NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Another warning about a mid-state towing company accused of unfair and deceptive business practices.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates first exposed last year how Priority Wrecker Service, which also has operated as Jonny's Towing, has come under fire for the way it has treated customers.
The Tennessee Attorney General's Office even sued the company after our investigation, trying to get the company to change its ways.
But not even the lawsuit seems to have changed things.
David Pucek started out by explaining why he had contacted NewsChannel 5 Investigates.
"So I figured I'd send you an email just saying, 'Hey, they're still out there doing the same thing,'" Pucek stated.
Pucek reached out after he discovered our investigation into Priority Wrecker Service. Last summer and fall, customers shared what they described as nightmare experiences with Priority, alleging the company used questionable pricing, bait and switch tactics, and undisclosed fees, and that it threatened to impound customers' vehicles and forced them to pay in cash or through payment apps.
"You say they're still doing the same things?" we asked Pucek.
"Exactly. Exactly the same thing," he answered.
Pucek owns a trucking company and after one of his trucks had a transmission problem, Priority Wrecker, he said, gave him one of the lowest quotes.
"It was going to be around $1200 to $1300," he recalled.
But about 45 minutes later, Pucek said Priority Wrecker called him back.
"[The tow truck driver] called me right when he got it hooked up, cause that's the scam. 'I got you now. I'm hooked up to you. You pay or I'm impounding your truck,'" Pucek told NewsChannel 5 Investigates.
And suddenly, the cost to get his truck towed had tripled.
"'Your price is now $3800,'" Pucek said the tow truck driver told him, adding, "And I was like, I was furious. I was like, 'What are you guys talking about?'"
And even though Pucek said the company had originally agreed to take his credit card, that quickly changed.
"Once he (the tow truck driver) hooked (Pucek's truck) up (to the tow truck) though he was like, 'You no longer can pay with a credit card.' He's like, 'You've got to pay with a cash app or Zelle or cash,'" Pucek recalled.
Now these sorts of complaints again are not new. But here's why this one is different. This one happened in mid January, more than a month and a half after the state of Tennessee went to court, trying to stop Priority Wrecker Service from doing these sorts of things.
"This company was ripping people off," Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti told NewsChannel 5 Investigates back in early December, adding, "So we're very happy to be holding them accountable."
This conversation with the AG was right after his office filed a nearly 400 page complaint in Davidson County Chancery Court against Priority Wrecker Service, its sister company Jonny's Towing and the owner of both, Jonathan Maye. It accuses Priority of unfair and deceptive business practices and repeatedly violating the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act.
Skrmetti at the time, described the two companies as "a scammy, scammy operation."
The AG also asked the judge to issue a permanent injunction to prevent Priority from continuing to violate the law.
Yet, David Pucek's experience shows it's still going on.
"He was like, 'Either you pay your bill or I'm going to impound your truck,'" Pucek said of the tow truck driver's demand that he forked over $3800 for what was supposed to have been a $1200 tow.
So why has nothing changed?
Here's what we know:
Priority Wrecker and its owner Jonathan Maye have yet to respond to the complaint, even though they were served more than two months ago while the Attorney General's Office does not seem to have followed up with the court regarding the lack of response.
When asked about it, Skrmetti's Office told NewsChannel 5 Investigates, "We plan to press ahead vigorously with our enforcement action, and we encourage consumers who’ve been affected to contact the Division of Consumer Affairs."
But consumers, like David Pucek tell NewsChannel 5 Investigates they're tired of waiting and discovering too late that same problems customers have complained about now for months, are still happening.
"I just thought they (Priority Wrecker) were an honest company. And then I find out that they're completely the most dishonest company you could possibly find," Pucek said.
And we continue to hear from customers who have had recent issues with the company.
If you were a customer of Priority Wrecker Service or Jonny's Towing and would like to file a complaint, you can email consumer.affairs@ag.tn.gov or call 615-741-4737 to request a consumer complaint form.
We did reach out to Priority Wrecker and its owner for comment for this story and got no response.
PREVIOUS REPORTING ON PRIORITY WRECKER SERVICE:
Tennessee Attorney General sues Priority Wrecker towing company for deceptive and unfair business practices
Metro Legal Director expresses concerns after seeing NewsChannel 5 investigation of towing company
Customers upset that towing company is operating in Nashville when they shouldn't be
