Tip #66: You can usually choose your tow, but the police decide when safety requires it
In most breakdowns you choose who tows your car and where it goes. When police are on scene after a crash, a blocked lane or another safety problem, the officer may call a tow from the town's list, and that decision is theirs.
Tip #66 in one line
In most breakdowns you choose who tows your car and where it goes. When police are on scene after a crash, a blocked lane or another safety problem, the officer may call a tow from the town's list, and that decision is theirs.
Stuck right now? Skip the reading and call.
Call nowWhen the choice is yours
If your car breaks down on a local street, a state route or in a parking lot and nobody else is involved, you pick the company and the destination. The same is often true after a minor crash once the cars are out of the travel lanes and the officer has what they need.
The sooner you call, the more likely the choice stays yours. Calling your own tow before or while you call the police, and telling the officer a private tow is on the way and where the car is going, gives the officer an easy option.
One call, one flat quote, 24/7.
Call nowWhen the officer decides
Police may call a tow themselves when the car is blocking traffic and has to be moved now, when nobody is able to arrange a tow, when the car is part of an investigation, or for other safety and enforcement reasons. Towns typically use a list or rotation of approved companies for these calls. If the officer says the car has to go with their tow, do not argue at the scene. Ask for the company name, the yard address and the report number.
On the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, shoulders are served by the Turnpike Authority's authorized garages. Book with us anyway, and once the authorized truck has the car off the highway we take it from the exit or the garage's lot to your shop.
One call, one flat quote, 24/7.
Call nowIf the police tow takes it
Expect the car to go to the rotation company's yard, with storage billed by the day and a release process. Once it is released, a second tow takes it to your shop. We do not take police rotation calls, but we move released cars at our normal flat quoted price.
Keep the report number, the company name and the yard address together. You will need all three to get the car back and to file the claim, and your insurer may want to know why the car went where it did. Ask the yard what it needs for release before you go.
If you can still choose, call (908) 444-0129. Read accident towing and emergency towing for what we do at the scene, and the accident towing guide for the steps in order.
One call, one flat quote, 24/7.
Call nowMore on accidents & insurance
Keep reading, or go back to every post on the blog.
- What to do after a car accident in New Jersey
- Tip #36: At a multi-car crash, get people safe before you think about the cars
- Tip #37: Take timestamped photos before the car moves an inch
- Tip #59: Check whether your policy covers roadside help, and keep the receipt either way
- Tip #60: In New Jersey, your own PIP pays your medical bills first after a crash
- Tip #61: Your insurer will ask for a claim number, photos and the police report number
- Tip #67: A roadside club and a local tow operator each have a place, so know when to use which
- Tip #69: Getting a tow reimbursed is four steps, and the first happens at the car
- All posts
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