Tucson City Council considers restrictions to prevent predatory towing

Tucson towing firms accused of preying on the public could face financial consequences under a city ordinance aimed at curbing their activities.

City Council is eyeing the change in response to an Arizona Daily Star investigation of A & B Towing, a firm accused by critics of seizing vehicles for no apparent reason and holding them hostage for hundreds of dollars despite having no legal right to do so.

The Star found that the Tucson Police Department has received more than 200 calls since 2019 about fights, threats, assaults and other disturbances at the company’s southside headquarters.

In some cases, drivers paid to retrieve their vehicles because they didn’t realize they didn’t have to pay, police said. Others were left without their vehicles because they couldn’t afford to pay.

Complainants say A & B trucks cruise the city at night, often on weekends in the downtown area, hunting for vehicles parked after hours in the parking lots of local businesses even if there are no signs warning drivers not to park there.

The Star also found the city of Tucson had left the door open to such activity because it had not adopted local regulations for the towing industry despite having the power to do so under state law.

Ward 3 Councilman Kevin Dahl asked the council to consider putting restrictions in place to weed out bad operators, similar to those in place Phoenix and Tempe. They include:

Requiring tow truck drivers to photograph the scene of an alleged parking violation before towing.

A ban on cruising for vehicles parked on private property.

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A provision that forces towing firms to reimburse owners whose vehicles are wrongfully towed.

Restrictions on how much a company can charge for towing and storage fees, similar to measures in Phoenix that cap towing fees at $105 and storage fees at $12 a day — both far less than the $250 or so A & B Towing charges for towing and its $60- to $80-a-day storage fee.

Dahl said after the Star story was published, his office received two calls from people who said they also had been victimized by A & B Towing. One was from a TPD officer whose son’s vehicle was towed, he said.

“Without a doubt, we can’t have predatory towing practices happening in the city,” Ward 2 Councilman Paul Cunningham agreed.

Tucson City Attorney Mike Rankin suggested that the predatory towing problem was not widespread in Tucson, but rather, the result of “one or two bad actors.”

Rankin’s office will study the issue and consult with the towing industry before bringing a proposed new ordinance to council in February.

A & B Towing operator Cecelia B. Perez has not responded to the Star’s findings. Perez, 60, was charged in December 2021 on suspicion of assault with intent to injure, a misdemeanor, after allegedly clashing with a Tucson man trying to get his towed vehicle back.

City court records show the case is scheduled for trial in January.