Multiple towing companies fined for selling deployed soldiers’ cars
People serving in the military have more on their plates than most people would imagine. However, they shouldn’t have to worry about towing companies auctioning off their cars while they happen to be deployed. Sadly, this happened to several service people who were away serving their country. Now, the City of El Paso and two towing companies have been hit with fines as a result.
These towing companies are on the hook for what happened to these soldiers’ cars
According to CarScoops, an agreement was recently made between the City of El Paso, the Department of Justice, and two Texas towing companies after the cars of deployed soldiers were towed and auctioned. One of the companies, United Road Towing, has had a contract with El Paso since 2019. The other, Rod Robertson Enterprises, worked with the city from 2015 until 2019.
The towing companies towed 176 cars belonging to deployed soldiers from their locations and later auctioned them off. This action is a violation of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). As per the agreement, the City of El Paso has a $20,000 fine, and it will need to pursue measures to ensure that city contractors comply with the SCRA.
The towing companies that towed and sold the cars have harsher penalties. Rod Robertson Enterprises has a $20,000 civil fee and has to establish a settlement fund of $140,000 to reimburse the impacted soldiers. United Road Towing has a $24,980 fee and will start a fund totaling $57,395.
United Road Towing has other requirements since it still has a contract with the city of El Paso to tow cars. The company must train its employees on the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. Additionally, it has to check the military status of the registered owners of vehicles before auctioning them. The company will also need an SCRA waiver before moving forward with auctioning a car that a protected person owns.
Notably, the Department of Justice launched the investigation after United Road Towing sold Lieutenant Colonel Lisa Dechent’s 2016 Chevrolet Silverado for $6,200. She still owed $13,000 towards the car loan.
