Here is how police and towing operations work, this is very generic,but principles are the same.
Some jurisdictions have the local towing companies on a rotating basis could be weekly or monthly. It gives everyone a piece of the business rather than someone getting greased for only having all of the business.
Next option is on a yearly basis the city puts out a basic criteria for their needs for towing services to the local companies. The companies in turn submit sealed bids and the bids get opened at a public hearing to see who was the lowest bid.
Regarding the officer calling a tow company yes we do it time to time . Ive been an LEO for 23yrs both up in Crook county, and now for a large department downstate Illinois.
The infamous "I have tow insurance they'll be right here " is bs 99% of the time. Once you make the phone call to insurance they start calling local companies and haggling on price to come tow you. The tow companies get pissed and refuse to play a lot of the time.
I was a nice guy once and waited over an hr for a tow to show up. Sorry folks, I dont have time to wait that long. I have calls in my area that start to stack up, or you get the dreaded officer down call (yes its happened to me)
But wait I can't leave the broke down car on the road, becauss now I'm liable for it and the occupants inside. Nope I'm going to call a city selected tow truck to take it away. You can submit the bill to your insurance for reimbursement. Time is money money is time, I believe in giving the taxpayers the best bang for the buck, myself included, I pay part of my own wages.
Note to all, I know original post made referene to not seeking medical help. Not a good decision imho. 2 days later you wake up sore, or maybe 2 weeks later you're sore. Ive handled 100s of accidents and testified in court both criminal and civil and when you do this I say 98% of the time insurance companies will **** YOU. They say oh its not bad, or the Drs waffle on their evaluation of you because of time lapse.
Do yourself a favor go to hospital get checked out, you'll have a little better recourse in the long run. Document document document things, I cannot stress that enough.
Regarding the cell phone usage, if no one was killed or seriously maimed in an accident, police do not pursue cell phone usage at that time other than to maybe ask the driver if they used it. Other than that a search warrant needs to be obtained for criminal charges otherwise 4th amendment is violated. If no fatalities happen, the insurance company could subpoena the kids cell # and see if it was used just PRIOR to hitting the OP.
Hope this clarifies things to a point
