Service Request #5: Dude, Where's My Car?

Kelly Prime, a producer at 99% Invisible, recounts her unsettling experience of returning to a 7-Eleven parking lot in Brooklyn only to find her 2011 Mazda 6 gone—towed while she was inside. Though she had technically parked illegally on private property, the incident triggered a deeper investigation into the opaque and often predatory world of private property towing. Through interviews with Tom Berry, a retired Detroit police lieutenant turned fraud investigator, and Shane Nation, a former tow truck driver with a notorious Detroit company, the episode reveals how private towing operations exploit legal gray areas. These operations often rely on spotters—local residents paid to report illegal parkers—and operate with minimal oversight, inflated fees, and no standardized pricing. Many tow companies manipulate storage fees, demand excessive documentation, and even sell cars at auction if owners can't afford the escalating costs. The episode exposes how systemic failures in regulation allow these practices to flourish, especially targeting low-income individuals and older vehicles. Despite the lack of transparency and accountability, the show offers practical advice: avoid private lots with unclear signage, pay quickly if towed, and negotiate aggressively to recover your car. The episode underscores a critical infrastructure failure: the privatization of public functions like vehicle removal without sufficient checks or consumer protections. While towing can serve a legitimate public good—clearing roadblocks or abandoned vehicles—when applied to private property, it becomes a profit-driven enterprise with little accountability. The story of Kelly’s car becomes a microcosm of a larger issue: how everyday systems can feel arbitrary, unfair, and even exploitative when hidden from public view. The takeaway is clear: awareness and vigilance are essential when navigating urban infrastructure that operates behind closed doors.