Tow Truck Accidents: Roadside Assistance Gone Wrong

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A tow or recovery scene puts several people and several legal questions in one place: a driver approaching the scene, an operator working it, a motorist standing beside a disabled car, and a vehicle handed over to be towed. Georgia’s move-over statute sets the approaching driver’s duty, the rules on an employer’s liability decide whether the recovery company answers for its operator, and the bailment statutes put a burden on the one who took custody of a vehicle that comes back damaged.

The Move-Over Statute

OCGA 40-6-16, the “Spencer Pass Law,” provides in subsection (c) that “[t]he operator of a motor vehicle approaching a stationary towing or recovery vehicle, a stationary highway maintenance vehicle, or a stationary utility service vehicle that is utilizing traffic cones or displaying flashing or revolving yellow, amber, or white lights shall approach the vehicle with due caution and shall, absent any other direction by a peace officer, proceed as follows.” The operator must “[m]ake a lane change into a lane not adjacent to the towing, recovery, highway maintenance, or utility service vehicle if possible in the existing safety and traffic conditions,” or, if a lane change “would be impossible, prohibited by law, or unsafe,” must “reduce the speed of the motor vehicle to a reasonable and proper speed for the existing road and traffic conditions, which speed shall be less than the posted speed limit, and be prepared to stop.”

Where the law requires a person to act for another’s benefit, or to refrain from an act that may injure another, the injured party may recover for the breach of that legal duty on proof of damage, even if no cause of action is given in express terms (OCGA 51-1-6).

The Operator and the Recovery Company

A person answers for torts committed by a servant at the person’s command or within the scope of the person’s business, whether through negligence or voluntarily (OCGA 51-2-2), but an employer is not responsible for the torts of one who exercises an independent business and is not subject to the employer’s immediate direction and control (OCGA 51-2-4).

Repossession Tows

After default, a secured party “[m]ay take possession of the collateral” (OCGA 11-9-609(a)), and it may do so “[p]ursuant to judicial process” or “[w]ithout judicial process, if it proceeds without breach of the peace” (OCGA 11-9-609(b)).

Damage to the Towed Vehicle

“A bailment is a delivery of goods or property upon a contract, express or implied, to carry out the execution of a special object beneficial either to the bailor or bailee or both and to dispose of the property in conformity with the purpose of the trust” (OCGA 44-12-40). “In all cases of bailment, after proof of loss by the bailor, the burden of proof is on the bailee to show proper diligence” (OCGA 44-12-44).

Fault Among Several Actors

The factfinder looks at the fault of every person or company that contributed, named or unnamed, subtracts the plaintiff’s own percentage, splits the remainder among liable defendants without joint liability, and denies recovery at 50 percent or more (OCGA 51-12-33(a), (b), (c), (g)).

For example, imagine a stranded driver struck while standing on a shoulder, with total damages of $300,000 and fault assigned 10 percent to the stranded driver, 70 percent to the passing motorist, and 20 percent to the recovery operator. The award falls to $270,000, of which the motorist owes $210,000 and the recovery operator $60,000, each separately. Had the stranded driver been assigned 50 percent or more, there would be no recovery.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the move-over duty different for a police car or ambulance?
The same two steps apply to a stationary authorized emergency vehicle displaying flashing yellow, amber, white, red, or blue lights, and the fine for that violation is up to $500.00, compared with up to $250.00 for a violation involving a towing, recovery, highway maintenance, or utility service vehicle (OCGA 40-6-16(b), (d)).

Which vehicles count as utility service vehicles under the move-over law?
Any vehicle used by an employee or contractor of an entity, including a local government, an electric cooperative, or a public or private corporation, in connection with providing electric, natural gas, water, wastewater, cable, telephone, or telecommunication services or maintaining the related infrastructure (OCGA 40-6-16(e)).

Can a lender require the borrower to bring the vehicle in instead of towing it?
If agreed, and in any event after default, a secured party may require the debtor to assemble the collateral and make it available at a place the secured party designates that is reasonably convenient to both parties (OCGA 11-9-609(c)).

How much care does a bailee owe?
All bailees must exercise care and diligence to protect the thing bailed and keep it safe, and different degrees of diligence are required according to the nature of the bailment (OCGA 44-12-43).

  • OCGA 40-6-16(a) through (e)
  • OCGA 51-1-6; OCGA 51-2-2; OCGA 51-2-4
  • OCGA 11-9-609(a), (b), (c)
  • OCGA 44-12-40; OCGA 44-12-43; OCGA 44-12-44
  • OCGA 51-12-33(a), (b), (c), (g)

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about the Georgia statutes that bear on tow and recovery accidents. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. The rights of an injured person, a motorist whose vehicle was towed, or a debtor whose vehicle was repossessed depend on the facts and on strict deadlines. Anyone with an actual or potential claim should consult a licensed Georgia attorney promptly about the particular situation.

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