For the purposes of this chapter, the terms used herein are
defined as follows:
CRUISING
The operation of a tow truck in and upon a roadway within
the Township of Wyckoff to solicit vehicle towing and/or storage business
except in response to a police request.
DECOUPLING FEE
A charge by a towing company for releasing a motor vehicle
to its owner or operator when the vehicle has been, or is about to
be, hooked or lifted by a tower, but prior to the vehicle actually
having been moved or removed from the property or roadway location.
DISABLED VEHICLE
A vehicle which has been abandoned, impounded or rendered
inoperable as a result of a mechanical failure or involvement in an
accident. A vehicle the location of which constitutes a hazard to
the motoring public shall be deemed disabled for the purposes of this
chapter.
DIVISION
The Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law
and Public Safety.
EMERGENCY DUTY CALL LIST
An annual list kept by the Township of Wyckoff containing
the names of towing operators who have been approved pursuant to this
chapter.
HEAVY DUTY
A tow truck with dual wheels, capable of towing large trucks
and shall meet the following minimum requirements: GVW 30,000 pounds;
GCWR 80,000 pounds; boom rating of 50,000 pounds; winch rating of
50,000 pounds; cable size and length: 5/8 inch and 200 feet; equipped
with chassis lift; under-reach retracted rating 25,000 pounds and
extended rating 12,000 pounds.
IMPOUNDMENT
The act of storing and confining a vehicle upon an order
from the Police Department at either the towing operator's storage
area or at the Township facility as a result of abandonment, involvement
in an accident or suspected criminal activity, or disabled as defined
above.
LEASE
A vehicle leased by the licensee, through a leasing company,
and showing the licensee on the registration as the owner or lessee.
If the registration is such that the lessee is not listed, the licensee
will be required to show a lease agreement.
LICENSE
The document approved and issued by the Township of Wyckoff
granting the privilege to tow and store vehicles and perform other
towing operations for the Township of Wyckoff.
LICENSEE
A towing operator having a license granted by the Township
pursuant to the provisions of this section.
LIGHT-DUTY FLATBED
A car carrier of the rollback-and-tilt type, with dual wheels,
capable of removing and transporting passenger cars damage-free and
shall meet the following minimum requirements: GVW 14,500 pounds;
winch rating of 8,000 pounds; cable size and length, 3/8 inch and
50 inches; bed length, 16 feet; bed width, 84 inches inside side rails;
wheel lift retracted rating 6,000 pounds and extended rating 3,000
pounds.
LIGHT-DUTY WRECKER
A tow truck with dual wheels, capable of towing passenger
cars and shall meet the following minimum requirements: GVW 14,000
pounds; GCWR 18,000 pounds; boom rating of 8,000 pounds; winch rating
of 8,000 pounds; cable size and length, 3/8 inch and 100 feet; wheel
lift retracted rating 6,000 pounds and extended rating 3,000 pounds.
MEDIUM-DUTY FLATBED
A car carrier of the rollback-and-tilt type, with dual wheels,
capable of removing and transporting small trucks, full-size vans,
or large passenger cars damage-free and shall meet the following minimum
requirements: GVW 18,000 pounds; winch rating of 8,000 pounds; cable
size and length, 3/8 inch and 50 inches; bed length, 19 feet bed width,
84 inches inside side rails; wheel lift retracted rating 6,000 pounds
and extended rating 3,000 pounds.
MEDIUM-DUTY WRECKER
A tow truck with dual wheels, capable of towing small trucks
and shall meet the following minimum requirements: GVW 18,000 pounds;
GCWR 30,000 pounds; boom rating of 16,000 pounds; winch rating of
16,000 pounds; cable size and length, 1/2 inch and 200 feet; wheel
lift retracted rating 10,500 pounds and extended rating 8,500 pounds.
MOTOR VEHICLE or VEHICLE
Includes all vehicles propelled otherwise than by muscular
power, excepting such vehicles as run only upon rails or tracks and
motorized bicycles, motorized scooters, motorized wheelchairs and
motorized skateboards.
NONCONSENSUAL TOWING
The towing of a motor vehicle from private or public property
without the consent of the owner or operator of the vehicle.
OWNER/PERSON
An individual, a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation,
limited liability company or any other business entity who or which
owns or leases, and/or operates, parks or abandons a vehicle within
the Township.
POLICE
The Police Department of the Township of Wyckoff or of any
jurisdiction having authority in the subject matter.
PRINCIPAL LOCATION
The business office of an applicant/licensee, where licensee
shall conduct business associated with the towing and storage of vehicles
under authority of the towing license issued by the Township of Wyckoff.
ROUTINE CALLS FOR SERVICE
A police request for road service of a disabled vehicle,
i.e., dead batteries, flat tires, out of gas, or other services that
do not require towing.
STORAGE SERVICES
The storage, housing or holding of vehicles indoors or outdoors
by a licensee under authority of this section.
TOWING OPERATOR
An individual or entity engaged in the business of providing
towing and storage services.
TOWING SERVICES
The towing service and/or on-site vehicle repair, including
tire changes, jump starts or furnishing fuel, rendered by a towing
operator.
WAITING TIME
The time a licensee has equipment and personnel waiting at
a scene to perform a towing operation.
No towing operator shall operate within the Township for police-requested
towing services and/or storage services unless the towing operator
has obtained a license issued by the Township.
Licenses to tow shall be issued for one calendar year commencing
January 1 of the calendar year.
[Amended 8-3-2010 by Ord.
No. 1629]
A. Authorization.
(1) The Township Committee shall, at a public meeting, by resolution,
authorize the issuance of licenses after consideration of the applications
and the recommendations of the Township's Chief of Police.
(2) Applicants may apply every year during the filing period as set forth in §
175-5C and must have the recommendation of the Chief of Police prior to the new license being issued.
B. Issuance. The authorized license or licenses shall be issued by the Wyckoff Chief of Police in writing upon payment by the towing operator of the license fee specified in §
175-8.
The following schedule of nonrefundable fees is adopted for
the obtaining of a towing license:
B. License fee: $250 per year, payable before January 1 of the license
year.
[Amended 3-4-2014 by Ord. No. 1728; 1-13-2015 by Ord. No. 1761]
[Amended 8-3-2010 by Ord.
No. 1629]
A. Inside building secured storage.
(1) Each licensee shall have an inside building secured storage space
sufficient to accommodate at least three vehicles for exclusive use
of the Police Department in connection with vehicles being held as
evidence or under investigation. All storage areas must meet the requirements
of N.J.A.C. 11:3-38.2 (definitions), which states, "inside buildings"
means a vehicle storage facility that is completely indoors, having
one or more openings in the wall, for storage and removal of vehicles
and that is secured by a locking device on each opening. Inside building
secured storage must be within three and five-tenths miles from the
border of the Township of Wyckoff. All distances referred to in this
chapter shall be measured by drawing a straight line from the towing
facility in question to the nearest point on Wyckoff's border.
(2) The inside building storage space shall be capable of being locked/safeguarded
against access by unauthorized person(s) and employee(s).
B. Outside secured storage. Each licensee shall have an outside secured
storage area to accommodate a reasonable number of vehicles at any
one time. All storage areas must meet the requirements of N.J.A.C.
11:3-38.2 (definitions), which states, "outdoor secured" means an
automobile 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 a similar on-site
security measure. The facility is to be lighted at night. Outside
secured storage must be within three and five-tenths miles from the
border of the Township of Wyckoff.
C. Equipment facility. Each licensee shall have an area and facility adequate for the storage of the required equipment specified in §
175-10 when not in use. Such equipment facility must be within three and five-tenths miles from the border of the Township of Wyckoff.
D. Location; hours; condition. The required storage and equipment facilities
shall be as follows:
(1) Principal location must be within three and five-tenths miles from
the border of the Township of Wyckoff.
(2) Outside secured storage facility and inside building secured storage
facility (two-vehicle capacity) must be within three and five-tenths
miles from the border of the Township of Wyckoff.
(3) The hours of recovery of vehicles from storage shall be no less than
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Saturday, 9:00
a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (excluding holidays and Saturdays preceding a Monday
holiday), and prominently posted at all of the above-mentioned facilities
of the licensee and also made available at Township of Wyckoff Police
Headquarters. The vehicle shall be made available by the licensee
immediately upon an emergency request by the Township of Wyckoff Police
Department. Facilities shall be kept clean and in good order to accommodate
persons who may enter facilities with respect to any vehicles stored
therein. The principal location, in addition to the above-mentioned
items, shall have adequate rest room facilities with running water
that are clean and in good working order available to persons who
may enter the facility with respect to any vehicle towed by the licensee.
E. Unsecured outside storage. No unsecured storage area of any kind
will be permitted for use by any licensee for storage of any vehicle
towed under the license.
Towing and storage services shall be governed by the following
provisions:
A. The schedule when a licensee will be on duty will be set by the Wyckoff
Police Department's Chief of Police.
B. Licensee shall respond to all police requests for towing and/or road
service on a twenty-four-hour, seven days per week basis, when requested
by a police dispatcher or any other police officer expressly authorized
to communicate such a request. The licensee shall respond with the
number of tow trucks requested to the scene within a reasonable time.
Such reasonable time shall be deemed to be within 20 minutes under
normal atmospheric conditions.
C. If a licensee is wholly or partially unable to respond due to failure
of any equipment or personnel insufficiencies, the licensee shall
immediately notify the Police Department, which will contact the next
towing company in the rotation to handle the request. If such an incident
occurs, the licensee will furnish, in writing, within five business
days, the details of the circumstances which caused the failure to
respond to the Township Police Department's Chief of Police,
who will make a determination if a follow-up investigation and/or
inspection of the licensee's facility is required.
D. Tow trucks of a licensee shall not cruise roadways within the Township for business and shall not respond to any scene where towing may be required except upon request of the Wyckoff Police Department or as permitted under §
175-3A of this chapter.
E. No rotating or flashing lights or sirens shall be used on a tow truck
except as permitted by the New Jersey DMV/DOT (N.J.S.A. 39:3-50),
and all vehicles operated by the licensee shall have a current permit
for said lights issued by the DOT along with all other required vehicle
documents.
F. All tow trucks shall be operated in accordance with all existing
traffic regulations and in a safe and prudent manner. Tow truck drivers
will request police assistance when they find it necessary to turn
around, back up, tow in a direction opposite the flow of traffic,
cross a median, or other hazardous situation during the course of
providing service or towing.
G. Each licensee will be responsible for all vehicles and visible contents
in their custody that are towed off the roads under direction of the
police and shall make an inventory at the scene to note such contents
of each vehicle.
H. No vehicle will be removed from any roadway within the Township without
proper authorization from the police at the scene or the vehicle owner
or operator as the case may be.
I. No licensee shall be required to tow to an area farther than the
licensed storage area between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
unless said licensee agrees to tow farther. If the licensee agrees
to tow farther than the licensed storage area between 6:00 p.m. and
8:00 a.m., he/she will only do so if adequate towing coverage will
be available to the Township.
J. The investigating officer and/or supervisor at the incident scene
is in complete charge of the incident scene (excluding actual towing
operations), and all tow truck drivers shall comply with the officer's/supervisor's
instructions.
K. Each licensee, prior to departing from the scene of towing services,
shall be required to clean and clear the roadway of any debris resulting
from any accident at such scene when rendering towing services and
at all times carry the necessary equipment to perform such cleaning
services. Such equipment shall minimally include, but is not limited
to, a broom and shovel.
L. In the event a licensee refuses to tow or render services at the
scene of an accident or disabled vehicle when requested by the police
or vehicle owner/operator, the officer assigned to the incident shall
report the refusal to his supervisor with all pertinent details. Police
Department policy will be followed to secure a service to clear the
scene, and the report of the refusal shall be forwarded to the Township
Chief of Police as soon as possible for evaluation and follow-up of
the licensee's refusal to perform its obligation under the license.
M. Each licensee shall be required to keep up-to-date records of all
vehicles towed in conjunction with this license. Each licensee shall
provide the Wyckoff Police Chief with a list of all vehicles towed
by order of the police (impounded) that remain unclaimed in storage
monthly. The following records shall be maintained:
(3) Destination where vehicle is towed.
(4) Type of tow (accident, disabled, police impound, etc.).
(5) If mileage is applicable, distance and charge.
(6) Type of storage, dates stored and charge.
(7) Make, model, year, vehicle identification number and registration
of vehicle.
(8) Date and time of vehicle's release.
(9) Name, address and telephone number of person vehicle was released
to.
N. Vehicles impounded or confiscated by the police and stored by the
licensee shall not be released by the licensee without written authorization
by the Police Department pursuant to the Chief of Police.
O. All tow trucks operated by a licensee under license with the Township
of Wyckoff shall be properly registered with the New Jersey Division
of Motor Vehicles and registered with the State Department of Consumer
Affairs. All tow vehicles must display New Jersey commercial license
plates and must possess and display a valid State of New Jersey Division
of Motor Vehicles (DMV) towing registration certificate. All vehicles
shall be kept in safe operating condition at all times and comply
with all motor vehicle regulations. Vehicles operated by a licensee
as well as the operators of such vehicles shall not display any lewd,
obscene or offensive signs, slogans and/or other markings
P. Licensees shall submit copies of their invoices for towing and storage
issued for towing services from roads in the Township of Wyckoff to
the Wyckoff Police Department Traffic Bureau no later than the fifth
day of the next month. Licensees who fail to comply with this regulation
shall have their license suspended for a period of 30 calendar days.
[Added 1-16-2018 by Ord.
No. 1847]
Q. Licensees
are prohibited from using subcontractor towers or alternate storage
locations.
[Added 1-16-2018 by Ord.
No. 1847]
R. Licensees
are prohibited from operating vehicles not included on the licensee's
application. Applications may be updated at the licensee's request
for a fee of $100.
[Added 1-16-2018 by Ord.
No. 1847]
S. Licenses
issued under this chapter shall not be transferable.
[Added 1-16-2018 by Ord.
No. 1847]
Towing and storage charges shall be paid by the owner of a vehicle
towed and/or stored by a licensee at police request, and pursuant
to N.J.A.C. 11:3-38.6, such charges shall be stated in a resolution adopted annually
by the Wyckoff Township Committee:
A. The licensee shall accept a minimum of two major credit cards.
B. The Township and its Police Department shall not be liable to a licensee
with respect to towing and/or service rendered to any owner pursuant
to the license or otherwise. The licensee shall look to the registered
owner of such vehicle for payment of towing and/or storage service
charges or any other compensation.
C. If a vehicle is towed by a licensee to premises controlled by the
Police Department for the purpose of utilizing the vehicle or its
contents as evidence, or in an ongoing criminal investigation, such
vehicle shall not be released from Police Department custody, except
to the licensee, unless the owner of the vehicle furnishes the Police
Department with a receipt that all applicable fees for towing and/or
service have been paid in full. A second fee may be charged if the
vehicle is removed to the licensee's storage area or other destination
desired by the police or vehicle owner.
D. The owner of a vehicle impounded by the Wyckoff Police Department
(vehicles taken under legal authority or without the owner's
consent) shall pay an impound fee of $75 to the Township of Wyckoff
in order to have the vehicle released by the towing vendor. This fee
is in addition to any towing or storage fees charged by the towing
vendor. A fee of $50 shall be due and payable to the Township of Wyckoff
for each check returned for insufficient funds or for any other reason.
[Added 2-21-2012 by Ord. No. 1678; amended 1-13-2015 by Ord. No. 1761]
[Amended 1-13-2015 by Ord. No. 1761]
The licensee shall have in effect, prior to application and
at all times during the term of the license, the following insurance:
A. Primary garage keepers' liability insurance policy in the amount
of $500,000 for any one claimant, and $1,000,000 for more than one
claimant with $500,000 coverage for property damage for one event.
Coverage shall include damage to vehicle(s) in storage, loss or physical
damage to vehicle(s) by theft, fire or other perils.
B. Automobile liability insurance issued by a company authorized to
transact business in the State of New Jersey with an AM best rating
of A- or better insuring the licensee and every tow truck operator
against liability imposed by law for damages because of bodily injury,
including death, sustained by any person and injury to or destruction
of property, including the loss of use thereof, caused by accident
and arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of the tow trucks
of the licensee. The amount of the limits of liability coverage to
be offered by such policy shall be $500,000 for bodily injury to each
person, $1,000,000 for bodily injuries in each accident and $500,000
for property damage in each accident.
C. The licensee shall supply a certificate of insurance to the Wyckoff
Chief of Police describing every policy of insurance, including general
liability, automobile and primary garage keepers' liability and
designating the Township as an additional insured party. The certificate
of insurance shall designate the Township of Wyckoff as an additional
insured and shall contain a thirty-day notice of cancellation whereby
the Municipal Clerk will be provided with a written notification of
cancellation.
D. Workers' compensation insurance, New Jersey statutory coverage,
including employers' liability coverage. The licensee shall supply
a certificate of insurance that contains a thirty-day notice of cancellation
whereby the Municipal Clerk will be provided with a written notification
of cancellation.
The application of any towing operator for a license pursuant
to this chapter shall include an agreement by the towing operator
that upon the issuance of a license, the licensee shall indemnify
the Township against all claims of third parties relating to towing
and/or storage service of the licensee.
The Wyckoff Police Department shall provide, when requested,
towing operators with Department of Motor Vehicles information regarding
registered owners and lien holders. The information requested and
given shall be in conformance with N.J.S.A. 39:10A et seq. and shall
not in any way violate the confidentiality that is required by the
Police Department.
The Wyckoff Chief of Police is hereby designated to enforce
the provisions of this chapter in accordance with due process of law.
Copies of rules and regulations, this chapter and the fee schedules
of the licensees shall be made available to the public at the Wyckoff
Police Headquarters during normal business hours.