly damaged,was it stuck on the roundabout,was it leaking oil etc
We do not know all the information here which is one problem.
speedyguy said:
AJS- said:
No they don't because he was quite able to recover it himself, to his house 200 yards away rather than a £20 a day storage facility 12 miles away.
Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
Zzzz, these contracts are worked out from head offices countywide or nationally to prevent that happening, that is why they have 'rota' call outs so the local officers get little or no input.Pretty blatant to me, someone's getting a backhander somewhere.
I may be wrong here as there may be more to the situation that was in the OP. I just don't worship policemen in the same way many on here do, thus I don't find it very hard to believe that out of a ~500 GBP bill for an hour or two's work, 100 GBP finds it's way back into the pocket of the attending selfless public servant.
Seems that some here have overlooked some obvious points:
1. The Police have the powers to invoke recovery of vehicles in any kind of inappropriate position. If they don't, MOPs will constantly phone 999 and tell them of an accident they have just seen.
2. The Police cannot babysit until the owner remembers who his insurance/breakdown company is and whether they have a 24/7 switchboard - many don't. The Police have much better things to do.
3. The recovery agent charges fees which are regulated by the gubbermint and, for the most part, are quite fair (IMO). £150-ish for turning out 24/7/365 on demand with the correct equipment and properly trained personnel seems fair to me. Do not, however, be the owner of a fallen-over artic whose lorry needs to be recovered from the embankment of the M1; the fee for this could be eye-watering!
4. Recovery charges can be reclaimed from the owner's insurance as part of the accident settlement. That's why you pay your money, to cover eventualities like this. Most accident victims will never even see the invoice; when the recovery agent knows who to bill, he will send the invoice to the insurance.
1. The Police have the powers to invoke recovery of vehicles in any kind of inappropriate position. If they don't, MOPs will constantly phone 999 and tell them of an accident they have just seen.
2. The Police cannot babysit until the owner remembers who his insurance/breakdown company is and whether they have a 24/7 switchboard - many don't. The Police have much better things to do.
3. The recovery agent charges fees which are regulated by the gubbermint and, for the most part, are quite fair (IMO). £150-ish for turning out 24/7/365 on demand with the correct equipment and properly trained personnel seems fair to me. Do not, however, be the owner of a fallen-over artic whose lorry needs to be recovered from the embankment of the M1; the fee for this could be eye-watering!
4. Recovery charges can be reclaimed from the owner's insurance as part of the accident settlement. That's why you pay your money, to cover eventualities like this. Most accident victims will never even see the invoice; when the recovery agent knows who to bill, he will send the invoice to the insurance.
littleredrooster said:
4. Recovery charges can be reclaimed from the owner's insurance as part of the accident settlement. That's why you pay your money, to cover eventualities like this. Most accident victims will never even see the invoice; when the recovery agent knows who to bill, he will send the invoice to the insurance.
Even in the case of 3rd party cover like the OP's son?th85 said:
littleredrooster said:
4. Recovery charges can be reclaimed from the owner's insurance as part of the accident settlement. That's why you pay your money, to cover eventualities like this. Most accident victims will never even see the invoice; when the recovery agent knows who to bill, he will send the invoice to the insurance.
Even in the case of 3rd party cover like the OP's son?OP you have my sympathies.
My friend had a bump in his elderly Mercedes 190 a couple of years ago. The bill for collection the following morning was near £200 despite the recovery truck passing his house on the way to the yard!
Playing devils advocate for a moment, the recovery operator will have many £££'s invested in equipment (10 ton crew cab truck as you'll see the AA driving = £70,000) and he has to have staff ready and waiting constantly.
Despite this, I do think the charges are very high and perhaps there's a better balance to be struck.
My friend paid up for his Mercedes but then proceeded to scrap it as he bought another car the following day as he works 20 miles from home. Try a complaint to the Police but really, it might be best to chalk it up to experience.
My friend had a bump in his elderly Mercedes 190 a couple of years ago. The bill for collection the following morning was near £200 despite the recovery truck passing his house on the way to the yard!
Playing devils advocate for a moment, the recovery operator will have many £££'s invested in equipment (10 ton crew cab truck as you'll see the AA driving = £70,000) and he has to have staff ready and waiting constantly.
Despite this, I do think the charges are very high and perhaps there's a better balance to be struck.
My friend paid up for his Mercedes but then proceeded to scrap it as he bought another car the following day as he works 20 miles from home. Try a complaint to the Police but really, it might be best to chalk it up to experience.
Zeeky said:
The Police in this situation appear to have assumed - wrongly -that the OP's son's insurance would pay so probably thought nothing of landing him with an unnecessarily large bill.
Or the policeman has decided to follow procedure call out the local firm and get it sorted so he can go on to his next job or back to the nick instead of sitting round for potentially hours as the recovery guy is repeatedly only a few minutes away.It's one of those expensive solutions like the emergency boarding up that the police can arrange following a break in, they may be expensive but they will turn up and will do the job at a good standard.
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