Many locations in the US are still suffering from superstorm Sandy, most people in more than one way. Thousands of houses remain damaged, power is still out in some locations and some people still don't have a means of transportation.
While there are those who don't have cars because they were damaged, others don't because their vehicles were towed away.
New Jersey officials have been investigating a towing company called APK Auto Repair and Towing for allegedly hiking up towing prices during the storm and for towing cars away without checking with the vehicle's owner first.
The company allegedly has been asking vehicle owners as much as $900 to get their cars back, while others have stated that their vehicles were taken right from their driveways or yards if they simply "looked damaged" according to The Detroit Free Press.
Click here to find out what to do if your car was water damaged during Sandy.
"They towed it right out of my driveway," Don Buckley of Seaside Heights said to The Detroit Free Press. "They ripped me off by taking my car from my private property."
Buckley stated that the repair and towing company took his 2000 Hyundai without talking to him first and has yet to admit to any wrong doing according to The Detroit Free Press.
An agreement has been met between the company and the state attorney general's office to release all vehicles that were towed during Sandy for no charge. People started showing up to APK looking for their vehicles on Wednesday. The deal applies for any vehicles taken in Seaside Heights from Oct. 27 through Nov. 9.
"We have brokered an agreement that ensures Seaside Heights residents will not have to await the resolution of ongoing investigations into the legality of the towing company's activities, before claiming their vehicles," New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa said to The Detroit Free Press. "Just as important, it also ensures those residents will not have to pay the towing bills."
People who had their cars towed have been claiming the company charged them hundreds of dollars and an extra "emergency management" fee for a couple hundred more dollars as well. State officials will now have to figure out who has already paid the bill so that they can make the company refund their money.
Giuilo Poli, a resident of Ortley Beach, said that a APK truck towed away his car after floating into a neighbor's lawn. While the company alerted Poli after towing away his vehicle, he has not been issued a bill yet. He does feel however that overall the company took advantage of people during Sandy and should have handled things differently.
"People are going to get greedy when it comes to something like this," Poli said to The Detroit Free Press. "Naturally, they got caught.
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