Program Personalization

Now that you have installed the Tow Dawg software, it is time to make this program your own. Employee Information:
From the Main Menu select Employees. This is the area where you will add all of your employees. You will not be able to enter a call unless all of your employees are set-up in this area. To add employees go to New. Information to be added is as follows:

Alias - Employees initials, first name, or a number. Employee Type - Dispatcher, Driver, Office Employee Personal Information - Name, address, phone numbers, birth date, Driver License Number, date of hire, etc. There is also a Notes tab where you can add any additional information. This information is optional. Make sure you have it secured if you�re going to enter it.

After you have added all employees you can make changes as necessary with the Edit option. You can now return to Main Menu.

Company Information: Open the program from the Tow Dawg icon on your desktop. From the Main Menu select Company Information. Then select Company Info. The following secondary tabs can be edited with information specific to your business:

Company - Click the edit button and replace the sample information with your company�s information.

Company Name
Address
Phone/Fax

To enter your changes hit close button.
Program Constants:
This tab was created to automatically link you to your lien company. Skip this tab until you get confirmation that your lien company has the capability to accept your information electronically. Lien Defaults - The information you enter here will be dictated by the state you are in

Short Lien Start/Finish

Lien Start/Finish

Boat Lien Start/Finish

If your lien or administrative fee is not split between start & finish, put the fee on the start and zero on the finish.

10652 Notice Rate (California only)

Lien Sale Day/Hour

Security:
This area determines the level of access that each individual user will have. You will click security privileges setup. The system is set up with seven levels of access. You can check each item you wish a specific user to have access to.

You can now close Company Information and return to the Main Menu.

Main Menu - Lists:

Agencies - You can add all agencies that you are contracted with. You will not be able to enter a call unless your agencies are set up. Select the New key and you will be prompted to make the choice to model an agency after one in the database or to choose a blank template. Add all agency information in this area. Check the "use all 5 times" box if you do not want the call to be closed out without all the times recorded (if you are going to be entering vehicles already in your inventory, you should check this box after current inventory is added). Next enter the method for calculating. This determines how the tow charges are calculated. Actual is by the minute with a one-hour minimum and is determined by the call-completed time, less the call-dispatched time. Flat is used if it is always the same rate regardless of time. Next select the invoice template to be used for each agency (view the possibilities from the pull-down menu). You can view all report possibilities on the tool bar - Reports�Report Maintenance. Edit the report memos to your liking. You can now enter Agency Default rates on the secondary tabs for storage, towing, liens, mileage/road service, misc. charges, and notes. The lien tab determines when a vehicle will appear on the start lien screen. Close the Agencies menu.

Trucks - Add all trucks used by your Company. Select the New tab and enter an alias, make, year, and description for each truck. You will not be able to enter a call unless your trucks are set up. Close the truck menu.

Makes/Models - All vehicle makes and models used by Tow Dawg are listed on this form. Clicking New or Edit will open the New/Edit Vehicle Makes form. You can add new makes and models as necessary. Currently there are no report options for this menu so nothing will happen if you click the Report button.

Impound Reasons - select Impound Reasons and add all relevant impound reasons needed for your clients. The number of impound reasons is unlimited. Make sure that you have one for owner�s request.

Payment Methods - select Payment Methods and edit to your liking. The pull-down menu lists some options that you can add to. To add to the list select New and add payment name and select payment method from pull-down menu. You can add a description if you like.

Call Reasons - select Call Reasons and edit to your liking.

Tow To Locations - select Tow To Locations and edit to meet your needs. Make sure all impound locations are marked as such; otherwise storage fees will not accrue.

Charges - select Misc. Charges and edit to meet your needs.

Release Authority - select Release Authority and edit to meet your needs. This is to record what documentation was given to you, prompting you to release the vehicle to the individual.

Truck Maintenance Items - select Truck Maintenance Items and edit to meet your needs.

CONGRATULATIONS! Your set-up is complete. We suggest that you start utilizing the system by inputting the vehicles that are currently in your inventory.