The day I moved into my summer sublet with my four best friends, I was on top of the world. I didn’t think anything could ruin my day- not bad weather, not having to share one shower between the five of us, nothing. And then my car got towed…twice in the same day. Yep, great feeling ruined.
“Temporary road maintenance” was happening on Wednesdays on the road that my house was on, and it being summer, I completely lost track of which day it was. I went for a run, and on my way back, I didn’t see my car on the street. I walked around kind of confused, and then I saw the road maintenance sign. I called the Washtenaw County 911 Metro Dispatch at (734) 994-2911 and sure enough, my Ford Focus had been towed.
Because it was towed by the city, they referred me to Sakstrup’s: (734) 971-5400. It was $225 to get my car out of the lot, and I had $50 worth of parking tickets to pay- no, your parking tickets do not get voided just because your car is towed.
I got my car back around 10pm, came back to campus, and unintentionally proceeded to park in a 30 minute parking zone in a rush to get back home to my friends. You’re probably thinking “wow this girl is dumb, who parks in a no parking zone?” Well, I thought that about me too, it’s okay. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was parked, and my car got towed for a second time in 24 hours. Again, I paid $225 to get it out of the lot and another $100 in parking tickets.
My advice to you all: learn from my very costly mistakes and always double check that you are parked correctly (Many of the residential streets in the South U and Tappan neighborhoods have 2 hour parking limits) and that you’re not blocking any driveways on the street.
If you think your car has been towed:
- Call Metro Dispatch right away
- Fines increase for every night that your car spends in an impound lot
- Most towing companies are open 24/7
- If your car has been towed from private property, call the towing company directly
- The city of Ann Arbor is only involved in cases when cars are towed from the street
Never rush to find a parking spot!
- If you see one parking spot open on an otherwise full street, there’s probably a reason no one is parked there
- Look for fire hydrants, no parking signs, and any other warnings
- Be smart, be aware, and you will be fine
Contributed by Callie Kalinowski