Tom, if this is an unlicensed impound operation, and if Marion used a family run tow company to seize your property without DOT authority, she just handed us a criminal case on a silver platter. What do I do? Drive out there. Do not pay them anything. Do not sign anything.
Document everything. And call the DOT Commercial Enforcement Division before you leave. I hung up, climbed back into my truck, and pulled up the Texas Department of Transportation's Enforcement Hotline. I gave them the business name, the address, and a summary. Unauthorized vehicle removal, no release authorization, possible unlicensed impound activity.
The dispatcher said an inspector would be dispatched within the hour. Then I drove to 1847 Industrial Road. The lot was gravel and chain link maybe 2 acres scattered with vehicles in various states of decay. A single wide trailer served as an office. No dot placard.
No business license visible. A hand-painted sign on the fence read Keller Towing No Trespassing. My Airstream sat in the back corner still gleaming in the sun completely out of place among the rust and oil stains. A man in his 50s stepped out of the trailer as I pulled in. Same narrow build as Marion.
Same cold eyes. Help you? He said. I'm here for my trailer. You got a release form?
I've got registration, insurance, and a lawyer on speed dial. That trailer was taken from my private property without my consent. I want it back. He smiled the same smile Marion had worn. Storage fees are $150 a day starting today.
Removal fee was $600. You pay that you get your trailer. Who authorized you to remove it? That's between me and my client. I heard the gravel crunch before I saw the white SUV pull into the lot.
Texas DOT Commercial Vehicle Enforcement. Inspector's decals on the door. The man's smile vanished. DOT inspector was a woman in her 40s named Carla Mendez. She had a tablet, a camera, and the kind of walk that said she'd done this before.
She introduced herself to me first, confirmed I was the trailer's owner, then turned to the man from the office. You the operator here? Derek Keller. This is my property. Do you hold a Texas motor carrier operating authority certificate?
Derek's jaw tightened. We're a private towing service. That's not what I asked. Mendez tapped her tablet. Any towing company that stores vehicles for more than 24 hours and charges fees for release is required to register as a vehicle storage facility under Transportation Code Section 643.
You also need a current certificate of insurance and a surety bond. Can I see those documents? Derek didn't move. Mendez walked past him toward my Airstream. She photographed it from four angles, noted the registration sticker, checked the VIN against her database.
Then she turned back to Derek. This vehicle is currently registered, insured, and inspected. It shows no signs of abandonment. Who authorized its removal? A client retained us to remove a code violation.