The Parking Lot Scam: How Some Jackhole Cost My Girlfriend $300 And Nearly Got Her Car Towed

My girlfriend called me yesterday, and as soon as I answered the phone I could tell something was wrong. The way she greeted me wasn’t the same; the tone, the energy — it was off. “I just got scammed, and I feel so stupid” she told me, her voice a bit shaky. “What’s going on? What happened?” I inquired, ready to spring into action any way I could. Then she told me, and I was pissed. So here I am writing this article to make sure this doesn’t happen to you, dear readers.

I realize this may seem like a “big city” problem, but actually, pay-to-park surface lots are pretty much all over the country (especially during sporting events), often with big A-frame signs out front reading: “$20 ALL DAY” or something like that. There’s usually an attendant who takes your money and gives you a ticket, and then the social contract states that this attendant must guard your vehicle with their life. That’s an unwritten rule that everyone universally agrees on. But someone on Sunday broke this rule in LA, dooming them to — I would think — at least a few years in purgatory.

“I was meeting a friend at a vintage clothing show in the fashion district in downtown LA,” my girlfriend, whom we’re going to refer to as Elise, told me. “”Normally I park in the building underground garage, but last time I parked there, they stacked the cars and asked me to leave my key. Plus it was $30.”

“So I went to a surface lot instead,” she continued. These types of lots are common in LA, especially downtown during the Auto show or during Lakers games. “There was a sign that said $10 parking. There was an attendant with tickets. I pulled in; he directed me to park in a specific place. He put a ticket on a window. I paid him, then left.” She noted that many other women who were attending the same clothing show had also parked in the same lot.

The clothing show went great. Elise got to see a lot of cool vintage clothing, she bought some things, she met some nice new people who were running the booths, she had lunch with her friend— it was just a pleasant Sunday morning. But then it wasn’t. “About four hours later, I go back to my [Lexus RX350], and it’s on a tow truck.” The parking “attendant” had apparently taken the “proof of payment” ticket off her windscreen, because it was nowhere to be found.

“I was confused. I’d paid for parking. When I talked to the [tow truck operator] and realized I’d gotten scammed, I felt embarrassed and shocked. I felt that feeling when you get when someone take advantage of you,” she told me. The car was still in the same spot where Elise had left it, but its front wheels had been lifted by the truck. “I had to pay $297 for him to drop my car… to do a ‘field drop,’ even though he literally hadn’t moved my car an inch. He just had the two wheels up.”

“I also felt bad for the women whose cars got towed. I think [the tow truck operator] said he’d towed 10 cars already. I felt lucky that my car wasn’t towed; at least I didn’t have to pay over $500 and then Uber to some impound lot.” Apparently, this type of scam isn’t rare. “[The tow truck operator] said this happens a lot. These guys will put on what look like parking lot attendant vests when they know there are events nearby, and do this,” she said.

I did a bit of googling, and indeed, this is a big problem. Here’s a post on Reddit titled “Fake Parking Attendant/Parking Ticket Scam” describing a similar incident in Chicago:

Here’s a screenshot of another Reddit post about an incident in Philadelphia:

Here’s the Cincinnati Police asking for help identifying such an alleged scammer:

CBS News had a long article on this in September of 2022, quoting a number of people who had been similarly scammed. Here’s an example:

 

This scheme has been happening for years at other sporting venues too. Karl Rojek fell victim to the scam last year when he went to the United Center for a Blackhawks game.

“He puts the permit in my window. Waves me to the next guy. The next guy parks me over on the side of the street,” said Rojek. “Cops everywhere. That’s why it seems legitimate. I mean you wouldn’t think twice about parking there.”

He got stuck with a $75 parking ticket.

“Came out after the Blackhawks game. I had a parking ticket from the City of Chicago,” said Rojek. “I walked down the line just to see if it was just me or not. Every single car that parked there, had a ticket.”

I’ve reached out to Joe’s Auto Parks, who runs the lot where my girlfriend was scammed. They initially told me they’d help: “If they do give us a call, then we’ll go ahead and assist them as much as we could,” the representative said to me in reference to the women who were scammed. My girlfriend called Joe’s, and they couldn’t possibly have cared less. They basically put all the blame on her, later telling me: “We’re doing the best we can. We’ve never received any reports from that location,” which is almost certainly BS.

To be sure, it’s a tricky situation, and on some level, I can see why a parking lot would not want to compensate these scam-victims, because the lot would be losing out on money. The scammers are the crooks here. Still, this lot called a tow truck on probably 10 cars; they should have figured something was amiss. That’s what’s so strange about this; it seems like something fishy is going on…

Some kind of sign stating something to the effect of “There Are No Parking Lot Attendants At This Location. Pay Only At Kiosk” might be helpful, and at the same time, my girlfriend and those other women who attended the vintage clothing show are just going to have to be more careful moving forward. It’s not easy, because it’s hard to distinguish a legit parking lot attendant from a fake one. Maybe the move is to never pay cash, but that doesn’t work all the time.

So be careful out there. The last thing I want is for your prized 1991 Chrysler LeBaron to get scraped up by a tow truck, hauled to an impound lot, and released only after you pay over $500. I’d rather you spend that money on the engine rebuild you’ll need eventually. Consider yourselves warned.

Topshot image credit: via stock.adobe.com: Guy = Saksit. Street scene = Tada Images