Woman Catches Tow Truck Driver Damaging Car During Pickup

There is nothing like returning to your vehicle to find it has been towed. You immediately know you’re going to be into the tow company for a pricey fee, and you also know that until you take care of it, you’re stuck without your ride.

But it could be worse.

A video posted by San Francisco native Gia_pc (@gia_pc7) seems to show a truck seriously messing up a car in an attempted tow. The TikTok, posted Saturday, has picked up over 1.5 million views and has viewers asking just who is responsible for the damage.

The screen text of the video claims that Gia “saw the tow truck trying to hook the car but was doing it so fast and started to cause traffic and then this!”

The video appears to show the tow truck pulling a car away from the curb and into the street. The car then rolls off the truck’s wheel lift, which knocks the car’s bumper off to the side. At this point, Gia audibly gasps.

The tow driver is not seen exiting the truck to inspect the damage in the video. Instead, the truck attempts to maneuver the wheel lift under the visibly damaged car.

After the car falls off the lift again, the truck re-inserts the wheel lift and finally drives away, leaving what appears to be parts of the car behind.

Several of Gia’s viewers wrote that she should attempt to contact the car’s owner and provide them with the video.

Cheyenne Bethke (@cheyennebethke0) wrote, “You need to give this video to your neighbour!”

Another added, “give the footage to your neighbor and with a p.s. to pay their car note.”

Other viewers suggested that the tow company would attempt to deny any damage done.

“‘It was already like that,'” wrote Carrie (@carrieglo3).

Another person commented, “The tow company will still be like: Oh we picked it up like that.”

One viewer added, “Even if it’s a repo they will blame him for the damage and charge it to him. Still show this to your neighbor.”

@gia_pc7 #fyp #towtruckstories #repoman #repomandontplay #towtruckdriver #towtruck #towlife #hessorrynotsorry ♬ original sound – gia_pc

According to Citizenshipper.com, “In most cases” a tow company “can be held responsible for any damages caused to your car during the towing process for failure to exercise ‘due care,'” while “connecting the vehicle to the tow truck.” 

Thomas Law Offices notes that “Bumper damage is one of the most common types of damage caused by a tow truck. If the tow truck operator doesn’t position the winch hook correctly, front or rear bumper damage can result. Tow truck drivers also need to consider the material of the bumper. Plastic and metal bumpers, for example, should be handled differently from one another.”

In a follow-up video, Gia claims that the towing occurred because the vehicle was blocking a driveway in the neighborhood.

Gia says she talked to the car’s owner after seeing him in the street shortly after the car was towed. She also says the man told her he owned the house with the driveway that was being blocked.

“I gave him the video; I wished him well. He was very appreciative, and we went on our way,” Gia says.

It could have been worse. At least her neighbor didn’t wake up in a tow yard.

The Daily Dot has reached out to Gia via TikTok for more information.

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*First Published: Apr 10, 2024, 1:00 pm CDT

Beau Paul

Beau Paul is a freelance writer from Austin, Texas. Beau also wrote narrative and dialog for the gaming industry for several years before becoming an entertainment journalist.

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