By Julene Thompson
For a college student, $110 may be an expensive reminder to get a parking sticker or read the towing signs plastered throughout Provo.
But that is what students pay towing companies to be able to drive their cars again.
Utah state law requires towing companies to ask no more than $55 to remove a boot and $110 to retrieve a car from an impound lot, said Ken Russell, general manager of Express Towing in Provo.
Companies can also charge fees such as a $35 gate fee if they have to unlock the gate to remove a car after hours. Some charge $15 per day after the first 24 hours a car is left in their lot because everyday a car is on an impound lot towing companies have to pay insurance on it, he said.
In Provo, towing is not going to go away, Russell said. With two colleges side by side, there is an incredible amount of students in a small space.
'And with students come cars,' he said.
Fourteen cars were towed the first day parking was enforced this semester at one lot, said Chaz Hales, 26, a third year masters student from Las Vegas studying electrical engineering. His car was one of them.
Initially the towing company asked $110 from everybody, but after pleading their case to the condo association president, the president talked to the towing company and the fine was reduced, Hales said.
Students can appeal to their complex or condo management if they have a good reason not to be booted or towed. If they have already paid, they can still appeal within 30 days from the time they were towed or booted, Russell said. Records are usually sent to accounting after that time.
'We try not to be too hard because we know they are students trying to get through school, but we are a business so we''re not going to give the vehicle back for free without legitimate reasons,' he said. 'Today, I''ve given three refunds and given back two cars for free so I haven''t made any money.'
Students booted instead of towed are in some ways lucky, Russell said.
Many towing companies boot only if they do not have enough time to tow, Russell said. Then they come back later to tow if the car is still there.
Because there are so many people with complaints about booting and towing, some towing companies are working to improve the parking situation.
Russell said he thinks there isn''t enough parking for visitors in Provo and a lot of parking sits unused at night behind towing signs.
Brian Higbee, Bishop of BYU 35th Ward, parked at a complex in his ward at night and was towed.
'I think as a bishop, if someone has a need, I can''t drive around all hours of the night trying to find a parking place when there are so many unused places close by,' he said. 'I don''t want to have to worry about being towed when I want to visit.'
The towing company did release Higbee''s car after he complained, but Higbee said he worries some companies tow unnecessarily.
'When business is slow, towing companies ask complexes if they can tow at night,' he said. 'It''s a cash cow is what it is.'
Some towing companies, like Express Towing, are trying to implement visitor passes that they offer to the complexes they work for. Tenants can use and reuse the passes as they need them.
Russell said he worries about the passes getting abused, but he said it will improve the visiting situation in Provo.
Russell said about 25 of the complexes he is contracted with use the passes, but not all complexes want to deal with them.
Each complex handles parking in its own way and it is the responsibility of complex management to explain to tenants what the parking situation is before towing is enforced.
Towing companies are instructed when and where to tow and where to put up signs by those they contract with, usually apartment complexes.
At the Riviera tenants can ask for visitor passes at the office, but how many passes they give out depends on the situation and time of year, said Scott Wilson, assistant manager of the Riviera.
In addition, there is street parking and there are also Y lots that visitors can use after school hours.