Your Year End 2007 Communiqué ............by Doug Nelson
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Wow, what a year we had. Warm and NO SNOW to start the winter and Wild winter conditions to end! Hopefully, everyone had a safe and rewarding winter, spring and summer and all is well. Well, I have to tell you we are absolutely pleased with the number of renewals coming in and new members signing up. I would like to welcome our new members and hopefully they will be delighted with our performance. Undoubtedly, our members are spreading the word that things are happening. We are also pleased to announce and welcome the addition of several new Associate Members to the PTAO. Please join me in welcoming and thanking Curtis Insurance, Safety Insurance, Sigma Assistel Inc, Crawford Insurance Adjusters, H. R. Runciman & Company, Canadian Towing Equipment, Nelson Financial Services and Route Three Inc. for their support. Obviously, the tow operators and our trading partners in Ontario are gaining confidence in our ability to represent their needs and addressing the issues. I can assure you this office has been very well received and very active since it opened. The phones are ringing and the mailbox is full on a daily basis. Now on to What’s Happening!
MTO Report: First, as many of you know a committee has been formed by the MTO to address some of the many concerns with Incident Management and the towing industry. This committee is made up of representation from the MTO, the OPP, the OTA and several Insurance Companies including the Insurance Bureau of Canada. We, being the PTAO, are committed to bringing all of the issues such as Police Tows, Municipal Licencing, O/O permits and Payment for Services to name a few to the table for a complete review. It is time to resolve these contentious issues!
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Now, the really good news! The MTO Payment Guarantee (PG) negotiations are finally completed and have been approved by the Ministry of Finance.
Here is a brief outline of what we have so far.
- The program will apply to the Provincial Highways only.
- Only incident vehicles with a GVWR of 6,000 K/G’s or greater will apply.
- Any contractor wishing to be included in this program must first complete and sign the MTO contract and be approved by the MTO.
- You must make best efforts to collect the invoice and document your efforts.
- You can apply for payment after 60 days.
- You must assign the debt to the MTO.
- You must cooperate and assist the MTO in collection of the invoice if necessary.
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Further to this, you may find that once you get the contract in your hands that it may be somewhat complicated to complete correctly but unfortunately this is the way government works. To this end, we will be holding a member meeting on how to correctly complete the contract. Watch for this in the future. I’m also happy to announce the MTO has agreed to keep this committee going in an effort to address many of the issues confronting us. We have had several very meaningful and productive meetings with this committee and feel optimistic on addressing some of the contentious issues we face but trust me, things move slowly at the government level and we must continue to have patience. However, this is just the first step and we are making headway.
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Now, on to Police Towing! It is no secret that we have encountered some serious issues with the way the OPP are dealing with our industry and dispatching calls, however, this is not limited to just the OPP as we have 64 different police departments in Ontario and most of them believe they know more about towing than we do. We have police departments charging tow operators to give them a call. We have police departments using low bid contracts and others just using chasers. It’s seldom a day goes by without someone calling here to complain about how they are being dealt with by the local police detachment. I can only tell you that the problems with police towing have been stacking up for years and it will take time to sort through the issues and resolve them. I have had many meetings and I can assure you we will continue to deal with the OPP issues. We will not stop until we get some resolutions to the issues. If you have an issue with a police department please document your concern and fax it to the office. We are compiling the complaints for future reference.
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Golf 2007: Well, as many of you know we held our Annual Charity Golf Tournament at Hornby Glens Golf Course on July 18th. This years chosen “Charity” was the Hospital for Sick Children and we have made a sizable donation to this worthy cause. Now pay attention, our golf tournaments are NOT part of the PGA Tour. It is for amateurs like you and me. This is simply a fun packed day you can use as a Customer Appreciation day and treat a favourite customer to a game of golf and nice meal. You can also participate in a silent auction and win some great prizes but most of all it affords you the opportunity to socialize and network with other colleagues and give you a much needed break. A golf tournament like this is good for your health, good for the image of the industry and goes a long way to thanking a customer for their support. I urge you to consider taking this opportunity next year and pick out a customer or two and/or perhaps a deserving wife and/or employee and put a foursome together.
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National “Tow Industry Standards” Meeting: A meeting of tow operators from each Province and the Board of Directors of TRAC (Towing & Recovery Alliance of Canada) took place in late June of this year. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the future of the industry and what we can do better. The attendees reviewed and tabled the many issues and other logistical problems the industry faces. We also reviewed our plans for the National Conference to ensure we get the most out of it. In short we are examining a National Standard to which we must all work.
Insurance Issues: As many of you are aware we have been working with the MTO and the Insurance Bureau of Canada on a number of payment issues. Obviously we need to be paid for the service we provide and we have not been dealt with very well by the insurance companies when it comes to paying for an accident. We have been advised that the insurance companies should be paying us under the PL & PD portion of an insurance policy and advised the Insurers of this. Obviously this is being met with some degree of resistance but we will continue on this quest until we get paid for every call we do. Please report any insurance issues you have in writing via fax. (705 645-0017)
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Tow Show 2007: You talked and we listened! There were some concerns regarding the location and facilities at last years Tow Show. With this in mind we did our homework and made an agreement with the DoubleTree Plaza Hotel on Dixon Road in Toronto. We had a great location just south of Pearson International Airport and a hotel offering a free airport shuttle and plenty of space.
Now, on to this year’s Tow Show! Mark my words, the Tow Show this year was the biggest and most comprehensive trade show in the history of Towing in Canada. This year’s show was packed with indoor vendor booths and five acres of outside displays that was crammed with innovative trucks and equipment of every imaginable type and size. Business meetings, information seminars, and training programs including Business Management, Towing and Recovery by WreckMaster and lockout training were all very well attended.
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When was the last time you spent some time on training or attended some information seminars? I need not tell you training and retraining is the key to excelling at your job and that attending the information seminars is critical to keeping informed as to what’s happening. Also well attended this year were the driving and beauty competitions to sort out the champions.
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All this with a huge wind-up Gourmet Banquet and dance to a sellout crowd! Sunday, of course was a wind down day with the ORG hosting a great pancake breakfast in the truck display area. If you are serious about the towing industry this is a MUST NOT MISS event. If you haven’t attended our tow show in the past, mark your calendar for next year’s event which will be held at the same location (Doubletree Plaza Hotel) from September 11 through to the 14th. You will be receiving a package in the mail in early July so watch for it and plan to attend.
National Incident Management Conference: In addition to the show this year, we held a National Highway Traffic Incident Management Conference on the day prior to the show. This (by invitation only conference) was attended by representatives of several Provincial Government Ministries, Police representatives, Municipal representatives, Insurance representatives and other emergency responders. The purpose of this conference was to identify the issues we face including payment for services rendered, abandoned vehicles, police towing, hours of service, health and safety, licencing, qualifications of emergency tow responders and other issues as they presented themselves. It was our intention to identify and table the problem areas and setup some working committees to bring about some sensible resolutions. I am happy to inform you that there were three committees formed and many issues are being tabled and we expect some comprehensive recommendations to address the issues to be tabled. We will provide more information on this at our Annual General meeting to be held on November 13th.
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Annual General Meeting: Now this is important! Mark your calendars to attend the Annual General Meeting on November 13th at the DoubleTree Plaza Hotel. Our 2006 AGM was considered a success but we would like to see more people attend. Remember, this is your opportunity to hear the progress we have made and give your input into any issues you have. You will have the opportunity to see the state of the finances, review the upcoming budget and hear from the Association Accountant. You will also have the opportunity to vote for and elect your Board Members. In short, the AGM is a very busy and important meeting that you should attend. This is your Association and we need your input so the more members that attend the AGM the better!
On to Communications! Since my renewed involvement in the PTAO we have opened an office in Bracebridge with phone lines that are almost always answered unless we are out of town on business but we always return phone messages. We had a series of Regional Meetings in 2006 and we will again be conducting these meeting in 2008. Regional meetings are considerably expensive but a great initial start to the introduction process. I have also sent several communiqués and written about many issues which were published in Tow Canada. Justifiably so, I had some comments about our website not being kept up to date and I agree and take full responsibility for this. I promise I will do better and we are now working on updating the website more often and hopefully this will be to your satisfaction. I will do my best to renew and keep the website current and interesting in the future.
I can assure you I am doing my best to keep all of you up to date on what we are doing but I am only one person and very busy representing your needs at as many levels of government as I can physically handle. Believe it or not, running this office and working on new programs keeps one very busy. If you are not satisfied with the number of communiqués I apologize but like you I have only so much time in a day. I will try to improve. There is one other area that we need to improve on and that is letting our customers know that we are members of this Association. With this in mind we are currently working on getting PTAO decals and other advertising materials assembled you can use in your advertising and will let you know when they are available for purchase.
I can only tell you our industry is in some busy and exciting times and many changes are on the horizon. Training and retraining is now going to be more important than ever. Make sure you are not one of the ones left behind.
Remember............* All of the Crops of Tomorrow are in the Seeds of Yesterday.
Finally in closing, I have sent this communiqué to all of the towing companies in our data base simply to show that things are happening. It is obvious that there are many tow operators in this Province that care about the future and this is why we had so many join last year. Like an 887% increase in membership. Now, if you are one of the tow companies that is sitting on the fence about joining or renewing consider this, by simply reading this communiqué demonstrates the fact that things are happening. If you are not a member or have not renewed your membership....
- You will NOT have any input into identifying and addressing any industry issues.
- You will NOT be informed of issues we are addressing.
- You will NOT be part of any surveys we compile or statistics we use.
- You will NOT be as informed as your competition.
- You will NOT be eligible for any discounts we negotiate for our members.
- Maybe its time to join the several hundred other members in the province.
- Ask yourself, Am I “Part of the Problem” or “Part of the Solution”.
A banker is someone who lends you an umbrella when the sun is shining, and who asks for it back when it starts raining! A bargain is something you don’t need at a price you can’t resist! A closed mind is a good thing to lose! Finally, You’re never too old to learn something stupid! |
Putting Stock in Our Trade
MEMBERSHIP IN A TRADE ASSOCIATION can be one of your most powerful business assets. It helps you achieve your goals and stay informed. The more you invest in your Association, the more you'll gain. Trade Associations provide a forum for people to learn about and discuss industry concerns, plans and progress. People also can bring and share ideas for the common good of the industry because Associations work hand-in-hand with their members on issues that affect the success of business and industry.
Why join an Association?
What is the value of Trade Associations? Is it promotion of the industry to the public? Is it education? Is it surveys and statistics on industry trends? Is it networking with customers and vendors? It is all of these things and more.
Advocacy
Associations play a critical role in supporting legislative efforts. Initiatives include preparing and presenting testimony to National, Provincial and Local governing bodies concerning industry issues and organizing local events where members meet with elected officials. Don't underestimate the influence of strong Associations on political affairs.
Litigation
Another Trade Association benefit is reduced litigation costs and access to legal expertise. Organized legal representation can reduce or eliminate expensive lawyer fees incurred when individual companies challenge laws separately. Provincial and local laws and regulations are being passed and enforced as never before. Members will have access to the Association's legal council for questions and advice. The Association can also help you save money by sharing legal briefs, court decisions and other information with you and your lawyer.
Information
Associations conduct meetings, shows and national conferences, which provide education and keep you current with the latest industry trends and developments to help your business be more competitive. Members can tap into a full range of important and timely information from industry reports, publications and research.
Networking
The ability to meet with customers and potential customers is critical to the success of your business. That is why Associations conduct Local, Regional and National events throughout the year, providing opportunities such as annual golf outings, the annual Tow Show and chapter dinners and social events.
Simply Put, financially supporting and getting involved in your Industry Association's events is “good business”.
