[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of
Warwick 4-13-1992 by Ord. No. 92-8. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
A.
When not inconsistent with the context, words used in
the present tense shall include the future; words used in the plural shall
include the singular. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely
directory.
B.
DISABLED OR WRECKED OR ABANDONED OR IMPOUNDED VEHICLE
FLATBED WRECKER
LEASED
LIGHT-DUTY WRECKER; WHEEL-LIFT WRECKER
PERSON
POLICE DEPARTMENT
TOWER
TOWNSHIP
For the purpose of this chapter, the following words
and phrases shall have the meanings indicated herein below:
An automobile, truck, truck tractor, trailer, motorcycle, motor home
or other vehicle or device, in, upon or by which any person or property is
or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, road or street, which is no
longer capable of safe operation on a highway, road or street and presents
safety hazard to the public by virtue of its location on or adjacent to a
public highway, road or street in the Township of Warwick.
A flatbed vehicle equipped with a roll body and winch designed for
and capable of lifting and transporting passenger and commercial vehicles.
Vehicles must be leased for a fixed period of greater then three
years and for a fixed flat rate. A lessor must be a business, company, entity
or corporation whose usual and customary business is that of leasing motor
vehicles.
A vehicle designed for and capable of lifting and transporting passenger
vehicles.
Any individual person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
company or organization of any kind.
The Police Department of the Township of Warwick, County of Bucks.
A person engaged in the business or offering the services of a vehicle
wrecker, tow truck, car carrier or other vehicle whereby disabled or wrecked
or abandoned vehicles are towed or otherwise removed from the place where
they are disabled or wrecked or abandoned by use of a vehicle so adapted to
that purpose.
The Township of Warwick, County of Bucks.
No person shall offer his services to or be called by the Township or
its Police Department as a tower for the purpose of removal of disabled or
wrecked or abandoned vehicles unless that person is the holder of a current
towing license as hereinafter provided.
A.
An application for a towing license shall be made to
the Township upon a form available from the Township, which form shall require
the following information:
(1)
The name, address and telephone number of the business
for which the towing license is sought.
(2)
The type of business organization under which the business
is operated (i.e., sole proprietorship, partnership corporation, etc.).
(3)
The name, home and business address and telephone numbers
of all of the owner(s) or, in the case of a corporation, stockholder(s) of
the business for which the towing license is sought.
(4)
A list of the tow trucks, vehicle wreckers, car carriers
or other vehicles available for service to the Township, including a description
of each vehicle or piece of equipment (type, make, model, year, etc.), the
name and address of the owner/lessee of each vehicle or piece of equipment
and their location and hourly availability.
(5)
The address and description of the premises upon which
any disabled or wrecked vehicles will be towed to and/or stored, including
the size of the area on the premises available for storage of vehicles, the
approximate number of vehicles which may be stored in the area, whether said
area is fenced and a description of any security precautions or protection
methods for vehicles stored in said area.
(6)
A certificate of insurance or other proof acceptable
to the Township that the applicant has obtained the general liability and
garage keeper's liability insurance required for the issuance of a towing
license.
(a)
In the event that there are less than two licensed towers
approved by the Township, the Township may issue licenses during the calendar
year in order to increase the number of licensed towers to two.
B.
An application for a towing license shall be made and
signed by the owner(s) of the business for which the license is sought or,
in the case of a corporation, the president of the corporation.
C.
Applicants must execute an agreement to indemnify the
Township for any and all losses or expenses incurred by virtue of any acts
performed in the course of service.
E.
The application shall be received by the Township and
the Township Police Department within 20 days of receipt of the application
and application fee, and the Township shall promptly thereafter advise the
applicant of whether the license has been approved, disapproved or included
on the waiting list.
F.
Towing licenses shall be issued for a period of one year,
commencing on January 1 and terminating on December 31 of each year. Any applicant
whose application for a license has been approved shall be issued a license
effective the following January 1.
A towing license shall be issued to all applicants who meet all of the
following requirements:
A.
The following vehicles shall be owned or leased exclusively
by the applicant, garaged on the premises from which the applicant's towing
business is conducted and available on call for the service at the request
of the Township or its Police Department:
B.
All of the aforesaid required vehicles shall bear a sign
indicating the name and telephone number of the applicant's towing business,
and the applicant shall make said vehicles available for verification by the
Township.
C.
All of the aforesaid required vehicles shall be maintained
in a safe and usable operating condition.
D.
A fenced-in storage yard or other secure facility, open
or closed, shall be located on the premises from which the applicant's towing
business is conducted, and such yard or storage area shall be authorized by
the appropriate zoning, use and occupancy and other municipal permits. A storage
area must be available to hold a minimum of five vehicles. The applicant shall
permit inspection of the storage yard or facility by the Township. The applicant
shall install screening and comply with all the provisions of the state and
federal highway beautification acts.
E.
The applicant's place of towing business shall be located
within the Township boundaries in order that the response time to a call for
service is immediate. In the event that any tower or towers who have been
in continuous-duty tow service to the Township of Warwick at the time of the
enactment of this chapter are in violation of this subsection, said tower
or towers shall not be denied a license under this subsection.
G.
All of the aforesaid vehicles shall be equipped with
a two-way communication system, such as two-way radios or mobile telephones.
A.
A towing license shall be issued to each applicant whose
application has been approved by the Township upon payment to the Township
of a license fee as set by the Board of Supervisors. [1] The Board of Supervisors of the Township of Warwick is empowered
to change, revise or amend the amount of this fee by resolution duly adopted
by the Board of Supervisors without necessitating an amendment to this chapter.
B.
The towing license shall be prominently displayed on
the premises where the applicant's towing business is conducted.
C.
Along with the issuance of a towing license, a vehicle
sticker shall be issued for each vehicle listed on the application, which
sticker shall be prominently displayed on the right front door of each such
vehicle.
D.
A towing license shall be effective for a period of one
year from the date of its issuance.
A towing license is issued by the Township on condition of and with
the express agreement of the licensee that the licensee shall, at all times,
act as independent contractor to and not as an employee of the Township or
its Police Department and that payment for services rendered pursuant to said
license shall be by the owner, operator or custodian of the disabled, wrecked
or abandoned vehicle.
A.
All licensees shall keep and maintain all of the vehicles
listed on its application in a safe and operable condition and in a condition
which shall pass the motor vehicle inspection standards of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania and shall have said vehicles immediately available to answer
calls for service by the Police Department during the duty-tow shift assigned
to the licensee. All licensees shall not use or employ a vehicle which does
not have the required towing license vehicle sticker displayed as set forth
hereinabove to answer calls by the Township or its Police Department.
B.
All licensees shall respond within 15 minutes from their
receipt of the Police Department's call requesting service to the arrival
of the licensee's appropriate towing vehicle at the location of the disabled
or wrecked or abandoned vehicle, except in bad weather or adverse road conditions.
C.
If any licensee cannot respond to the service call from
the Police Department with the appropriate towing vehicle or in a minimal
response time, the licensee shall make arrangements with another licensee
to respond to the call and shall so advise the police dispatcher. If a licensee's
vehicle is delayed while in transit to the requested location, the vehicle
operator shall advise the police dispatcher of the delay and of his present
location, whereupon a determination shall be made by the appropriate police
official as to whether another licensee shall be called.
D.
Fees charged by the licensee when towing or storing towed
vehicles as an independent contractor to the Township of Warwick shall not
exceed current prevailing rates.
E.
All licensees shall be responsible for removing vehicular
parts and debris from the highway. Licensees are required to perform basic
liquid cleanup following an accident. Basic liquid cleanup shall include cleanup
requiring no more than 100 pounds of oil-absorbent material and removal of
the liquid and oil-absorbent material.
[Amended 9-16-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-7]
F.
All licensees shall comply with all rules and regulations
established by the Police Department with regard to use of the duty tow.
B.
If the owner or operator cannot remove the disabled or
wrecked or abandoned vehicle or refuses or fails to have the vehicle removed
within a reasonable time, a Township police officer shall call the towing
licensee assigned to the police duty tow to affect such a removal.
C.
The Police Department shall establish rules and regulations
for the establishment of a police duty tow, the rotation of assignment of
towing licensees to the duty tow and the use of the duty tow by Township police
officers.
A.
The Township reserves the right to suspend the license
of an operator at any time if an inspection by a Township police officer or
a Township official determines that the required equipment is missing or inoperable
or unsafe. Any such suspension of any operator's license shall continue, without
rebate of either the application fee or license fee, until such time as the
Township determines the applicant is in full compliance with the terms and
conditions of this chapter.
(1)
The operator agrees to execute a hold-harmless agreement for any and all claims, actions or causes of actions arising from suspension of a license for the reasons set forth in Subsection A above at the time of initial application for a towing license.
(2)
The Township shall give the operator warning or notice
that the operator is in violation of the provisions and terms of this chapter
prior to any formal action to suspend the license. The Township shall permit
the operator to correct deficiencies within the time frames as follows:
B.
A towing license shall be revoked upon a finding by the
Township of any of the following grounds:
(1)
The license was procured by fraudulent conduct or false
statement or omission of a material fact, and, in this event, the license
shall be null and void and as if an application had never been filed.
(2)
The licensee failed to perform or violated any of the
duties of a licensee set forth hereinabove.
(3)
The licensee no longer meets all the standards for issuance
of a towing license.
(4)
The licensee's application is found to be defective in
any way or contains misinformation or omissions of fact, and, in this event,
the license shall be null and void and as if an application had never been
filed.
(5)
The licensee failed to correct safety-related or non-safety-related deficiencies within the allotted time as provided by § 174-9A(2)(a) and (b).
(6)
The licensee's license had been suspended three times.
