Embarrassing Question: How get a car out of the impound?

[SCHN!TZ3L]

Long story short, I parked in front of an access gate that I didn't see in Cape Town, and when I came back my car was gone. It's definitely been towed, not stolen, as there's a sign on the gate stating the usual threatening tow message. :/

Does anyone know the procedure to get it back? There's no notes or numbers or anything there for me to call, and I have no clue where to even start. Google hasn't been a help either.

 

[EnderZ]

Maybe try contacting your local metro police department?

 

[SILTECH786]

Contact SAPS and give them your reg to check if vehicle was booked in they should give you an O.B number use it to go get your car

 

[[AKO] MatthewGhost]

Dude, wheres your car

 

[SCHN!TZ3L]

SAPS tells me to contact Metro, Metro tells me to contact Gallows Hill Traffic Dept, Gallows Hill isn't picking up the phone...

Will try again tomorrow... :/

Let the fun and games begin.

 

[g0l1athrulz]

Enjoy finding it, maybe next time actually look around where you park

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk

 

[Toxxyc]

Also get your insurance company informed ASAP. Pounds are bound to seriously damage cars, steal stuff from/out of it, etc. etc, not to mention incorrect towing methods can destroy brakes and gear boxes.

 

[Skottelgoed Spons]

Best hope you get your car at all.

 

[Mvidz]

Dude, wheres your car

Too soon

 

[shaunn]

I would report it as stolen, let the insurance and police worry onwards.
get loaner car if you have it extra on your insurance.
Im not a guy that like to struggle.
also if they did tow it and theres no proof you parked on the no parking zone. Sue them, stating you almost 100% sure you parked next to the sign.
worse case scenario the have video , and you just say , you said you are almost 100% sure.
Everybody almost came out a mall and said...fck where did i park again

ALSO NEVER EVER ADMIT YOU DID WRONG
even if you know you did.

 

[baasgene]

did you actually find the car in the end?

 

[MSI1104]

Willing to bet money that it was Private Towers.. I would just report it stolen and let insurance sort it out...

 

[Randall]

I would report it as stolen, let the insurance and police worry onwards.
get loaner car if you have it extra on your insurance.
Im not a guy that like to struggle.
also if they did tow it and theres no proof you parked on the no parking zone. Sue them, stating you almost 100% sure you parked next to the sign.
worse case scenario the have video , and you just say , you said you are almost 100% sure.
Everybody almost came out a mall and said...fck where did i park again

ALSO NEVER EVER ADMIT YOU DID WRONG
even if you know you did.

Great advice- works wonders in most tight situations.
Dear OP- ja, they're really anal about parking in this place. Good grief!

 

[Presler]

I would report it as stolen, let the insurance and police worry onwards.
get loaner car if you have it extra on your insurance.
Im not a guy that like to struggle.
also if they did tow it and theres no proof you parked on the no parking zone. Sue them, stating you almost 100% sure you parked next to the sign.
worse case scenario the have video , and you just say , you said you are almost 100% sure.
Everybody almost came out a mall and said...fck where did i park again

ALSO NEVER EVER ADMIT YOU DID WRONG
even if you know you did.

Kak idea. They're not doing this since yesterday. Car gets photographed before it's hooked up. Every tom Dick and Gatiep these days have camera phones.

Insurance finds out you lied, you in deeper kak. Which, by this post alone they can nail you. Very easy through social media to find out who you are, and by now I'm guessing this isn't the only place you posted online of your predicament. The moment you start lying, you'll need to remember those lies to keep your story straight, and insurance guys have been around the block, they know the tales. Because it's simple, they figure you out, you either land in jail(Oh yes they will, it's called insurance fraud), paying more for insurance because you'll be tagged or for the same reason, not be able to get insurance on your name in future again.

Follow the right procedure.

1. Go to police station ASAP, now if you can, report your car missing from last location(not stolen), give exact details(time, date, location) and get OB number.
2. Give OB number to insurance which will keep your ass out of deep trouble and fees. You can always report back when you have the car back.
3. Get to Gallows Hill early in the morning, you'll need OB number and the cars original papers or owner with ID if it's still being paid and/or not in your name. The longer it stays there, the more you'll cough up for storage fees.

TIP, to figure out exactly where the car is if need be, phone the number on the gate or ask the guys who's gate it is who they called. You'll feel like an ass for a few minutes, but better that than landing a huge storage bill before you try and figure out where your car actually is. Secondly, go back to the location, look for nearby cameras. Ask owners of said shop if they mind to help you out, your car is gone. By video you can also then see who towed your car, or stole it for that matter.


Speaking of, it's insured, so by default should have a tracker in right? Get OB number, phone the tracking company and find out where your car is.

 

[shaunn]

Kak idea. They're not doing this since yesterday. Car gets photographed before it's hooked up. Every tom Dick and Gatiep these days have camera phones.

Insurance finds out you lied, you in deeper kak. Which, by this post alone they can nail you. Very easy through social media to find out who you are, and by now I'm guessing this isn't the only place you posted online of your predicament. The moment you start lying, you'll need to remember those lies to keep your story straight, and insurance guys have been around the block, they know the tales. Because it's simple, they figure you out, you either land in jail(Oh yes they will, it's called insurance fraud), paying more for insurance because you'll be tagged or for the same reason, not be able to get insurance on your name in future again.

Follow the right procedure.

1. Go to police station ASAP, now if you can, report your car missing from last location(not stolen), give exact details(time, date, location) and get OB number.
2. Give OB number to insurance which will keep your ass out of deep trouble and fees. You can always report back when you have the car back.
3. Get to Gallows Hill early in the morning, you'll need OB number and the cars original papers or owner with ID if it's still being paid and/or not in your name. The longer it stays there, the more you'll cough up for storage fees.

TIP, to figure out exactly where the car is if need be, phone the number on the gate or ask the guys who's gate it is who they called. You'll feel like an ass for a few minutes, but better that than landing a huge storage bill before you try and figure out where your car actually is. Secondly, go back to the location, look for nearby cameras. Ask owners of said shop if they mind to help you out, your car is gone. By video you can also then see who towed your car, or stole it for that matter.


Speaking of, it's insured, so by default should have a tracker in right? Get OB number, phone the tracking company and find out where your car is.

Mr knows EVERYTHING !!!!!!!!

 

[Presler]

Mr knows EVERYTHING !!!!!!!!

I don't speak unless I know, so lets leave it at "I've been around".

speaking of insurance companies and social media
Here's how insurance companies are using social media to sniff out fraudulent claims
nsurance companies tracking social media to verify clients' claims
How Insurers can use social media against you

Simple explanation. Report as stolen, vehicle is marked as stolen on eNaTIS. Now, when returned it's marked as stolen&recovered, not returned or report cancelled. 2 things happen.

1. License is removed because car was listed. Therefore car will need roadworthy and re-licence, even more difficult if the car is not in your name
2. Because of point 1, since car is now marked as stolen&recovered, you need police clearance because the engine and VIN needs to to be verified, 90% of the cases chassis gets stamped with the clearance number, usually left front shock mount(integral part of body and easily identifiable). There's some cases where you are lucky and they don't stamp, but they usually do.

So, it costs money to get back on the road plus police clearance stamped numbers is frowned upon so wave proper car value good buy.

 

[SavageJay]

Long story short, I parked in front of an access gate that I didn't see in Cape Town, and when I came back my car was gone. It's definitely been towed, not stolen, as there's a sign on the gate stating the usual threatening tow message. :/

Does anyone know the procedure to get it back? There's no notes or numbers or anything there for me to call, and I have no clue where to even start. Google hasn't been a help either.

Give Trevor Philips a call.

 

[SCHN!TZ3L]

Right, sorry for the late response.

After a lot of unnecessary struggling I did manage to get the car back 2 days after it was towed. R1,400 Towing fee + R1,000 Obstruction fine :/
For those of you who don't know, you have 3 days to collect your car, whereafter they charge a R65 per day storage fee.

I went to Gallow Hills Traffic Dept, gave them the car reg number and they confirmed that it was towed on xx day and time. I had an extremely annoying issue where they wouldn't release the car to me because for some reason the car was still registered in my father's name (I transferred it into my name last year already...) so I had to get a signed affidavit from him confirming that I was his son and it was his car blah blah blah. Whole lot of unnecessary faffing over the traffic dept's inefficient system. So double check if you've transferred a car recently!

Anyways, paid the towing fee, received the release form, and had to pick up the car from the impound lot in Ndabeni Industrial. Must say the guy working at the lot was super chipper considering he probably deals with some very unhappy people on a daily basis. Kudos to him, he actually made the experience fairly enjoyable.

There was no mechanical damage to the car. Gearbox is fine, parking brake is fine. But whoever owned the spot I parked in vandalized the windows with lipstick and permanent marker. Guess I must of caused them some minor inconvenience . Fair enough, looking at it now, it was a stupid place to park, fully admit it. Anyways, a bit of water and isopropyl alcohol got rid of that.

So I got away with a bruised ego, a lighter wallet and a newly heightened sense of looking where I park in Cape Town.

 

[ghost02]

Right, sorry for the late response.

After a lot of unnecessary struggling I did manage to get the car back 2 days after it was towed. R1,400 Towing fee + R1,000 Obstruction fine :/
For those of you who don't know, you have 3 days to collect your car, whereafter they charge a R65 per day storage fee.

I went to Gallow Hills Traffic Dept, gave them the car reg number and they confirmed that it was towed on xx day and time. I had an extremely annoying issue where they wouldn't release the car to me because for some reason the car was still registered in my father's name (I transferred it into my name last year already...) so I had to get a signed affidavit from him confirming that I was his son and it was his car blah blah blah. Whole lot of unnecessary faffing over the traffic dept's inefficient system. So double check if you've transferred a car recently!

Anyways, paid the towing fee, received the release form, and had to pick up the car from the impound lot in Ndabeni Industrial. Must say the guy working at the lot was super chipper considering he probably deals with some very unhappy people on a daily basis. Kudos to him, he actually made the experience fairly enjoyable.

There was no mechanical damage to the car. Gearbox is fine, parking brake is fine. But whoever owned the spot I parked in vandalized the windows with lipstick and permanent marker. Guess I must of caused them some minor inconvenience . Fair enough, looking at it now, it was a stupid place to park, fully admit it. Anyways, a bit of water and isopropyl alcohol got rid of that.

So I got away with a bruised ego, a lighter wallet and a newly heightened sense of looking where I park in Cape Town.

What messages did the vandal leave?

 

[martinbrown893]

Just leave it on the police or the insurance company. You weren't supposed to pay heed on this matter. If they did tow your car, sue them with proofs, you got.

 

[Skalabala]

ok