The Stories I’ve Heard

Some day I’m going to write a book about the stories I’ve heard from customers whose vehicles we towed in to our yard. I try to believe the best of everyone, but sometimes I wonder what tale I’m going to be told.

When someone walks into the lobby, I usually can tell what kind of reaction I’m going to get from them just by the look on their face. It’s a way for me to brace myself for anger, frustration, disbelief, denial, etc. Or if I see a friendly face, or someone who is injured.

Like all of you in this industry, my business has rules and regulations I have to follow to protect my business, myself and the vehicle owner. While most customers, after receiving an explanation of what we need and why it’s needed to move forward, are understanding, there are some people who just don’t get it, and their story is usually told a bit louder and more aggressively.

While I’m going to include those kinds of stories in my book, I would really like to write about the elderly gentleman who came in for his personal property — especially his dentures. He said he was jolted so hard they fell out of his mouth.

Another story is the time we found a dog huddled under a blanket on the passenger-side floor of a towed vehicle. I like dogs, but I was thankful there was a woman in the waiting room who offered to hold him until the owner’s son could come and get him. The owner of the vehicle died in the incident, and the tears of joy I saw running down his son’s face when he picked up his dog were joyful, but heart wrenching at the same time.

I know all of you have stories to tell, many of which I know I could relate to. It’s the nature of our business. But, every once in a while, you hear a story that would make a good chapter in a book about the life a tower. Do you have one you would like to share?