Towing fee in Offenbach: “That’s a bit of a rip-off”

Towing costs

The company Auto-Service Safar from Frankfurt won the Europe-wide tender for the towing of illegal parking vehicles in Offenbach in 2019. There were only two applicants. Towed cars must be picked up in Preungesheim.

The contract with the city of Offenbach regulates in detail how high the towing costs may be according to the time, days and type of vehicle. It starts with 175 euros, plus surcharges for towing in the evening and at night as well as on Sundays and public holidays (plus 50 euros each), the daily stand fee and 70 euros administration fee, which goes to the city.

In 2019, 874 vehicles and 157 unregistered cars were towed away in Offenbach. So far this year there have been 153 scrap vehicles and 791 vehicles.

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But is the accusation of rip-off justified? The answer is no. And the fact that a colleague of the Offenbacher whose car was also towed by Safar at the Sana Clinic recently had to pay “only” 250 euros does not prove him. The contract between the city and Safar provides for different time zones for working days from 7:01 a.m. to 6 p.m., from 6:01 p.m. to 7 a.m. and for 24 hours on Sundays and public holidays, explains city spokesman Fabian El Cheikh. Further differentiations drive the price up. Accordingly, surcharges for picking up the vehicle after close of business and the daily stand fee are due. “Therefore, you cannot assume a fixed towing fee of 175 euros,” says El Cheikh.

The 339 euros come about as follows: 225 euros for towing a car in time zone 2 (Saturday before 7 a.m.), 35 euros for pick-up outside of business hours on Saturday, 9 euros stand fee for the first day plus 70 euros administration fee for the city raises. The latter is due as soon as a tow truck is requested. El Cheikh justifies the administration fee with the time it took to draw up the cost assessment and the waiting time for the towing service. Both usually take 45 to 75 minutes of working time on the patrol.

It is only cheaper for the wrongdoer if his car has not yet been hooked up before the owner shows up: Safar charges between 65 euros on working days and 165 euros on Sundays and public holidays for empty trips.

Safar has been working in Offenbach since 2017. At that time, the company had received an order from the Sana Clinic to remove incorrectly parked vehicles from private property. Because the company is said to have acted very rigorously against parking offenders, there was talk of “tow-rip-off” in the local newspaper

A clinic spokeswoman told the FR that the situation had improved significantly thanks to the collaboration with Safar. The entrances for rescue vehicles or the fire brigade would be kept free around the clock. The situation has also relaxed with the short-term parking spaces, which used to be occupied for hours.

Markus Reichart, who is responsible for press questions at Safar, said that the company won the tender “because we were cheaper than the previous provider”. He considers the criticism to be unjustified, saying that it is a matter of “usual prices”. They would even be below the fees that private individuals would have to pay to have their defective car towed away.

Reichart also points out the personnel costs that were incurred because Safar was manned around the clock. In addition, there would be expenses for the vehicle fleet. A tow truck costs 175,000 euros and “drove to death” after five years. In addition, Safar alone incurred a quarter of a million euros in insurance premiums each year.

Incidentally, Falko P. still has to expect a ticket. This is comparatively cheap at 15 euros. El Cheikh emphasizes that the administration fee has nothing to do with the warning fee for illegal parking.

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