I wonder how this will turn out...

[LillFilly]

Was at my mall on personal business when I ran into my coworker who was on-duty. I hear over his radio that the security supervisor is telling him to call police because they're calling a tow truck for a vehicle. I asked him if the vehicle had been left over the past 2-days (if the vehicle is parked overnight once, it gets a sign saying collect your vehicle or it will be towed. The 2nd day it's still there, it gets towed. We have signs in every lot stating this). He said no, the vehicle they're talking about is a semi truck with a trailer parked in the lot that services the movie theater and that it's only been parked 4- hours

This makes no sense; I never got to see exactly where it was, but unless it was parked in the road or creating a hazard, there is no need to tow a car that's legally parked in our lots! And it's not like truckers aren't allowed to park there; they often park on that side at the far end to see a movie. There's PLENTY of room. And it's a weekday during business hours, so it's not like it's the wee hours of the morning with a vehicle sitting abandoned. So either there's more to the store than coworker was telling me, or my boss is going to have a VERY pissed truck driver on his hands and a civil suit for about a 1,000$ towing bill.

Be interesting to hear what happened when I work on Wednesday...

[AmbrosiaWriter]

Bah! Cliff hanger! Curse you horned horse woman! *shakes fist*

[wolfie]

WTF? From what you've said, they ALLOW truck parking. Not only was this truck only parked for a few hours, but SOP only has vehicles towed after they've been there TWO nights, so why the hell were they towing it? That's the sort of crap that should have ALL truckers staying away from the mall - see how long they stay in business with no deliveries.

[Draco]

Most I could figure is that maybe the theater asked for it to be removed?

[LillFilly]

Most I could figure is that maybe the theater asked for it to be removed?

No, the mall owns the parking lots; the stores have no control over them, even *al *art. So it's our call to tow or not. And it's only overnight parking we don't allow; there's no time limit for how long you can be in the lot or if you have to patronize the mall - we won't watch to see if you park here and then walk across the street to a restaurant. So like I said, there's GOT to be more to the story, or someone was on a power trip.

[raudf]

Can't blame you wanting to wait for the full story. It could be creating a hazard or they've had the driver "escorted" for some reason (probably drunk ) and the truck needs to go too.

Now I really wanna now!

[LillFilly]

Well I found out the rest today:

Apparently the semi truck was parked in the movie theater lot from 11AM - 7PM. Let me tell you that there are people who spend THE WHOLE DAY in our mall, it's not unreasonable. If the Driver was waiting to drop off or deliver, he could have had lunch, caught a few movies, etc. But apparently the Mall Manager was "tired of looking at it" and wanted it gone. At least they tried paging, but you can't hear that in the movies. The Manager felt it was in his right because our new towing signs DO say 'Tractor and Trailer Parking Prohibited' But we knew those signs were in regards to not staying overnight; but since that isn't spelled-out it seems he's decided to go on a power trip. And if he wants a vehicle towed, that's his right, correct or not. Poor truck driver got back 20 min after his rig was towed.

It might be his right as manager, but it's US who get bitched-out.

Sigh.

PS. Might be for the best that I'm moving to another location where I will earn 1$ more an hour. Would be nice if I could actually get in CONTACT with the person I'll be working under though...

[Gizmo]

PS. Might be for the best that I'm moving to another location where I will earn 1$ an hour. Would be nice if I could actually get in CONTACT with the person I'll be working under though...

I assume there should be a 'more' or 'less' in that part?

[PepperElf]

of course this also means the driver can take them to petty court over it and possibly win.

i mean i saw someone try it over a towing bill and lose but only because her car was legally towed in accordance with the signs. but in this case... the signs specified no overnight, not "no daytime" so he may have a good leg to stand on against the mall & towing company.

[LillFilly]

but in this case... the signs specified no overnight, not "no daytime" so he may have a good leg to stand on against the mall & towing company.

No no, the signs say "No Tractor or Trailer Parking" But it doesn't make sense to us because why can't they park while shopping like anyone else. His truck wasn't anywhere near any other cars. I guess they've decided to tow paying customers just because they can.

[PepperElf]

o drat. well that does indeed suck. cos hey truckers gotta shop too. down here in the south i see plenty of them stopping off not just at truck stops but at diners, or at the mall.

they're polite here and park out of the way of everyone else. but they don't usually get harassed anyway cos... we have a large trucker community. cutting them off from shopping is pretty much biting off a hand that feeds you

[wolfie]

o drat. well that does indeed suck. cos hey truckers gotta shop too. down here in the south i see plenty of them stopping off not just at truck stops but at diners, or at the mall.

they're polite here and park out of the way of everyone else.

That's more than just courtesy - it's enlightened self-interest. Parking way out at the edge, in an otherwise empty area, means that not only can you find 8 or 9 spaces together in which to park an unwieldy beast, but that you're in a location where you're unlikely to be blocked from reaching an exit by vehicles that park after you.