Man’s Trans-Am Breaks Down. Then He Calls A Tow Truck. Then He Sees What It Costs: 'Get AAA'

A man says he was stunned after calling a tow truck for help and allegedly being quoted $360 for a trip he says was only minutes away.

TikTok user @dr.slatt47 shared the experience in a recent video filmed from inside his disabled car while he waited on the side of the road.

According to the creator, his vehicle had broken down, and he contacted a towing company for assistance. But after spending roughly 15 minutes on the phone providing information about the car and location, he says he was quoted a price that immediately caught him off guard.

“That’s insane,” @dr.slatt47 says in the clip. “They’re 8 minutes away.”

The creator did not explain exactly how far the tow itself would have been or whether extra fees were involved, though he appeared frustrated by the overall cost.

It is also unclear from the video whether the situation was a scam or simply an expensive towing charge, a debate several commenters later raised in the replies.

Still, the creator sounded exhausted by the ordeal and eager to get home. “I just want to leave, bro,” he says. As of this writing, the video had generated just under 900 views.

Did He Get Scammed?

There is a chance the man got scammed, but based on the details in the video alone, it is hard to say for sure.

A $360 tow is definitely expensive for what sounds like a relatively short pickup, especially if the truck was only a few minutes away. A lot of standard local tows for passenger cars land in the low hundreds, depending on distance, time of day, and the vehicle involved.

Towing prices can also climb fast.

According to The Zebra, if the car broke down late at night or needed a flatbed tow, the price shoots up quickly. And once a tow company dispatches a truck, extra fees can start stacking up fast, so what sounds reasonable at the start of the call can easily turn into a several-hundred-dollar bill.

That’s part of why people often feel blindsided by how much it costs when they break down. Most drivers are already stressed and trying to get off the side of the road quickly, which leaves little time to shop around for quotes.

At the same time, the towing industry has faced years of complaints from drivers accusing companies of price gouging, especially during emergencies or after accidents.

Consumer advocates generally recommend, whenever possible, asking for an itemized quote before agreeing to a tow and checking whether roadside assistance through insurance, AAA, a credit card, or a manufacturer’s warranty could reduce the cost.

In the video, though, it does not appear that the creator was dealing with an impound or unauthorized tow situation. Indeed, based on what he described, this sounds more like a very expensive voluntary roadside tow than a clear-cut scam.

Viewers Debate Whether He Got Ripped Off

Many commenters said the whole situation was exactly why drivers should have roadside assistance before something goes wrong.

“Get AAA,” one person recommended.

“Yea,” @dr.slatt47 replied. “Had to learn ts the hard way.”

“[You] can get the AAA roadside assistance membership without having their insurance,” another commenter pointed out.

To that, the creator responded: “Now all the sudden everyone wanna tell me to get AAA, guess I jus wasn’t hip.”

Others were more focused on the actual price tag, saying the $300-plus quote sounded outrageous.

One viewer responded with a string of shocked-face emojis.

Another person bluntly called towing companies a “scam.”

“Bro, I had to pay 400 for a windshield, and she said we can’t take your insurance,” they wrote. “When I got home, I instantly file[d] an insurance claim … and only got half back wtf. Car maintenance [companies] are a scam.”

Not everyone agreed the towing company was ripping him off, though.

“Nah, you [just] don’t understand what tow trucks cost lmao,” one commenter argued.

A few viewers suggested he should have tried to get the car moving himself rather than paying for a tow.

“Naw bro, jus fix the car at that point,” one person wrote.

But @dr.slatt47 said that was never really an option.

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“I was on the road, wasn’t gonna make it happen,” he replied.

Motor1 has reached out to @dr.slatt47 via direct message on TikTok. We’ll update this story if we hear back.

 

 

 

 

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