Pursuant to and in accordance with the terms of P.L. 1991, c. 142 (N.J.S.A.
40:48-2.49) the borough hereby regulates the removal of motor vehicles from
private or public property by operators engaged in such practice and establishes
the fees to be charged for said removal and storage, as well as penalties
for any violations hereof. It is the expressed policy of this borough that
no qualified applicant will be excluded from this program or denied approval
on the basis of race, religion, gender or national origin or be in any other
way discriminated against unlawfully.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
BASE OF SERVICE
The towing operator's principal place of business where the tow vehicle
is stationed when not in use.
INSIDE BUILDINGS
A vehicle storage facility that is completely indoors, having one
or more openings in the walls for storage and removal of motor vehicles and
that is secured by a locking device on each opening.
MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT
An occurrence in which a motor vehicle comes in contact with any
other object for which the motor vehicle must be towed or removed for placement
in a storage facility.
MOTOR VEHICLES
Includes all vehicles propelled otherwise than by muscular power,
excepting such vehicles as run only upon rails or tracks and motorized bicycles.
OUTSIDE SECURED
A motor vehicle storage facility that is not indoors and is secured
by a fence, wall or other man-made barrier that is at least six feet high
and is installed with a passive alarm system or similar on-site security measure.
The facility is to be lighted at night.
OUTSIDE UNSECURED
An automobile storage facility that is not indoors and is not secured
by a fence, wall or other man-made barrier, and all other storage facilities
not defined above as inside building or outside secured.
TOWING SERVICE
The removal and transportation of a motor vehicle from a highway,
street or other public or private road, or a parking area, or from a storage
facility, and other services normally incident thereto.
TOW VEHICLE
Only those vehicles equipped with a boom or booms, winches, slings,
tilt beds, wheel lifts of under-reach equipment specifically designed by its
manufacturer for the removal or transport of motor vehicles.
Assignments for towing service shall be made on a rotating basis from
the list of those granted approvals hereunder, and said list shall be used
by this borough's Police Department or emergency services to acquire towing
service in connection with a motor vehicle accident or for any other emergency.
A towing service operator engaged in the removal of motor vehicles,
or any employee, officer or agent thereof, who engaged in a pattern or practice
of knowingly violating the fee limits set forth in this chapter may be liable
to the borough for a civil penalty of not less than $25 or more than $50 for
each motor vehicle stored with the operator and shall be subject to immediate
revocation of his towing service approval and shall forfeit the right to obtain
such approval in this borough ever again, and may be subject to such additional
penalties as may be prescribed in regulations and statute applicable to motor
vehicle towing and storage activities.