Payment processing for tow trucks & roadside recovery
A tow operator gets paid at the roadside, at odd hours, from the cab of a truck, and the final amount is rarely the number quoted at hook up. The payment system has to work where the truck stops, not where the office sits.
Card present payments taken at the scene mix with card not present payments keyed from the office when the vehicle owner is somewhere else entirely.
Blended pricing sets one rate high enough to cover keyed office payments, then charges every roadside tap the same padded number.
Battery and cellular terminals in the truck, a virtual terminal in the office, and each stream priced on its own basis.
Photo: Quintin Soloviev / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
Payment happens where the truck stops
Recovery work does not come to a counter. A battery powered terminal with cellular built in, the Clover Flex being a common fit, rides in the cab and takes tap, chip and swipe at the scene: highway shoulder, parkade ramp, impound lot gate. No signal hunting, no driving back to the yard to run a card, no invoice chasing a stranger's mailbox.
Pre authorization and the number that moves
The final bill often is not the hook up quote. Winch time, dollies, storage days and mileage all land after the job starts. A pre authorization at the start with a final capture at the end handles the moving number cleanly, keeps the customer informed, and leaves a transaction record that stands up when someone disputes the charge a month later.
When the owner is not at the scene
Impound releases, insurance directed tows and account work regularly get paid by someone who never sees the truck. The office takes those payments over the phone through a virtual terminal, as card not present volume priced as its own category, so the keyed premium stays contained to the transactions that earn it instead of spreading across the whole statement.
Odd hours are the normal hours
A two in the morning recovery cannot wait for a nine to five help desk. The deployment is specified for the schedule the work actually keeps: hardware that charges in the truck, spares in the yard, swap out support when a unit fails, and humans to call when something breaks at the worst possible time.
Fitted to the operation you already run
Towing operations run on dispatch and job management tools the drivers already know. Acceptance is deployed alongside what you have, the impound counter and the trucks land on one agreement with each stream visible separately, and the review reads a full statement first so the structure matches how the operation actually transacts.
Hardware we deploy
Semi integrated with your POS, ethernet with wireless fallback, tap, insert and swipe, built in receipt printer.
WiFi plus LTE fallback, full service battery life, configured to your workflow, splits handled at the table.
Contactless acceptance on a supported Android device. No hardware to buy for mobile and field use cases.
Example hardware lineup and pricing for illustration. The fitted deployment and real pricing follow the statement review.
One independent team, six partner platforms
Kubera Payments Corporation is a registered agent of the partners listed. Clover is a registered trademark of Fiserv, Inc.
Common questions
Can drivers take card payment at the roadside?
Yes. Battery powered terminals with cellular built in ride in the truck and accept tap, chip and swipe at the scene, with receipts printed or sent from the unit.
The final bill often differs from the quote. How is that handled?
With a pre authorization at the start of the job and a final capture when the work is done. The flow is configured deliberately so the record supports the final amount if it is ever disputed.
Can the office charge a card when the vehicle owner is not present?
Yes. Card not present payments run through a virtual terminal and are priced as their own category, so the keyed premium stays contained to the transactions that earn it.
What about jobs at three in the morning?
The deployment is specified for the hours the work keeps: in truck charging, spare units, swap out support and support people you can actually reach outside business hours.
A recommended payments partner of the BC Chamber of Commerce
Price your towing volume properly
Send us a recent statement. We read it line by line and come back within 1 to 2 business days with exactly what you are paying and whether the structure fits how you run. No obligation, just numbers.
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