When Ron Kirk was Mayor of Dallas, he stated if we did not resolve the towing issue someone was going to get killed over it.
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The Kings of the Apartment-Lot Tow
How a towing company uses parking stickers, a law firm and a sham "safety group" to tow your car from your own lot.
Greg Houston
The Madera Lakeside apartments in north Arlington have the cookie-cutter look of much of suburban North Texas, a series of low-rise buildings in various shades of beige with a name ("Lakeside!") that doesn't quite match reality (an oversized puddle). The road it sits on, Brown Boulevard, is curvy, narrow and fast. The sidewalks are empty. It takes a few drive-bys and U-turns to realize that there is no street parking in sight. The gated parking lot is packed with cars.
Brent Fleming moved to Madera Lakeside in May 2012. Not long after he did, he noticed something strange: On nights when he came home late, he'd see men inside the complex's gated lot, shining flashlights at parked cars. Then they'd call in the tow trucks. He remembers being struck by the careful way a tow truck loaded up an SUV before speeding away. "They pull out of there as if they were literally stealing a car," he says.
Not to worry, though: He had his parking sticker and had positioned it in the back window, just like the woman in the leasing office told him to. But then, three weeks after moving in, he walked to the lot to discover his car missing. He assumed it'd been stolen so he called the police. But the police somehow knew better: It's been towed, they said. Fleming, 21, made a few calls and learned that the car was in the possession of a Fort Worth towing company called Black Bull. It was a name that, like many apartment dwellers, Fleming would get to know well.
Mark Graham
Brent Fleming confronted his leasing office after his car was towed. The manager mentioned that she was friends with the tow company.
Mark Graham
Warren Norred, an attorney in Arlington, represented Brent Fleming at a tow hearing and lost.
Details
Email the author at amy.silverstein@dallasobserver.com.
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He missed work at Office Depot that day and got written up by his boss. A friend drove him the 15 miles to Black Bull lot in Fort Worth, where a voice behind the bulletproof glass asked him for $380. That bought him access to Black Bull's tow lot, where he walked past hundreds of cars before he came across his black Scion tC.
Fleming retrieved his car and drove back to his apartment, where a property manager explained why he got towed: The sticker should have been on the front window, not the back. Irate, Fleming asked why he should foot the bill for getting bad advice from the leasing office. What happened next was a strange, but welcome, development.
"Well, I can't really do anything, but I guess I can try and call Black Bull," the woman said, according to Fleming. "I'm good friends with them, so maybe he'll refund the money for you."
Miraculously, she did: A week later, Fleming got his $380 check in the mail. The office's "friendship" with the towing company struck him as odd, perhaps a red flag. But he didn't think much of it, not until the next time his car disappeared.
Dallas and its suburbs offer a never-ending selection of faux-luxury apartment buildings, complete with swimming pools, polished websites, fancy names and gated parking. Depending on the complex, those parking lots can be a major source of stress for both resident and property manager. And it can be a major source of revenue for towing companies, depending on the relationship they have with property managers.
"Towing has always been a problem, [with] managers just wanting to tow you out of vindictiveness," says Robert Doggett, an attorney at Rio Grande Legal Aid who often represents tenants.
Most apartment buildings have an arrangement with tow companies, to keep their lots free of illegally parked cars. For tow companies, it's big business. "We help free some more parking spaces, that's the whole point of it," says Cory Trip, who works for Black Bull Towing. "You don't want to go home and not have somewhere to park."
State law bars apartment complexes from profiting from the tows, which should discourage property managers from letting companies like Black Bull take cars away for petty reasons. "They can't receive any benefits whatsoever from the towing company, period," says Pat Johnson, a former tow truck driver in Travis County who runs a watchdog organization, Texas Towing Compliance, and a blog called Texas Parking Facility Fraud. (His website endorses exactly two towing companies.)
"Some property managers ... are weak when it comes to turning away a towing company salesman offering their services ..." Johnson writes on his blog, "all at a price they could not get from anyone else, free."
If a car is towed illegally, often the only resource is small-claims court. But while the initial hearing costs just $26, winning is a long shot and lawyers' fees can be hefty. Successful plaintiffs used to be guaranteed attorneys' fees, but that guarantee was nullified by state lawmakers in 2011. The legislation was co-sponsored by State Senator John Carona, who happens to own Texas' largest group of homeowners associations.
State law still bans towing companies from giving apartment complexes those all-important parking stickers, the very stickers that towing companies use to know which cars to tow. It's a sensible law. And it's one Black Bull appears to have found a way to flaunt.
Just off Interstate 30 in Mesquite is a massive fence that looks to guard a military fortress. A sign out in front lets you know what's actually hiding back there: Black Bull Towing. It's one of the company's several towing yards.
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175 comments
The company in this article could just as easily be LONGHORN TOWING. The previous management of my complex got the stickers from them, we had to get "visitor passes" (when the office was open - 10a-2p with an hour closed for lunch?!?!). Many a vehicle has been snatched in less than 10 seconds around my place as well. Low down dirty buttwipes! The new owner/management doesn't have a contract (yet) with them but they use our lot as a staging area all the same. When I'm up that late, I go out and take pics of them with whichever vehicle(s) they have sitting here.
Wow. 166+ comments. People are passionate about ridiculously overpriced towing by overzealous towing companies who are affiliated with unscrupulous apartment management.
The exact same thing happened to me at the ICON at ROSS apartments in Dallas but the company was United Tows. I complained to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which 8 months later still has the case open and under investigation.
This scam needs to stop right now.
I have forwarded this story to the Mayor, every city council member, the District Attorneys for Dallas, Tarrant, Collin, Denton County, as well as the Texas Attorney General.
I am an attorney born and raised in the DFW area. I just read this story in the Observer and I am not surprised but I am shocked at the level of involvement of a licensed attorney. As an attorney I have a duty to make sure the State Bar of Texas is aware of this situation and investigates to find out why there is the appearance of an attorney seeking out to represent clients, this could be solicitation which is an ethical violation. Also it is disturbing that there is a "Middle Eastern" foreign influence here. I am disturbed that the money of north Texans is being taken from them and possibly sent back to the middle east and who know what it is funding there. Also look at ALL THE FAKE POSITIVE COMMENTS BY BLACK BULL EMPLOYEES SHAME ON YOU!!
I moved away from Dallas 14 years ago after living in the Lake Highlands area for 9 years for this very reason. My apartment building signed one of these contracts with Elite Towing of South Dallas after I had been living there for 7 years. Apparently I was not the only one who was unhappy with the new policy , because I talked to many other residents during my last 2 years who were planning to move. and I have since learned that the apartments in question have been torn down and the property management ...belly up. I am now living far away from the Metroplex and needless to say I have not had this problem since.
I just want to say to the people of North Texas that during my time in there I made a contribution to the cultural, social and economic life of the entire area , not just Dallas/Fort Worth, which was WAY ABOVE AVERAGE. And now my contributions have been lost to you because you tolerate the type of thing described in this article.
Smooth move ................................
I live in North Arlington and I have been victim for this tow company. I have pics and documentation from my illegal tow that cost me $292. I will be contacting that attorney tomorrow!
I live in a mobile home community in Fort Worth where I actually own my house outright, but not the land. We had the same issue with a managers-pet towing company. New management came in and instituted a sticker and towing policy. At first they towed any car with the sticker not perfectly placed, (from your own driveway-not a parking lot) then they required you to get a pass every time you had a guest--but the office was usually not even open to get that pass. Now, after long time tenants threatened a group action, they quietly stopped using the passes. Now they tow any car that is touching the grass (even by a few inches) beside a driveway--or that is even one day out of inspection or registration--or that even looks like it is being worked on in any way. This is much better--but it is still bad. And it is not like we have any lack of parking because our park is more than half empty. Before they stopped the stickers, a member of my family had to bring a company vehicle home instead of his own. He got home after the office closed with no way to get a "guest pass." At first we thought that the fact that the vehicle was legal and in our own driveway would protect it. We thought wrong. Woke up to discover the company car was gone. We called corporate and pointed out that we couldn't get a pass from an office that wasn't open. After a long fight we did manage to get the car back, but were told it was only because we had lived in that park for so many years. Same tow company towed my neighbors brand new car from her driveway (so new she hadn't been able to stick the sticker--it was sitting in the window but not stuck). They destroyed her front bumper in the process. I paid to get her car back and she never managed to get the money back or any repayment for damages even though she had photographs and witnesses that she had the sticker in the window--just not stuck to it. This game is apparently played all across the metroplex in every venue that has a management that can benefit from predatory towing.
Rent a house, rent a garage, rent a barn...live anywhere but a gated apartment community. They provide a false sense of security anyway.
Allegedly, the Huhem brothers really "love" each other. That's the word on the street, allegedly.
If I ever found myself living in one of these hell holes I'd take action against the fraudulent company. Removing stickers off of employee cars and buying junkers and filling it full of concrete would be great ways of making life hell for these people, as would a little jb weld on door locks of the trucks..
Wonder if BlackBull and their henchmen hired Mike Snyder to make all these positive comments about them.
Hah, these friends of Black Bull are out in full force, eh? That's the only shame of this article, pointing to one company that is problematic whereas it seems to me that it's a much bigger problem involved many more tow companies.
Years ago I lived in Denton and my roommate's car was towed- she had a permit but the permits provided were printed on paper labels that peeled off in the Texas heat. So instead of being stuck to her windshield. it had fallen off but was still visible on the dash. As poor college students who didn't really have the money or the experience to fight this, we still went to small claims court. Our apartment manager even came and testified on our behalf, that the predatory towing these guys were doing was not what they had agreed to. Even without a lawyer, we won! Yay...except there was no way for the court to require that the tow truck guy pay us back. So what's the point. It's a shady, shady business.
Of course, I don't want broken down cars or long term non-residents taking up spot but there is sane middle ground between a free-for-all and a system that tows residents without remorse. Where I live now (one of these pseudo luxury joints near DFW airport) has stated that despite the existence of clearly marked visitor spots, after midnight "there is no visitor parking inside the gate, all visitors must park on the street outside." It's just so absurd, can't wait to move. I don't see how living in an apartment means that I can never have someone visit me!
The last time I read an article like this in the Observer, Elite Towing was the culprit. What happened, did they get sued out of business?
In my old apartment complex, there was certainly not enough parking, and absolutely no parking stickers or passes, or anything of the sort. There were plenty of times I stayed in because I didn't want the frustration of finding a parking spot. One early morning, I go out, and my car isn't there. I call the cops, and they tell me it's been towed. To this day I have never gotten an explanation as to why the car was towed. In retrospect I guess I should have done more about it, but I was just so frustrated I paid the $250 to get my car out and just let the management know how pissed I was.
This is why I moved to an apartment with a connected garage, because holy shit it's so much easier.
Holy shit I have never seen such an obvious carpet bombing of positive comments on an Observer board in the history of ever. Are they towing people's laptops, too?
They are fantastic!! They protect the people who are following the rules and get rid of the ones who aren't!!
I am so grateful to have Black Bull they have made a HUGE difference at my complex! There is no cars sitting around that don't belong, I always can find a spot, and i feel protected at night! They are friendly and nice!
A couple of years agoI parked on the south east side of Preston Royal and walked around, window shopping in the center before I went in the restaurant to eat. When I passed where my car had been it was gone.. It had been towed. I called and called the land owner but he was really rude.I had to wait till the next day to pick it up and pay to get my car back. I will never eat at any of the restaurants or do business that block. These guys can do anything they want..
A couple of years agoI parked on the south east side of Preston Royal and walked around, window shopping in the center before I went in the restaurant to eat. When I passed where my car had been it was gone.. It had been towed. I called and called the land owner but he was really rude.I had to wait till the next day to pick it up and pay to get my car back. I will never eat at any of the restaurants or do business that block. These guys can do anything they want..
@yourtexasattorney Are you an attorney, by any chance? I got the hint that maybe you were by reading your post.
My apologies if I'm wrong.
Nobody but an attorney would be surprised that this sort of shady practice is the brainchild of an attorney and run for his own profit.
Attorneys are their own worst enemies. They do not police their own.
@don10235120121 You have got that right. I leased an apartment in Carrollton that had a so called "agreement" with Elite Towing. Like you said it was a nightmare of after dark tows that got quite a few of my friends vehicles. It is just a racket and I moved to a better complex in far North Dallas, that also had bizarre towing rules and another nightmare. Needless to say I am back in my native state of Louisiana after enduring living in the Dallas area for 20 years. We do not have any of these weird, illegal towing practices in our parish. Glad to be gone from "Tow City".
Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to rent a house. Some have to live in large apartment complexes, and have to deal with loud neighbors and all the neighbors' guests coming and going throughout the night. Not having a place to park is bad enough. But the noise, fights, break ins, drug dealing, prostitution, and trash all over the place make living at apartments scary. No one should have to live in those conditions, especially with their kids, just because they can't afford a house with their own yard and their own garage. Apartment complexes with strict parking enforcement are much much quieter and safer to live at, and that's just a fact. It's unfortunate that "guests" get towed or residents that don't show they're residents get towed, but its worth it so that residents who follow the rules can sleep in peace, and can go out at night to throw away the trash without being scared. This article completely misses the point (basing the story on two or three crapy examples), and goes after those who enforce the rules rather than those who break them. And it seems to be overly biased against one towing company. Typical.
@txtopnotch Yes I remember the article and it really focused on the Lower Greenville area and the towing companies moving/hiding the "No Parking" signs. The tow companies that do their rat patrol are just crooks.
@txtopnotch All of these companies eventually get sued. They simply change their name and continue victimizing people.
@JustSaying I wonder how many of them are just the same person from different accounts, aka, an employee of Black Bull, perhaps? I mean, come on, be a little less obvious.
@bonbon4811 Not true. I lived in my home as an exemplary tenant for many years. Then the towing started and they pulled my vehicle out of my driveway because the sticker had come unstuck. Twice they did this. The second time the manager apologized to me and made them bring it back because he said the towing policy was not supposed to hurt good long term perfect paying tenants like us. And yet because it kept doing exactly that, they eventually discontinued the sticker program.
@janessababe looks like you need to change the name from Black Bull to just Bullsh#t
@janessababe So is brown nosing your business or just a hobby? You're quite good at it but as for lying and pretending to be a real person? Meh, not so much.....
@mcdallas @yourtexasattorney No. But I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night.
You can go F#ck yourself for making a general bullsh#t statement. The state bar of Texas fines attorneys for the slightest thing, we have to be right 100% of the time, work 80+ hours a week most of us to barely break 100k a yearif we are lucky, with law schools cranking out 4X more attorneys than there are jobs for, with one of the highest divorce rates of any profession. We are in a state where Doctors are allowed to practice medicine when they have lost their liscenses in other states with a medical review board that has no real funding and a civil justice system that has little recourse against medical errors that kill people and you want to bag on attorneys?
@juanmayeaux @don10235120121 I used to travel frequently to Louisiana with my work ...It's one of my fav places! Thanks for the reply.
@edallas123 Black Bull... making our apartment complexes safer, one prostitute at a time! We should all be so lucky!
@shortstak666 There is nobody reading this article and the comments that is going to believe that any of these pro-towing comments are legit. One or two might have slipped under the radar but these dipshits are trying to reach 100.
@JustSaying @shortstak666 Agreed! It's hilarious and yet a little sad at the same time that they would make such extreme a$$e$ of themselves in such a public forum and in such a huge way!
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