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Help needed in Los Angeles. This is serious, Please read

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    Help needed in Los Angeles. This is serious, Please read

    Have you ever wanted to castrate a man with a dull spread knife?
    My bike was parked on a street under a sign that read “tow-away zone from 4-7”. I was thinking of moving it the whole time but one thing led to another and by the time I got to it, it was 4:30 and the bike was gone.
    I called the city and they said that bike was impounded and gave the towing companies address to go and get it. Now, for those of you who don’t know my story, I’m traveling on my GS850 around the world (www.motorcyclememoir.com) and I was in Los Angeles, CA when this happened this evening.
    Since this bike is my only ride, I called a cab and got there 45 minutes later in the rush-hour traffic of L.A. The trucking company is called Keystone Towing and the building is as big as a good size mall.
    I’m already ****ed and blaming myself for the stupid parking zone but that’s just one side of the story. They tell me that the towing fee is $217 plus $80 citation to Los Angeles police department.
    I asked the man to show me the bike so I can inspect and see that everything is ok then I’ll pay the charges. He walked me through the lot and when I got to the bike, I couldn’t believe what I saw.
    The tank was ripped off the frame and hanging from the two bolts under the seat. The seat was bent back with the tank and the tank rubber bushing and a 10mm bolt was sitting under the bike.
    As calm as I could be (which is not what you imagine the word calm would mean) I asked for the manger to come over. The big man walked out and I told him I don’t care how it happened, just tell me loud and clear what you are going to do about it and tell me now.
    He said oh, how do we know it wasn’t like this when it got here? At this point I wanted to strangle the mothe**ucker right then and there but I stepped away and called 911 to send an officer before I kill the douchebag.
    While I’m waiting, he goes on with taking pictures and telling me that I have two options. A) To pay for the bike and get it out there or B) they would charge $45 every day that it sits there. And he has to interview his driver on Monday morning to find out what’s going on.
    The cops get there and they refused to make a damage report on a ground that this is a civil dispute and if I have a problem with it, I can go to court and request a hearing.
    Now I’m traveling and have nowhere to stay in the city, nor I have the time or patience to peruse a law suit against a city contracted towing company.
    I told they guy you know what; just give me something, drop the towing fees and I’ll be on my way. after a long conversation he said that $100 of the towing fee goes to the L.A county and they can’t wave that and all he can do is to give me a discount and for that, I had to sign a waiver that I’m ok with everything and will not sue the company.
    I’m assessed my options to cut down on the damage given my travel situation, I told him that let me try to turn the bike on so I can see if it even moves, there might be other damages that I can’t see in the dark warehouse with flash light. If it moves, I make my decision then.
    This prick was rude and arrogant from the start and this time he says: take it or leave it. I won’t let you see the bike until you pay for it or get out because we are closing right now.
    At this point I told him to go **** himself and I paid the full amount so I can sue them when I get out. They ran my card and then, they wanted me to sign a paper saying that the “I have received the above vehicle in satisfactory condition”. I told them Hell no, I’m not signing that. I already paid for the “service” and I want my bike NOW. They said if you don’t sign it, you’ll not get your bike.
    So I called 911 again and asked for the cops to come back which took them 45 minutes. With their intervention, they added a segment to the paper, that the bike is in a damaged state and I listed all the damages, making two copies and finally got the bike out of there.
    I bent the tank back down but it’s holding on with the back bolts only, the paint is chipped and cracked on the tank(this tank was in immaculate shape, see the pictures on my website) and the seat is bent and ripped and it won’t stay on without moving to left and right.
    I am suing this company. Maybe the tank is not worth the trouble but it’s a matter of principle. Paying traffic fine is one thing which I don’t have a problem with, but getting f**ked in the ass by the city and their contracted company is something else.
    If you have any legal advice or you have ever been in a situationn like this, please make a comment and help me out here. If any of you guys are in Los Angeles or in the immediate area with a garage, I would truly appreciate a help with getting the bike back together so I can hit the road and get out of this godforsaken place.
    Last edited by Guest; 12-05-2009, 04:27 AM.

    #2
    I'm taking pictures and filming the damage tomorrow, i will post asap.

    Comment


      #3
      Originally posted by shirazdrum View Post
      I'm taking pictures and filming the damage tomorrow, i will post asap.
      I'm sorry to hear that they f-ed you over. I lost my 87 e30 BMW similarly 2 days ago. hb parking impounded it while it was parked on the street in front of my apartment. I was stuck in a catch 22 it couldn't register because it wouldn't smog and it was impounded because it wasn't registered, and i can't get it out because i have to register it. So in the end i forfeited it to the impound yard since the fees to get it out were going to cost more than the value of the car... now i have no cager for the rains coming in the next 2 days.

      if you need a place to crash i have a fold out couch in Huntington beach i can spare for a fellow gs-er
      Last edited by Guest; 12-05-2009, 05:05 AM.

      Comment


        #4
        That sucks man, sorry to hear that.
        I think this is how they balance the budget of California. They take it away and hope you can't get it back so they can auction it off. I saw a long list of cars and motorcycles in the same situation waiting to be auctioned off. You could probably find out when the auction is and buy it for much cheaper than the fees.
        Then everybody wonders why there are so many crimes in California. As for myself, I wouldn't mind beating the crap out of that bastard, no matter what the law says.

        There's gotta be fairness in justice and if there isn't, give them your own.

        Comment


          #5
          I know how you feel, I had my van towed because of a parking time limit at the condo complex. The f ers damaged my van and I sued them in small claims court I don't know how much I can do for you. I do have a very good selection of tools no garage If I can help I'm about 30 miles from LA
          ph 909 623-9819 the best time call Sat 12-5pm at work Or holler at the ansering machine I may be listening
          By the way I won!!! Not a big deal but their $200 tow cost them $450
          My sister had her car towed last year because the registration was expired?? $400 later, they screw you over any way they can. I could probably move things around and get your bike inside..
          Last edited by Guest; 12-05-2009, 06:15 AM.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by shirazdrum View Post
            That sucks man, sorry to hear that.
            I think this is how they balance the budget of California. They take it away and hope you can't get it back so they can auction it off. I saw a long list of cars and motorcycles in the same situation waiting to be auctioned off. You could probably find out when the auction is and buy it for much cheaper than the fees.
            Then everybody wonders why there are so many crimes in California. As for myself, I wouldn't mind beating the crap out of that bastard, no matter what the law says.

            There's gotta be fairness in justice and if there isn't, give them your own.

            OK several things, I will keep this short, but my friend Chris (not you, a different one lol) works for the City of West Hollywood and he used to be the ticket person. He would wave parking tickets all the time for people who don't live there and it's their only ticket there, etc. So you might be able to get that taken care of. Then again, West Hollywood is only that part of the city so who knows if you will be able to get this waived or not but it's a chance. Also that very well is something that LAPD should have written a report over.

            Comment


              #7
              That's a real sh!tty deal - sorry to hear you got shafted and you're now left with a bitter taste of LA. If you've got an email address for the company, or any other info, you could pop the details up here and I'd bet the guys in the GSR would overwhelm them with complaints. Might not help you get any recompense but might make help you feel a tad avenged.
              79 GS1000S
              79 GS1000S (another one)
              80 GSX750
              80 GS550
              80 CB650 cafe racer
              75 PC50 - the one with OHV and pedals...
              75 TS100 - being ridden (suicidally) by my father

              Comment


                #8
                As far as the police deal goes, they are not there to protect you, they don't care. I was treated like i was at fault the whole time. They were smiling and joking with the staff and i when they talked to me, not one smile. then when i asked one of the cops jokingly if all businesses in L.A had a similar customer service, she replied " I don't know sir, i'm not a business owner" without blinking an eye.
                They all eat out of the same bowl. what makes money for them is what they care about.
                They even refused to give me their insurance information.

                The company is:The Keystone Towing
                7817 Woodley Ave
                Van Nuys, CA 91406
                (818) 782-1996

                The person in charge was Ramiro Bravo, the operation manager. Here is the link to their contact page:



                They are part of a bigger corporation called: United Road Towing

                Jerry Corcoran, CEO jcorcora@unitedroadtowing.com
                Michael Mahar, CPA mmahar@unitedroadtowing.com
                Douglas Harff, Senior Vice President dharff@unitedroadtowing.com

                If anyone wants to give them hell.
                I'm writing a letter and sending it to all these people for the damages and will give them till Monday 5pm to respond, otherwise i will file a law suite against the city and the keystone. I got nothing to lose here.
                Last edited by Guest; 12-05-2009, 11:57 PM.

                Comment


                  #9
                  I used to haul insurance totals and had to do a vehicle condition/inspection report on each and every unit that I moved.

                  Their driver also has to fill out a condition report for the towed vehicle for just this very reason...it covers their ar$e if in the event they transport a damaged vehicle and don't report its' condition, the owner can come back at the transport company for damages, it happens.

                  You'll get your money back and with a little luck some additional funds for the needed repairs. Here's where the insurance company comes in. You do have insurance, right?

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Lesson learned?

                    Lesson learned? STAY AWAY FROM TOW AWAY ZONES!

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Sorry about all the trouble. I'm on the other side of town but if you need help fixing up the bike to make it road worthy feel free to ring.

                      Ed
                      310-809-6038
                      Ed

                      To measure is to know.

                      Mikuni O-ring Kits For Sale...https://www.thegsresources.com/_foru...ts#post1703182

                      Top Newbie Mistakes thread...http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...d.php?t=171846

                      Carb rebuild tutorial...https://gsarchive.bwringer.com/mtsac...d_Tutorial.pdf

                      KZ750E Rebuild Thread...http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...0-Resurrection

                      Comment


                        #12
                        I came home one day to see high school buddy I have not seen in 20 yrs on judge alex,his car had been damaged from getting towed away and I thought he had good case he lost,I ran tow truck for many years after high school and the cops know the companys on there tow list well,for many years I never had to tow a bike unless it was crashed.Then I went to work for big towing company on the 2nd shift and the *ickhead 2nd shift boss told me The cops called and wanted a bike towed in that was blocking a fire exit so I ask where was there motorcycle straps and a few other things that help not to damaged a bike he gave me a crazy look and walked out of my sight then cam back with two 6ft nylon strands like you hang your clothes on or something and I said if it a moped I might be able to get it, It was a honda goldwing fully dress biggest bike ever??Called him on radio and told him it was not going to work,so he comes out there take the nylon cord from me and said send a boy to do a mans job,he ties the cord around triple tree and the other one in back tire and over the seat and makes big loop uses winch and pulls it uphe made it back to shop but when he pulls in drive way it cuts loose,the cops did a tow report before so the owner got it taken care of the bike was a mess the boss put me down in the log for towing it but I slapped him around and got fired.. amen

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Sorry to hear about this nightmare.

                          You've been continually documenting the condition of your bike, so I think you have a good chance of winning your case. Check the tow away sight to see if a surveilance camera was trained on it (public or private).

                          Check to find out how they tied the bike down. I have seen logger chains used on the fork tubes, and that destoys them.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            It is a civil matter, not criminal. You have to go thru the Local Magistrates office for the County of where you were staying. Keep all paperwork. Your documented trip will be of great assistance showing the condition of the bike. I don't know Cal. civil law terms so I'll give it a go.
                            You'll want documented real world cost repair to the dmaged bike parts froma shop. Not what you think but a legitimate business owner. I understand you can probably do it yourself but you need a written estimate alomg with pics prior to the event of prickdom tow truck driver and after the prickhead got his fat fingers on it. I would also look at what this has cost you in it's entirety. Running around, loss of time if that costs you anything like say from a sponsor for your ATW trip.
                            Take all this info to the magistrate and see if or what paper you need to file. It may be "Complaint for Money Owed" a Civil action paper. It requires service from the sheriff's office or a person who can legally serve due process. Don't go crazy asking for money judges in civil court don't really like that. Also see if there are other people who have had issues on this matter. You can also get a local tv station involved in it. They would really hate the negative publicity. Especially since they work for the county/city. It would be awful for them to lose a multi $$$$$$ contract to tow for the city. Go get'em.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              I see if a tow report was done most the time if police have it done there is,I dont know about L.A most places the police do it on everything they tow and its should have any damage or lack of on the bike before it was towed

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