Metro Government agrees to $1.5 million settlement for overcharging people who had vehicles towed

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Metro Government and the Louisville Metro Police Department agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing the city of overcharging people for years whose vehicles have been towed.

A federal judge agreed to a $1.5 million settlement in March, according to court records, with $650,000 — the amount after attorney fees and other costs — of that paid out to people overcharged from 2008-21.

The lawsuit was filed in 2019, claiming the city illegally overcharged and collected excessive fees and forfeitures for towing, impounding and auctioning vehicles taken to the city's tow lot on Frankfort Avenue.

The suit also targeted former Public Works Director Vanessa Burns, who it said violated a city ordinance by nearly tripling storage fees over several years.

The city acknowledged that it had been overcharging people, but that it was an "unintended mistake," according to court documents.

The lawsuit claims Metro Government collected millions of dollars in illegal fines and fees collected from tens of thousands of vehicle owners and that many people had their vehicles auctioned off because they couldn't afford to pay.

U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings ordered the city in March to provide attorneys for the plaintiffs a list of everyone who would be entitled to collect funds from this settlement.

People who were overcharged should receive notice of the settlement, according to court records.

A hearing has been scheduled on July 19 for any members of the class-action lawsuit who want to object to the settlement.

The lawsuit claimed the tow lot was authorized to charge $10 for a towing fee, $10 storage fee for the first week and then $5 for each addition day. But through a "hidden-back door increase," the city collected millions of dollars of unlawful and unauthorized fees on tens of thousands of vehicle owners, according to the lawsuit.

Both sides agreed to the settlement to avoid a long, costly litigation, according to the proposed settlement.

Attorneys representing the vehicle owners could not immediately be reached for comment.

A spokesman for the Jefferson County Attorney’s Office, which represents the city in litigation, said the judge has not finalized the agreement and he could not discuss pending litigation.