BILLINGS - It’s being called a landmark suspension.
A Billings tow truck company was pulled from the Montana Highway Patrol’s tow response list after overcharging a Bozeman hardware store thousands of dollars to have a truck towed from a crash scene.
Anderson Towing was placed on a six-month suspension for charging two-and-a-half to three times what is considered reasonable.
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“The billing in this case was determined by the board to be egregious enough to reach the level of a suspension,” said Andrew Butler, supervising attorney for the Tow Truck Resolution Complaint Committee (TTRCC).
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On April 17, 2024, Anderson Towing charged Kenyon Noble Lumber and Hardware $6,700 for a four-mile tow after a crash in Bozeman.
The Bozeman store filed a complaint that was elevated to the tow-truck committee, which handed down the suspension.
The suspension means that when a stranded driver calls for a tow, Anderson won't be called upon to respond.
“Six months. They hadn't handed down a suspension of that length previously,” said Scott Wolff, Montana Tow Truck Association president.
Wolff said this incident is an aberration and 99 percent of towing businesses are good.
But he says the review and suspension were necessary.
“Once you get a towing company's attention like that, I would hope that they would, would stay within the side boards of industry standards,” Wolff said.
The fees include more than $2,500 for a hazmat response, despite the fact that fewer than 25 gallons of fuel spilled, the amount that usually triggers a hazmat response.
“It's egregious billing,” Butler said.
In addition, Anderson charged $900 for a wrecker and $450 for a driver.
The average cost for both is typically $272.
“Usually get the tow truck plus the driver,” Butler said. “While that was all billed separately and each bill was excessive.”
Then there was a $500 charge for traffic control signs, cones, and warning lights, which was a hazmat response truck, so there was a double billing.
A lien processing fee of $100 was charged even though the committee determined that there was no need to start a lien process.
And the four-mile transport was $110.60.
“A typical tow would cost several dollars per mile,” Butler said.
Anderson's suspension from the highway patrol rotation is set to be lifted April 30.
Butler and Wolf just hope it will serve as a deterrent for Anderson and others down the road.
“It's a big step in putting some of these bad players on notice that they're going to be held accountable for their actions,” Wolff said.
Anderson has filed for a judicial review in Lewis & Clark County District Court.
MTN has reached out repeatedly to Anderson Towing to try and get an explanation for the bill.
While no one has responded to requests for an interview, the company’s owner, Cameron Cochran, did speak with the committee and defended the hazmat charges.
In a brief, Cochran told the committee “his employees provided a proper cleanup” and that the amount of oil and fluids involved required hazmat.
While Anderson was removed from the highway patrol response list., Anderson is still in the Yellowstone County rotation.
