A Charlotte, N.C., towing company with a well-established reputation for predatory towing and its owner have finally been held accountable, ending a lawsuit that was filed by the state nearly six years ago.
Predatory towing has been a major problem in Charlotte, with one local news outlet calling it the “wild west of towing.” That 2024 WBTV report features David Satterfield, the owner of A1 Towing Solutions, who has faced more than 40 criminal charges and has been sued by the state attorney general not once, but twice.
In 2020, then-North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein filed a complaint and restraining order against Satterfield and A1 Towing. The towing company was accused of predatory towing practices that gouged truck drivers during the pandemic.
“As North Carolinians were waiting on critical supplies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, these defendants were exploiting the situation for their own profit,” Stein said in a statement. “Any would-be price gouger should take note – my office will hold you accountable for harming people in this time of crisis.”
Three years later, Stein filed an amended complaint that piled onto the 2020 charges. Stein accused A1 Towing of “racially targeting consumers and illegally booting and towing their vehicles.”
Finally, the state has ended its case against A1 Towing, handing out its first judgment in a predatory towing case.
On Feb. 16, Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced Satterfield and A1 Towing have reached a settlement with the state. According to the consent decree, A1 Towing must pay $30,000 in restitution for predatory towing victims. Additionally, Satterfield and A1 Towing cannot do the following:
- Tow vehicles without first getting permission from the owner of the property that the vehicle is on.
- Charge excessive amounts for towing.
- Put boots on commercial vehicles – like the trucks used to deliver food and water during the pandemic.
- Threaten vehicle owners/drivers.
- Tow vehicles from private lots unless the lots are clearly marked with signs.
- Hold onto commercial cargo obtained through a nonconsensual tow.
- Charge separately for towing and impounding the separate parts of a tractor-trailer.
- Boot a vehicle while the driver is in it without first informing the driver or giving the driver a chance to move the vehicle.
- Charge DMV filing fees when no such fee is required.
- Require consumers to schedule a time to pick up their vehicle and then charge them for a delay in the pickup caused by the defendant.
If Satterfield violates any of those terms, he will owe the state $110,000.
States go after predatory towing
North Carolina’s first predatory towing judgment comes after it and several other states introduced bills to address the problem.
A new North Carolina law that went into effect last December addressed predatory towing against truck drivers. It is now illegal to immobilize a commercial vehicle for parking enforcement. Towing companies must also hand over the cargo.
Starting this year, companies in Illinois will find it more difficult to get away with predatory towing. A new law allows the state to go after chameleon tow companies evading fines accrued under a different company name.
Last fall, Connecticut enacted a “towing bill of rights.” The new bill provides consumers and companies protection from predatory towing.
Lawmakers in Missouri, New Hampshire and Vermont are considering a variety of bills dealing with predatory towing. LL
Land Line State Legislative Editor Keith Goble contributed to this report.
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