Can my car be towed due to expired inspection/emission stickers?

Submitted by akaJesusX t3_11m4ksm in Pennsylvania

This morning, I went out to my car and found a large sticker from the the local extortionists towing company stating that they were going to remove my vehicle due to expired inspections and emissions stickers on Thursday. I will admit that I am due for both and have an appointment set up to have it taken care of tomorrow.

Unfortunately, I could not salvage the sticker as it was right on my driver side window and it was one of those stickers that is impossible to remove in one piece. They were citing PA Title 75 Section 3353. Do they have any legal ground to stand on?

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Comments

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andross99 t1_jbfqtqi wrote

Think it comes down to the property owner being okay with it, is this an apartment complex?

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbfr2c5 wrote

It is. I'll comb through my rental agreement to see if there is anything in there about it.

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andross99 t1_jbfrepq wrote

Yeah pretty sure you are screwed then. Hate predatory tow companies but you’ll have a way bigger headache fighting them.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbfsa3b wrote

So it is part of my lease agreement. Yeah I've fought with this company before. They towed my vehicle because the parking pass was velcro'd to my dash board and not on my mirror.

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No-Setting9690 t1_jbg0qyz wrote

If you have an appointment scheduled already, I would call your office manager for the building and explain it.
Did they just expire? Police are giving people extra time understanding that many garages are booked for weeks.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbgo90t wrote

They' expired on February 1st (tags say 1/23). I'll admit it's my bad for letting them go this long. I also did not read that sentence in my lease agreement. I'll call the office tomorrow and explain that it's in for inspection, and in the event that they find something wrong, to please give me some leeway to fix my car.

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No-Setting9690 t1_jbgoe2m wrote

I would think the office would work with you. It's probably the tow company that goes around looking for that.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbhh5hs wrote

I do see them prowling the lot once in a while. They're sneaky, too. They'll tow your car at 10:30 p.m., take it to their lot and check it in at 11, then not have anyone there to get your car out until the next morning and charge you for 2 days of lot fees at like $75 per day. Then there is the $70 gate fee because they had to open their gate, mileage on the truck (I live in Camp Hill, they're near Colonial Park), the other $70 gate fee because they had to open the gate again for you to leave, and on top of all of that, they only accept cash or post office money orders.

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30686 t1_jbgcexm wrote

If it's on private property, and if the towing company has been hired by the property owner, as stated in Section 3353(c).

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbgnpfr wrote

Got it. Yeah I found a part of my lease agreement that says the property can have it towed if inspection is out of date.

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just_play_one_on_tv t1_jbgpo67 wrote

Looks like everything was answered, but Goo Gone and a scraper/blade can remove the sticker.

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jcaino t1_jbgpzwn wrote

This. And make sure it's registered and insured.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbhgebc wrote

Fully registered and insured. Just let my inspection go a little too long is all.

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beautifulsouth00 t1_jbguxzj wrote

I like lemon Lysol Disinfectant concentrate better than Goo Gone. It's cheaper, smells better and doesn't leave the greasy residue. You just need to let it sit for a minute or two, it loosens the adhesives. Source- I am an absolute slut for double sided tape keeping floor mats in place, tablecloths on and curtains pulled back just right.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbhg2a3 wrote

Thanks for the advice on this. I razored it and took it to a local car wash. It needed a bath anyway.

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Pink_Slyvie t1_jbhb8ow wrote

Drop it off at the mechanics tonight and put the keys in the dropbox?

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbhgb1l wrote

Unfortunately, that would just mean one extra Uber trip since I'd need to go back to give them my registration and insurance card in the morning. Luckily my job is pretty flexible about me having to drop my car off.

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Blexcr0id t1_jbiv7rt wrote

My mechanic will accept them via email and print them out for me. If I'm gonna drop cash money for an inspection (& emissions...) they don't mind.

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Pink_Slyvie t1_jbhggvg wrote

Huh? Just leave it in the car.

You really don't want to drive the car in the daylight, they will pull you over fast.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbhioy8 wrote

My insurance card is digital, and I don't have the means of printing it out. Over in my area, cops generally don't pull you over just for expired inspections. They tack it on if they get you for something else, and I tend to drive as legally as possible.

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Pink_Slyvie t1_jbhnod4 wrote

I would recommend highly getting paper copies.

Also, you can get inspections done 2 months early, it's typically worth it.

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worstatit t1_jbjbbhh wrote

Obtain a sticker scraper from the auto parts store and scrape off the inspection stickers when they expire. The traffic fine for not having a sticker is the same as having an expired one, but your apartment management and tow service can't make the call as to whether it's expired if it's not there. Apparently, this is a lazy way of making sure tenants don't store inoperable or unused vehicles on the property.

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akaJesusX OP t1_jbjcmop wrote

That's actually clever as hell. I leave them on because usually a cop only gets a glance at that part of your window, so I'd rather them see that there are stickers and go on about his or her day. Also, unfortunately, the verbiage in my lease agreement states that my car needs to have up-to-date stickers or they can remove the vehicles. You are right it is a lazy way of keeping inoperable cars out of the complex.

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