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Past Issues

September 2001

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Changes ahead in the
TOW
INDUSTRY

What is the one thing every truck owner wishes he will never need yet when needed, it is usually in a time of crisis, is always urgent and payment for its use is more often than not the first to arrive after the crisis? Answer? A tow truck. To get a better understanding of what this business is all about and what kind of issues are facing players in this sector, FleetWatch Cape correspondent, Stephanie Platt spoke to some of the players. The good news is that it seems positive change lies ahead.

To get a handle on what this sector is facing, I visited SOS Breakdown Services in Paarden Eiland which has been operating since 1958. The company was founded by Toeks Cross as a natural extension of his panelbeating business, Panelrite. Specialising in truck body repairs, this business is still going strong and today he and his son Stephen also operate the largest heavy vehicle recovery outfit in the peninsula. 

SOS One of the 'big guns' from SOS Breakdown Services

Capital investment is substantial with the fleet including two 6x6 vehicles for offroad and mud recovery. Cross says the purchase price of a second-hand fully equipped vehicle in the USA is in the region of US$165 000. In fact, the average cost of a rig in South Africa today will set a company back anything from R900 000 to R1,5 million.

SOS also operates three 4x4 rigs apart from the fleet of vehicles for medium and light vehicle recovery. The fleet all have wheel-lifts or rollbacks, with some units fitted with rotating cranes. A lowbed is on call for what they describe as the "really messy ones". Added to this is all the accessory equipment like airbags, forklifts light plants, cables and slings.

SOS in action Heavy lifters Toeks and his son Stephen Cross - leaders in the Western Cape

The economy may be slow but their business appears to be steady. During my interview with Stephen Cross, he was constantly interrupted by calls from customers wanting vehicles moved "now". It is clearly a very personal business and one in which reaction time is of prime importance.

Increase in recoveries
Although not particularly seasonal, there is a definite increase in recoveries during the wet Cape winter. "No single type of recovery is more difficult than the next as each circumstance is different," says Cross. "Working with hazmat equipment is probably the most challenging though. Wearing the restrictive suits, in the face of logistics and time limitations, is very pressurised."

Cross should know, as he is often found at the site of accidents, supervising and working as he has since his schooldays.

	Top to Bottom: As Toeks Cross says: "No single recovery is more difficult than the next as each circumstance is different." These photographs prove the truth of that. Far left is an SOS rig recovering a rig and container in fairly easy circumstances. Then you get a mountain recovery where the circumstances are more difficult and finally, you get a situation where you're working with hazmat - probably the most challenging circumstance.

Some of the more bizarre recoveries recalled by Cross are like the time a farm labourer drove a tractor into a dam. SOS had to hire an underwater diver to go down and attach a cable to the completely submerged vehicle.

Another incident, also involving a farmer, occurred when an articulated rig went off a bridge. Fully loaded with cardboard boxes, the transport operator was of the opinion that to speed up recovery time, the load should simply be released into the river. Unfortunately, this instruction was given over the SOS truck's speakerphone - and the farmer heard it. The farmer's reaction, when hearing that boxes with his name emblazoned would be floating down the river to all his neighbours, was explosive to say the least.

SOS recovers one or two trucks a year that have gone down mountainsides. "I don't know how many the tow industry as a while recovers but that is about what we average," says Cross. "The biggest complications there usually stem from whether the trucks are loaded or not." 

RIEKS TOWING If ever anyone thinks this is not a specialised field, the photograph above from Rieks Towing will dispel that myth.

Much maligned industry
Because of the myriad of 1-ton tow trucks waiting under bridges to race to the scene of any collision, the South African breakdown and recovery industry is much maligned. Now it is set to undergo substantial changes as the industry attempts to self-regulate in the face of impending legislation.

Resulting from the massive amount of negative publicity these "accident runners" have been exposed to, the South African Towing and Recovery Association (SATRA) is in the process of organising itself as the representative body of all the different elements in this industry throughout the country.

Andre van der Merwe, chairman of SATRA, says the association will embrace heavy duty, trade calls and the small tow trucks. The government has put out a White Paper - the proposed National Tow Truck Act 2000 - and is now waiting for input. SATRA, as a Section 21 company, would prefer self-regulation.

"We have about 700 members and are encouraging every tow truck operator to join. Once we have all our structures in place, we will then be in a position to address the White Paper and hopefully submit our input to Government during the latter half of the year," says van der Merwe

All the provinces have formed regional bodies with the exception, at the time of writing, of the Western Cape.

Strict requirements
Proposed legislation envisages strict requirements in terms of capability. For example, the driver of a heavy recovery vehicle would need to be in possession of advanced certificates in respect of medical aid, fire fighting, hazmat, traffic point duty, radio communications and towing operations. All this is in addition to his drivers licence and PDP. At present, drivers only need the last two items.

The crew on these vehicles would also need to have basic certificates in all the disciplines. Van der Merwe believes that some of these requirements, such as advanced certificates in fire fighting and traffic point duty, are somewhat unreasonable.

CEO of Car Towing Services, Gustav Raubenheimer, who is also secretary of SATRA, says although there are a lot of good things in the White Paper, the heavy duty towing industry will definitely be penalised as it stands.

CAR TOWING SERVICES You have to admit, it's a real monster truck but wow, what a beauty.

"The bill is generalised and must be streamlined to take into account the wide spectrum of operations. We are a towing industry and we should not be held responsible for fire fighting and traffic control when fire and traffic departments are also on the scene."

The White Paper also proposes that permits be issued at regional level. Van der Merwe sees this as a major problem. "What this would mean is that any recovery that has to take place across a number of provinces would necessitate permits from each region. This will become both time-consuming and costly. SATRA intends to lobby for a single national permit system for heavy duty recovery vehicles." 

Well aware of the problems in obtaining abnormal load permits across provinces, transport companies should appreciate SATRA's concern.

Standardise licence fees
One particular aspect that irks is the fact that license fees for a heavy duty recovery vehicle in the Western Cape costs upward of R15 000 per year while in Gauteng, for example, it is a mere R3 500. Raubenheimer believes license fees need to be standardised.

"Last year, Gauteng was paying R15 000 while the Eastern Cape was only R3500. We complained and got it reduced but this has now backfired on the Western Cape."

Companies such as SOS Breakdown Services in Cape Town believe that this places them at a disadvantage since a Gauteng based company can register its vehicles from home and then send them into Cape Town to work, with an immediate competitive advantage.

Raubenheimer looks at it from a national perspective. "I run over 200 vehicles in all the provinces and there should definitely be a standard fee. My fleet moves around and if I have to send a vehicle to Cape Town for a couple of months, I am certainly not going to re-register it."

Another issue raised by Raubenheimer with regard to license fees is the fact that these vehicles don't run on the road like a normal transport company. "Our vehicles only go when called for and then we always run half a trip empty. We shouldn't be paying such high fees - even though I suppose it keeps the rubbish out of the business," he adds. Point well taken, since the vehicle they recover has also paid license fees to be on that road.

Most companies would prefer not to think about them but a healthy, professional and well run heavy duty recovery industry is in the interests of the entire transport industry. If the towing industry can regulate itself sufficiently to avoid being over-legislated, we would not all be burdened with the additional costs that normally follow stringent legislation.