AAA Offering Free Towing To Drunk Drivers Over Holiday Weekend

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — For the 15th year in a row, the Automobile Club of Southern California will offer free towing during the Fourth of July weekend in an attempt to keep drunken drivers off the road, beginning Saturday.

The Tipsy Tow program will be available to intoxicated drivers beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday and continuing until 11:59 p.m. Monday in the 13 counties served by the Auto Club.

Motorists, bartenders, restaurant managers, party hosts or passengers of a drinking driver can call (800) 400-4AAA for a free tow to the driver's residence of up to seven miles away.

Callers should tell operators they want a Tipsy Tow, and a tow truck under contract to the Auto Club will be dispatched.

The service does not include rides for passengers and is restricted to a one-way, one-time ride for the driver. For distances longer than seven miles, drivers will be expected to pay the normal rate charged by the tow truck operator.

A first-time drunken driving conviction can cost $12,176 or more in fines, penalties, restitution, legal fees and increased insurance costs, according to the Auto Club.

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