Class action predatory towing lawsuit against Chicago will proceed

A class action lawsuit against the city of Chicago accusing the Windy City of predatory towing will proceed after a federal court denied the city’s motion to dismiss in part.

On March 18, Judge Matthew F. Kennelly of the U.S. District Court for the Northern Illinois District of Illinois’ Eastern Division denied Chicago’s motion to dismiss on seven counts. However, Kennelly granted the motion to dismiss on the remaining three counts of the 10-count lawsuit.

The lawsuit is based on Chicago’s towing and impoundment of vehicles it deems to be abandoned. Also, it challenges the city’s disposal of impounded vehicles that remain unclaimed by their owners, according to the court opinion. Plaintiffs are seeking damages for alleged constitutional violations, as well as injunctive and declaratory relief, and claims under state law.

Kennelly’s opinion and order denies the motion to dismiss for the following counts:

• Declaratory and injunctive relief on behalf of tow class.
• Two counts of violation of due process.
• Two counts of declaratory and injunctive relief on behalf of the vehicle disposal class.
• Unjust enrichment on behalf of the vehicle disposal class.
• Order Chicago’s Department of Streets and Sanitation to send an additional notice of impending vehicle disposal prior to disposing of a vehicle towed and impounded.

The three counts that were dismissed include unjust enrichment on behalf of the tow class, declaratory and injunctive relief on behalf of the vehicle disposal class (unreasonable seizure) and violation of due process on behalf of the vehicle disposal class (unreasonable seizure).

Andrea Santiago, a senior citizen with multiple sclerosis who is confined to a wheelchair, alleges that the city of Chicago took her car and eventually sold it for scrap metal without giving her due process.

At the heart of the case is Illinois legislation from 2005 that addresses predatory towing in Chicago. For details about the lawsuit, check out Land Line’s previous coverage here.

Although the lawsuit deals mostly with passenger vehicles, it highlights how pervasive the problem is across the board.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association has a history of battling predatory towing within the trucking industry. In July, OOIDA sued a towing company in Tennessee for inflating the price of nonconsensual tows.

In May, the Missouri legislature passed a bill backed by OOIDA that would establish a towing task force. Unfortunately, Gov. Mike Parson vetoed the bill.

In Colorado, OOIDA helped create consumer protections against nonconsensual tows. Consequently, those rules went into effect in January 2018. However, the Towing and Recovery Professionals of Colorado attempted to have that protection removed.

Mike Matousek, OOIDA manager of government affairs, has been in the trenches in the fight against predatory towing.

“While the definition of ‘predatory towing’ might vary a bit for cars and trucks, there’s no question commercial motor vehicles are targeted by unscrupulous towing operators,” Matousek told Land Line. “We see it all over the country on a regular basis, which includes predatory booting schemes, legally-questionable drive-away tows, and other forms of nonconsensual towing. The Chicago Police Department appears to be going after some of these crooked operators, but more can and must be done – not only in Chicago, but all across the country.”