Saturday, July 9, 2011

City suspends tow truck company

From the Daily News:

A company that chronically parked junk cars on Maspeth streets has been suspended from a city program that authorized it to tow cars from accident scenes - much to the delight of frustrated residents.

The city Department of Consumer Affairs has removed American Auto Body & Recovery from the program, pending a hearing Thursday.

"DCA inspectors have issued violations to American Auto Body & Recovery, and as of last Thursday they will be suspended from the DARP program," said agency spokeswoman Abigail Lootens.

The company was part of the Directed Accident Response Program (DARP) and Rotation Tow Program (ROTOW), which allow towing from accidents and removing abandoned or stolen vehicles, respectively. The DCA regulates both programs.

DCA officials said that during two separate inspections, the company failed to present its DARP service call records.

Many locals and civic leaders questioned American Auto's inclusion in the program after the NYPD issued 86 summonses to the company in the first three months of this year.

American Auto owner Polina Loumakos declined comment on the upcoming hearing but defended the way her company operates.

"They just caught us on a bad day. Everything is done correctly at my shop," she said, adding that the cars on the street during the day were waiting to be transported. "I feel like all the media is trying to attack me. When you guys come here it's always during business hours," she said.


I guess they are supposed visit you during non-business hours when you aren't there?

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

The reason that this was allowed to go on for so long is that, once again, Bloomberg considers Maspeth one of NYC's chamberpots!

In fact he most likely thinks it's the asshole of Queens!

Anonymous said...

Maspeth residents are very fustrated people.....GET A LIFE. there are bigger and better things to report about. not a freakin car on the street. Well let me mark Maspeth off my list of places I might want to buy a house....

Queens Crapper said...

Is that you Pollina?

Anonymous said...

I don't know is it Queens Crap?

Queens Crapper said...

Well I do know Polina Loumakis is not welcome in Maspeth since she doesn't know how to run a business without breaking the parking regulations and obviously can't adhere to the standards of being a RO-TOW participant, so if this is her, I am glad you crossed Maspeth off your list of places to live. Do us all a favor and stay in Glendale.

Anonymous said...

Even if the cars were waiting to be transported they shouldn't have been in the street...

Anonymous said...

Hey Polina Loumakis, just witnessed another one of your American Collision tow trucks blowing a traffic light in Middle Village. Great company.

Anonymous said...

This is still going on they park on 60 street and leave the cars that they are suppose to b fixing or holding in front of houses. It is hard enough for hard working people to come home and have to ride around for long periosd sof time because these cars are in the spots. nothing has changed. just a little less. and the people that work for them are rude, crass nasty people. I have lived here for 12 years and it never changes. It is rare to see any police giving them summons.

Anonymous said...

from michigan my car got towed by this company and they charged me 550 dollars to supposedly hold the car on a public street. these guys are dirty. i mean it takes 2 seconds to release this is a mafia front controlled business. i mean a woman tow truck company owner (yeah right wonder who the meathead behind the operations is.