DEARBORN — A Dearborn woman was charged $585 to recover her car from a private impound, after it was towed away from the parking lot of a business the previous night.

Rasmia Barakat, a Lebanese American woman in her 50’s, was attending a wedding at Greenfield Manor, but she did not have cash on her to pay for valet parking at the banquet hall, so she parked in the parking lot of Discover Chiropractic Health next door.

Barakat does not know English, so she did not pay attention to the sign that read: “Clinic parking only. Violators will be towed away by police order.” She said, as she was parking, a different car was being towed away, but she thought it was broken down. The person operating the tow truck did not tell her anything.

She parked her car there around 7 p.m. on Sunday Aug. 25. When she left the wedding two hours later, the car was gone.

It was towed by Muscat Towing to an affiliated impound at 8850 Southfield Fwy in Detroit.

Barakat went to recover her car from the lot of the private impound the following day.

An operator took her driver’s license and car insurance and requested $585. The fees include a $295 charge, $75 labor fee, fees for millage and the City of Dearborn.

Barakat gave the operator, who could not be seen through the thick mirror glass that separated him from customers, a credit card. 

“Cash only,” he said.

Barakat had to come back a few hours later with $585 in cash to recover her car. 

“It takes me two weeks to make that money,” said Barakat, who works at a grocery shop. “They make it in an hour.”

Muscat Towing manager said the fee is set in a contract between the owners of the business and the tow company.

However, the City limits the maximum amount tow companies can charge to release vehicles towed from private property in Dearborn to $100.

The Dearborn Code of Ordinances 06-1067, section 18-819 states: “City Council shall establish maximum services fees and charges for towing services from private property.” 

According to Dearborn Police Corporal Michael Nelson, the maximum permitted tow fee, “which shall include the cost of all special equipment used” is $100. The maximum permitted fee for storage-per day is $15. There is also a $50 Secretary of State fee that drivers must pay, which brings the legal maximum amount for one day at impound to $165. 

The ordinance also requires towing companies that operate in Dearborn, from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., to open 24/7 for drivers to recover their cars. It also says that companies that tow away cars without owners’ consent must accept all major credit cards.

The manager of Muscat Towing said he has never been made aware of such an ordinance.

“This is the first time I have heard of this law,” he said. “I will have to call my lawyer and look into this to resolve this issue.”

Nicholas S. Griffiths of Discover Chiropractic Health, where Barakat’s car was towed, said cars parked in his office’s parking lot after business hours have become a burden on his customers and business because of the trash, fast food containers and empty alcohol bottles they leave behind, especially on the weekend.

“We would come to work Monday, and the trash is all over the parking lot,” he said. 

The doctor added that he would not know about violations to City ordinance by the towing company that service his clinic.

 “The landlord arranges the towing, not me,” he said. “But there are signs in the parking lot that clearly say cars that do not belong to patients will be towed away.”

The landlord could not be reached by The Arab American News.

Nelson said citizens, who think the rights granted by City ordinance are violated, should call the Ordinance Enforcement Division of the Dearborn Police Department at 313-943-2294 and police would take “appropriate action” to make sure everything is legal.

“We have not charged anybody with violating this ordinance, because we have not received any complaints,” he said. “Most drivers and tow companies don’t know the ordinance exists.”