52 questions from actual tow dispatch calls — how pricing works, which truck fits your vehicle, what accident recovery paperwork looks like, why consent-only matters, and more.
Six categories — most drivers find their answer in General, Pricing, or Services.
How our dispatch runs, where we operate, what makes us different from other Queens and Nassau tow operators.
Base fares, per-mile, equipment surcharges, insurance billing, and how quotes work.
Which service fits your situation — flatbed, wheel-lift, heavy-duty, jumpstart, lockout, fuel, accident recovery.
What to do after a breakdown, accident, or stuck-vehicle situation in Queens or Nassau.
AWDs, EVs, luxury, lowered, classic, and oversize — what your vehicle type mandates for safe towing.
Consent-only policy, NYC DCA licensing, body-shop choice rights under NY law, COI requests, liability coverage.
How our dispatch runs, where we operate, what makes us different from other Queens and Nassau tow operators.
Every Queens neighborhood (all ~95 named areas from Astoria to Far Rockaway) and every Nassau County town (~60 from Elmont to Massapequa). Our dispatch is based in Kew Gardens, Queens — response times in Queens are faster than Nassau, which we quote honestly when you call.
Yes — 24 hours, 7 days, 365 days a year. Holidays, weekends, snowstorms, and 3 AM calls included. A human dispatcher answers the line.
No. NYC expressways (BQE, Van Wyck, LIE, Grand Central, Cross Island, Belt) and Nassau parkways (Southern State, Meadowbrook, Northern State) are handled by NYPD / NY State Police-contracted operators. We work surface streets only — that's how consent-only towing works.
We only move your vehicle when you call us. We never do blocked-driveway pickups, police-dispatch non-consent tows, or predatory private-property tows. Every job we do starts with the driver — or the driver's insurance company — authorizing the tow in writing at the scene.
English. If you speak another language and want to confirm coverage before you call, text the same number and we'll respond in kind where possible.
Base fares, per-mile, equipment surcharges, insurance billing, and how quotes work.
Starting at $99 for local roadside / wheel-lift tows. Flatbed runs $149+ base plus mileage. Heavy-duty wrecker calls start at $450. Actual fare quoted before dispatch. No hidden fees.
Base hook fee $149–$175, then $4–$8/mile after the first few miles (included in the base). Exotic or oversize vehicles add an equipment surcharge. Every number is quoted up front before we dispatch.
Overnight (11 PM–6 AM) calls may carry a modest premium. Holidays and storm surges may add to the fare. We always quote the total before dispatch so there are no surprises.
Cash, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, debit cards, and direct insurance billing for accident tows.
Most policies with collision or roadside coverage reimburse towing. For accident tows, insurance often pays us directly; for routine tows, you pay and submit for reimbursement. Ask your adjuster which applies to your policy.
If you cancel before the truck is dispatched: no. Once the truck is en route, a partial fee covers the driver's time and fuel; the specific amount is quoted at dispatch.
Which service fits your situation — flatbed, wheel-lift, heavy-duty, jumpstart, lockout, fuel, accident recovery.
Yes. Flatbed with motorcycle wheel chock and soft straps through triple clamps — no fairing contact, no frame chain-downs. Sportbikes, cruisers, and scooters (50cc and up).
Yes — and flatbed is the ONLY correct method. EVs can't be towed on wheels without drivetrain damage. We follow the manufacturer's tow-mode procedure and secure only at rated tow points with soft loops.
Yes — on flatbed only. AWD drivetrains damage when towed with any wheel on the ground. Subaru, Audi Quattro, AWD Honda CR-V, and similar all require flatbed.
Yes. Flatbed with hydraulic tilt for low-clearance, wheel-net-only securement (never chain-on-chassis), and photo documentation before and after load. Certificate of insurance available on request.
Yes across the tri-state area and into Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and DC/Maryland. Coast-to-coast moves are booked through a national partner broker that we coordinate for you.
Yes — most intact vehicles with an engine in place are free pickup. Title preferred; without it we need proof of ownership. We handle the DMV title-transfer paperwork at pickup.
Yes. Medium-duty wrecker for vans and small box trucks, heavy wrecker for 26,000+ GVWR. Fleet accounts get net-30 billing and priority dispatch — contact us to set one up.
Skid steers, mini-excavators, bobcats, compact track loaders, and scissor lifts up to 22,000 lbs on our standard flatbed — up to 40,000 lbs on our heavy tag trailer. Larger equipment requires specialized oversize-load hauling (we coordinate through partners).
Yes — non-invasive long-reach tools that don't damage window seals or paint. Proof of ownership required. If we can't unlock (some high-security vehicles), we tow you to a dealer or locksmith at a combined discount.
Yes — 2–5 gallons of gasoline or diesel, enough to reach the nearest open station. We bring DOT-approved cans and a clean-pour funnel. Not a tank refill — just enough to get you moving.
What to do after a breakdown, accident, or stuck-vehicle situation in Queens or Nassau.
1) Get yourself safe. 2) Call 911 if anyone's hurt. 3) Exchange insurance info with the other driver(s) if possible. 4) Photograph everything — all angles, license plates, damage, scene context. 5) Call us when you're ready for the tow — we'll handle insurance-grade scene documentation and delivery to your body shop.
Dashboard lights up but engine won't crank = battery (try a jumpstart). Slow crank, then dies = likely battery. No dashboard at all = deeper electrical issue (tow to shop). Clicking only = starter motor. A jump that starts it but dies minutes later = alternator. When unsure, call us — our roadside call often resolves the question on the spot.
Find the nearest open business — gas station, diner, storefront — and ask to use their phone. Every Queens and Nassau commercial strip has one. If you're on a highway, pull to the shoulder, turn on hazards, and wait for a Highway Help vehicle or NYPD / NY State Police (9-1-1 from someone else's phone if you can).
Nearest cross-street + a landmark. Queens addresses on long blocks are easier to find with a landmark ('near the Shell station on Queens Blvd and Yellowstone') than with a house number alone. On highways (which we don't service), mention mile markers or exit numbers.
Your driver's license, the vehicle registration, and your insurance card. For accident tows, a photo of the police report or incident-report number if available. For lockouts, ID matching the registration address.
AWDs, EVs, luxury, lowered, classic, and oversize — what your vehicle type mandates for safe towing.
Yes — our flatbed has a hydraulic tilt deck that gets the load angle under 10 degrees, safe for cars with under 4 inches of ground clearance. Tell dispatch about ride height, front lips, or splitters when you book.
Yes — flatbed handles it easily. Wheel-lift with flats only works for very short moves. We default to flatbed when more than one tire is flat.
Class B and smaller Class C RVs, yes. Full Class A motorhomes and larger Class C need specialized heavy-recovery equipment — we can coordinate through partners.
Usually — if the garage ceiling clears 10+ feet (most commercial garages do; many residential ones don't). When ceiling is too low for a flatbed, we jumpstart at the garage exit and/or coordinate with the building to push the car curbside.
We tow it anyway on flatbed. For wheel-lift, a stuck parking brake on the drive wheels complicates things — flatbed is the safe default.
Consent-only policy, NYC DCA licensing, body-shop choice rights under NY law, COI requests, liability coverage.
Every job gets an itemized receipt. For accident tows, the receipt matches insurance subrogation requirements. Email or text delivery available on request.
We quote before we dispatch — that number is what you pay. If a condition at the scene changes the scope (vehicle couldn't roll, access harder than described, etc.), we tell you before we start the work. No after-the-fact billing surprises. If you believe you were overcharged, call us and we'll review the job.
With the owner's written authorization, yes. For abandoned vehicles on your own property, we need proof that you're the property owner plus a lien-or-abandonment process through NY DMV — we walk you through it. We never tow vehicles without a clear chain of authorization.
Yes. Commercial liability insurance carried; certificates of insurance (COI) available on request before any tow job. Note: NYC DCA tow license is only required for non-consent operators — JG Towing is consent-only, so we're exempt from DCA licensing by design.
We photograph every vehicle before and after load. Damage is rare; when it happens, our commercial cargo insurance covers it. Report any concern within 24 hours of drop with your photos so we can process the claim promptly.
The FAQ above is the short-form answer set. Here is the expanded context behind the questions we hear most often.
The most common question we get, by a significant margin, is some version of "how much does a tow cost?" The honest answer is that it depends on four factors: the equipment class (flatbed, wheel-lift, or heavy-duty), the distance from our Kew Gardens yard to the pickup plus pickup to drop-off, the specialty condition of the vehicle (AWD, EV, exotic, lowered, collision-damaged), and any winch-out or unusual access requirement. We quote the specific fare at the dispatch call — not a range, not a "starting at" figure, but the actual number for the actual situation. If the situation changes on scene from what we were told, we explain the change before touching the vehicle.
The second most common question is "can you come right now?" We operate 24/7/365 from our Kew Gardens yard. Queens-internal calls are typically 10-15 minutes from the yard under normal traffic. Close Nassau towns are 15-20 minutes. Mid-Nassau and Long Island coverage is 22-30 minutes. We give the honest ETA at the dispatch call rather than promising a five-minute response we cannot hit. If a closer operator is a better fit for a genuinely urgent five-minute situation, we say so.
The third category of questions is about specific vehicle situations — "my Tesla won't start," "my AWD is dead," "my lowered M3 won't roll," "my Sprinter van died on the parkway." Each of those has a specific equipment answer (flatbed for EV, flatbed or wheel-lift-with-dollies for AWD, exotic-spec flatbed with extra strap pads for a lowered performance car, heavy-duty wrecker coordination for a Sprinter van at over 10,000 pounds). The dispatcher walks through the situation and picks the right equipment before the truck rolls.
The fourth category is about payment — what we accept (cash, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover), when payment happens (at delivery to the drop-off destination for consumer jobs; through carrier billing for insurance-dispatched accident recovery), and whether there are hidden fees (no — the quoted fare is the invoiced fare, with only disclosed toll pass-through for tow routes that cross a bridge or tunnel). These questions come up because the tow industry has a bad reputation for hidden fees, and we spend a meaningful portion of every dispatch call affirming that the quoted number is the actual number.
The fifth category is about what we do not do. We do not tow vehicles without the owner's written authorization on scene. We do not run blocked- driveway contract pickups. We do not run non-consent private-property hooks. We do not tow on state-contracted parkway mainlines (Southern State, Meadowbrook, Northern State, Cross Island, Belt) — those are handled by state or county-authorized operators only. We do not fabricate reviews, ratings, or response times. We do not publish fake credentials or made-up years-in- business numbers. If a tow company claims any of that in their marketing, they are probably not operating the way we do.
Live dispatcher, 24/7, no call-out fee. We answer in person.