Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/29/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Chuck's towing was contracted by my insurance company (State Farm) to tow my damaged car 4.7 miles from my house to Pagani's Auto Care. They picked up my car approximately noon Wednesday 1/24/24. Instead pf towing it to Pagani's they towed it back to their lot for to store for ,delivery the next day. They claimed it was some confusion with the paperwork when I called the next day and said they would take it down within the hour. This was a lie, they did not take it Thursday and they did not take it Friday. My agent even offered to meet them at Pagani's with a check and they lied to me again and said that didn't happen. ***** admitted that it did happen when I told him I was going to call my agent and tell her about her employee lying to me. We then discussed him just doing this to scam us out of more storage fees (should have been zero but I understand 1 day, because of the misunderstanding). He then agreed to not charge storage for the weekend since I caught him in another lie. Of course the $273 he charged me was not just for storage and this was another lie. He refused to give me an itemized receipt but in the email he sent state farm I was charged $70 hook fee (which state farm had already paid), $66 for the tow from Etna (which the liar told me we would not be charged for because of the mistakes and the balance was for storage (bogus, but because of the supposed misunderstanding I agreed to one day), but he charged 3. Today at the drop off it was very contentious and we were both very rude. He couldn't wait 5 minutes but he made me wait 5 days for a 10 minute tow. Anyone who voluntarily uses Chuck's Towing is going to get screwed and I feel sorry for them. they take advantage of insurance companies that blindly write checks and don't know how to handle it when someone holds them accountable.

  Business response

  02/02/2024

  This is all false. The insurance had us take his car to our shop until further notice. There was an unpaid bill and they wanted us to tow it out on an IOU. Thats not how this works. I spoke with several people from State farm informing them as soon as the bill is paid, we will take it right to the shop. When I tried to explain this to the customer, he was so irate and irrational, I don't think he really understood the situation. He kept blaming us, saying were holding his car for ransom. This entire situation was his insurance company's fault. State farm and I decided we will meet at the shop Monday morning, and she will pay us there. This was unusual as most insurance agents we deal with usually pay by virtual credit card, but we agreed to meet in person at the repair shop, trying to resolve this. We even took off the weekend storage even though the customer wasn't going to pay anyhow, his insurance was. However, we were trying to show we were not holding his car for storage, we simply needed paid first, and felt it was the right thing to do.  We were there at the agreed time, and they were not there as promised to pay the bill. We were going to bring the car back to our shop until they paid. The customer started yelling and screaming and decided to pay pot of pocket. His insurance then reimbursed him for that. So, we dropped his car. I will attach the original work order showing they had us to it to our shop, and the email I sent to State farm agreeing on our meeting time, which they didn't show up as promised. This was such a hassle, had he just paid the bill from the beginning, he would have been reimbursed. Instead, he resorted to yelling and screaming and then paid the bill anyhow, when his insurance agent didn't show up as agreed. I get the feeling he usually gets his way by screaming and yelling and demanding things to go his way. 

  Customer response

  02/05/2024

  [If you do not say why you are rejecting the company's response, BBB must close your complaint.] 
  
  Complaint: 21217073
  
  I am rejecting this response because: The business seems to want to insinuate I was too stupid to understand the situation and just because he screws insurance companies regularly I should have stood aside and let him screw state farm in this instance as well. Even if I believe this was a misunderstanding, which I don't, the business was made aware of the problem on Thursday.  They had no intention of towing the car Thursday when they say they would and they had no intention of towing it Friday when they said they would. The agents office went above and beyond on Friday to make this right and Chuck's would not tow the car then either.  Then they lied to me about it.  I may be too stupid to understand I should let Chuck's towing screw insurance companies because that's easier than earning money the right way, but I am just stupid enough to understand fully when I am being lied to.  I feel sorry for anyone who has to deal with these dishonest, lying people.
  
  Regards,
  
  **** ********

  Business response

  02/08/2024

  I do not wish to keep going back and forth on this. I explained our position and feel we handled it properly. This was his insurance company fault and we got caught up in the fiasco. We were unable to satisfy this customer, nor will we be able to in the future. We submitted our proof and have nothing more to say on the matter.

  Customer response

  02/16/2024

  [If you do not say why you are rejecting the company's response, BBB must close your complaint.] 
  
  Complaint: 21217073
  
  I am rejecting this response because: This is a dishonest business owned by a dishonest man.  I have provided proof via text message screenshots that he is a liar and I hope State Farm discontinues using them.  For that matter I feel sorry for anyone who uses them.  There are too many honest tow companies to work with a business like Chuck's Towing.
  
  Regards,
  
  **** ********

• Initial Complaint

  02/01/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I requested a tow of my car due to a bad starter and the tow driver specifically asked for my key and said he had to have it . My mechanic called the following Monday and said the tow truck driver left it sit over the weekend with it unlocked and the key on the seat .easy to tell its In a bad area too.They have never seen anyone do that. There’s a Huge sign on the building listing the key drop slot . He acted like such a rude know it all person. Why would he ask for the key if he wasn’t going to be responsible of it . And he was very rude and treated me like it was a repossession job and not a requested tow

  Business response

  02/10/2023

  This was a simple mistake as there is no huge sign stating there's a key drop. The driver tried reaching out to the customer, but there was no answer. He did not talk to our driver as stated in the complaint. Attached is picture of the front of the building and you can see there is no huge sign stating key drop slot. Also, this is not a dangerous area and a very low crime area. We have been in business since 1976 and this is the first complaint of this sort.

   

  Thank you!

  Customer response

  02/10/2023

  [If you do not say why you are rejecting the company's response, BBB must close your complaint.] 
  
  Complaint: 18967530
  
  I am rejecting this response because: 
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** ****

  
  

  I did talk to the driver . He came to my work to get the car and the guard shack at my work notified me and I went out to speak with him. How else would he of got my key . I clarified the drop destination after he asked for my key and then I asked if there was anything else he needed and he said a plain NO. If you guys have towed before it should be common since to put key somewhere safe like inside the auto mechanic shop he dropped it off at. And never had he tried to notify me, you guys called about this complaint but that was it and way after the fact. I got a notification from

  My insurance confirming it was dropped off . He did not call

  Or anything.and I will say again  He asked for the key !. And I’m my town that is a high crime area compared to the rest of the town. 

• Initial Complaint

  06/17/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  When I called for help getting my car door unlocked, I spoke with *****. He quoted me $60 and said “I can be there in 25 minutes.” After 35 minutes past, I called back because no one showed up at my house. I needed to leave to get to work because I see patients on a schedule. The receptionist told me he will be there in 5 minutes. 9 minutes later I called back again and spoke with the receptionist because no one had arrived at my house still. She was rude with me and said he will be there soon. Shortly thereafter, an employee arrived and unlocked my door. Great! I said thank you! However, I didn’t want to pay the quoted $60 because the service wasn’t rendered within the quoted 25 minutes. I offered to pay a partial fee due to the late service (I was late for work). Two minutes later the receptionist called me demanding full payment over the phone. I told her that the service wasn’t performed in timeframe given me so that I would like a discount. She was rude to me further and told me that expecting a discount is impolite. I asked to speak with her manager and she told me that he was unavailable. She said I had to pay it in full or should call the Licking County Sheriff. I asked her to have the manager please call me back, and she hung up on me. ***** then called me three times and texted me twice within the span of 20 minutes. I was at work but returned his call as soon as I could get a break. I told him the whole situation and offered partial payment. He refused. He interrupted me multiple times and refused to work with me. He said he has had his business for 45 years. He again threatened to call the Sheriffs and said I can pay by phone now or he could come to my house and pick up cash. I don’t trust him to give him my card number over the phone so I told him he can pick up cash.

  Business response

  08/03/2022

  When the Customer called in and asked for a lock out service, we quoted her an ETA of 25 minutes. That is an estimate, not a 100% dead set time. We always give estimates and not concrete times in case of a delay due to drive time, accidents that may cause a delay or just traffic due to the morning rush. When she called back to speak with the receptionist a second time, she was firm with the customer but not rude in any way, good customer service is our top priority here at our family-owned towing company. The customer did not understand that the 25 minutes was an estimate and not a concrete time. Our driver made it to her house in 32 minutes, he had got caught behind a school bus and could not Safely pass the bus. We got there and performed the service so in return we needed to be paid the quoted amount which was $60. We both agreed to that price before we sent our driver out to her home. We didn't agree on half off due to being a few minutes late. We still completed the service, so we needed full payment. We tried to collect payment over the phone so that it would be convenient for her and us, however, she wasn't agreeing to pay the full amount so in that case we would have had to call the sheriff to collect payment. 

  Customer response

  08/03/2022

  [If you do not say why you are rejecting the company's response, BBB must close your complaint.] 
  
  Complaint: 17443698
  
  I am rejecting this response because I can prove it took almost 50 minutes for the serviceman to arrive. I can provide call records. I called back multiple times waiting for the service, and the receptionist told me he was servicing someone else (not stuck behind a bus). I was late to work, which resulted in me losing income. Which is why he did not perform the job he offered, which was lockout service in 25 minutes. He said, verbatim, “I can be there in 25 minutes.” Not “I estimate about 25 minutes.” I chose this company because I needed a quick locksmith. Then the business owner harassed me by texting and calling multiple times within a few hours while I was at work, demanding payment in full. I offered to pay $50 over the phone, and the receptionist refused. His employee threatened to not leave my house until he was paid in full.  (His receptionist was horribly rude, and if you check the google reviews, you’ll see that many people have complained about her.)
  
  Regards,
  
  ****** *******

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩