Don’t Test Luck With Tow Truck

If you’ve ever had your car impounded, you know what a hassle that is. And expensive!

Yet the DMV says we’ve got an estimated 2 million drivers in California taking a chance on an automatic impound every time they get behind the wheel: About a million are driving with an expired license, or none at all. And another million have had their licenses suspended or revoked.

If you or a loved one are among those folks, beware: Now, more and more, police are impounding the cars of the unlicensed. That’s in part because of new grants from the state Office of Traffic Safety for city police driver checkpoints.

Most are aimed at drunk drivers. But with the ongoing promotion of designated drivers, drunk numbers at such checkpoints are actually down, some police say. What police still find are plenty of unlicensed drivers--and the cops don’t hesitate to whisk their vehicles away.

Garden Grove police recently netted 55 impounds at a Harbor Boulevard checkpoint. All but a few came from unlicensed driving citations.

Last year, Anaheim cited 2,077 such drivers, police records show. Not many driver sob stories worked either--

2,036 of them had their cars towed to an impound lot.

You either have to get your license problems straightened out first or get another licensed driver to retrieve your vehicle for you.

The impound cost is even worse if you’re caught driving with a suspended or revoked license: That’s an automatic 30-day impound, which can run up a fee of $600 or more, counting tow charges.

Why do these drivers risk getting caught? Police say some are illegal immigrants who can’t get the necessary Social Security card for a driver’s license. Others of us can’t afford to pay outstanding warrants, which means a DMV hold.

And some drivers don’t go through the hassle of the DMV lines, says Seal Beach police spokesman Rick Papp, “because they are just irresponsible.”

Anaheim’s Sgt. Joe Vargas points out some think they have no choice but to risk it: “We live in an area where driving is almost essential.”

Let’s face it, the odds of not getting caught are in your favor, said California Highway Patrol spokeswoman Denise Medina of its Westminster office.

“These drivers think they can get away with it if they just drive very, very carefully,” she said.

Statistics show such drivers do pose a safety risk.

David DeYoung, research analyst for the Department of Motor Vehicles, says about 1 driver out of 12 is unlicensed. But that unlicensed-to-license ratio dramatically increases--triple at least--in fatal crashes in California.

You can bet the police have heard just about every argument imaginable when stopping an unlicensed driver. Even if you’re telling them the truth, the CHP’s Medina points out, the police have no way to verify what you say.

“We leave it to the discretion of the officer,” she said. “If you’re license is just a month or two expired, the officer might let you off with a fix-it ticket. But no license at all? Figure on getting towed.”

Actually, there’s a bright side for most of us in all that towing to the impound yard:

DMV researcher DeYoung says it’s been discovered that when people’s vehicles are impounded, the chances of them ever driving again without a license dramatically decrease--24% fewer unlicensed on the road, 18% fewer traffic convictions and 25% fewer crashes.

Readers may reach Hicks by calling (714) 564-1049 or e-mail to jerry.hicks@latimes.com.