Auto Assistance need to be regulated

Adibah’s experience when her car broke down on the North-South Expressway and consequently cheated by a man she perceived to be “kind” and helpful but who turned out to be a runner for a workshop is a very common, unfortunate fact on our roads.

These runners or tow truck touts make a living on commission paid by workshops. They work in groups circling the highways and roads, communicating incidents of vehicle break-downs and accidents via trunk radios, which is the reason why they are always at the scene faster than the highway patrol vehicles.

In the article published in the NST dated 28th Feb 2008, Adibah mentioned that because she had her baby daughter with her at the time of the incident, her vulnerability was more significant and she accepted help from the first person that approached them. The runners and tow truck touts are well aware of this and would capitalize on such moments to dupe unlucky road users into accepting help.

In cases of road accidents and the occupants are injured, they would offer to take the injured to a hospital immediately and anyone put in this situation would decide to accept help not knowing what they are really getting into.

Injured victims would be precariously moved and rushed to a hospital without any first aid or critical medical care rendered beforehand. This is done in a hurry as they fear losing the deal to a competitor from a different workshop. They would not even wait for emergency services or the ambulance as they do not want to lose the opportunity to gain from the situation by later being able to claim ransom through means of securing the towing deal.

While it’s difficult to differentiate between a genuine offer to help from a fellow road user and those who make it their job to manipulate the unfortunate at their weakest point, road users should be made aware of the existence of such unethical people and the consequences of accepting help from them.

Authorities and organizations such as AAM and the Road Safety Department should study this matter as many road users have fallen victim to these runners and touts. A solution needs to be formulated to guarantee that when a road user is faced with difficulty, help arrives from the right place at the right time. Highway operators should increase the number of response vehicles on patrol and emergency services should ensure that response arrives promptly to take control of the situation.