Starting tomorrow, owners of luxury or sports vehicles would have to pay more if they need to have their vehicles towed from expressways, the Directorate-General of Highways said yesterday.
The highway authority said that it would adopt the same pricing scheme for towing vehicles on freeways — which are regulated by the Freeway Bureau — due to the increasing number of disputes caused by its handling of malfunctioned or damaged luxury cars or vehicles with low chassis, which often require special equipment to remove them from expressways.
Towing such vehicles also takes longer than regular vehicles, it said, adding that vehicle owners seek compensation from the agency or tow truck companies if there is any damage to their vehicles.
Currently, drivers are charged NT$1,500 to have their vehicles towed following a breakdown or a traffic accident, which does not adequately cover the risks and costs involved in towing luxury or sports vehicles, the agency said.
The new pricing scheme takes into account the chassis height and value of a vehicle, it said.
Chassis height has been divided into four categories: 15cm or higher, between 12cm and 15cm, between 10cm and 12cm, and below 10cm, it said.
The value of a vehicle would be determined by consulting the market value of new models and would be divided into five categories: NT$2 million (US$70,158) or less, between NT$2 million and NT$5 million, between NT$5 million and NT$10 million, between NT$10 million and NT$20 million, and more than NT$20 million, the agency said.
Under the new scheme, drivers would still be charged a towing fee of NT$1,500 if their vehicle has a chassis height of at least 15cm and is valued at up to NT$2 million, it said.
However, the fee would increase to NT$20,000 if a vehicle has a chassis height of lower than 10cm and is worth more than NT$20 million, it added.
The agency said that the new pricing scheme would reasonably reflect towing costs for different vehicles.
More companies would have special equipment to remove luxury vehicles efficiently without damaging them following the announcement of the scheme, the agency said.
The number of tow truck operators working with the highway authority would be raised from 18 to 32 starting tomorrow, which would greatly increase its service capacity, it said, adding that people can call the 110 police hotline if they need roadside assistance.
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