An Ottawa driver is speaking out after her vehicle was towed from a crash scene in early November and held for months during a dispute between a local tow truck company and an insurance provider.
Patricia Scott’s garage has sat empty for over two months since her Jaguar SUV was involved in the crash on Highway 417. The vehicle was towed by an Ottawa company, and it’s been over two months since she saw her SUV because of a dispute between the towing company and her insurance company over the cost of the claim.
“My OnStar system from the car called police services or emergency services then police and a tow truck show up,” said Scott, who was speaking from her home in a rural area outside of Ottawa. “The next morning when I was released from hospital, I called insurance immediately to notify them of the incident and was instructed at that time to sign a letter of authorization that the tow truck company release my vehicle into their care and control of Intact Insurance, which I did. That’s the last I heard about my car and that was November 6.”
Scott said there were weeks of delays due to a dispute between the towing company, Southway Towing, and Intact Insurance, her auto insurance provider, over the cost of the tow and storage fees.
“I was told that it was because Intact Insurance didn’t agree with the amount of money being requested from the tow truck company,” said Scott. “And so they were, quote, negotiating with the tow truck company in order to come to a resolution to release my car so that the assessment could be done.”
Patricia Scott says she hasn’t had her vehicle since November due to a dispute between a tow truck company and her insurance provider. (Natalie van Rooy/CTV News Ottawa)
Scott says the bill being negotiated was at one point quoted by insurance as close to $10,000 for both the tow and storage. In the meantime, she was being offered a rental car, as the two sides went back and forth over the bill.
“On January 3, they told me that my car rental policy had expired and they will no longer give me a rental car so I need to return the rental car,” said Scott. “They gave me until the following Sunday, so I had 48 hours to return the car.”
Scott was also worried about her Jaguar in the winter conditions, not knowing what state it was in, how it was being stored and the extent of the damage from the crash.
“It’s been extremely frustrating,” she said. “I have to call quite regularly, I send emails, I make phone calls, and phone calls are not returned, while emails aren’t responded to.”
Police say if you are involved in a crash, call your insurance company for preferred companies if you are able to and unless initiated by the police, your consent is required to tow your vehicle, meaning you shouldn’t be obligated to accept an unsolicited tow.
An update then came through to both CTV News and Scott after CTV News reached out to all sides.
“Our teams are committed to working closely with our customers throughout the claims process. We do not have anyone available for an interview and due to privacy, we are unable to share specifics on customer files,” said the statement from Intact Insurance.
“What we can say is the claim was not denied; in fact, our teams have been actively working on this matter, and we can confirm that we have completed negotiations on behalf of our customer with the towing company and the fee will be covered under their insurance policy.”
Southway Towing declined an on-camera interview, but in a phone call with CTV News disputed the bill being close to $10,000 and said it was in fact, only half that, closer to $5,400. The company claims that it was the insurance company causing the delay and that the vehicle was ready for pick-up on November 15, with Intact Insurance only getting back to them on January 9 to dispatch a pick-up.
Meanwhile, a few weeks after Scott’s crash, the same towing company was charged by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in early December under the province’s Towing and Storage Safety Enforcement Act in an unrelated case. OPP said the company allegedly towed a vehicle against a driver’s wishes after a crash and refused to release it. The vehicle owner said they were told to pay more than $5,000 for one week of storage. At the time, Southway Towing faced nine charges, including charge or demand payment without consent. The charges are before the provincial courts and have not been proven.
Scott says, since CTV News began to ask questions, her car was towed to an auto body shop the same day. She’s hoping her ordeal ends soon.
“It would be ideal if I had my car back repaired and I could go on with my life,” she said. “That would be my goal and it’s been my goal since I’ve had the car crash.”
Scott’s Jaguar still needs to be fixed and it’s not clear how much that will cost and how long it will take.