[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
As used in this Chapter, the following terms shall mean:
Any unattended motor vehicle, trailer, all-terrain vehicle,
outboard motor or vessel removed or subject to removal from public
or private property as provided in this Chapter, whether or not operational.
A street which is within the limits of the City of Hermann,
Missouri and which is constructed or maintained by the City of Hermann
with City funds.
A motor vehicle designed or used to transport passengers
or property.
The City of Hermann Police Department.
Any City of Hermann Police Department Officer.
Any natural person, corporation or other legal entity.
The entire width of land between the boundary lines of a
State highway or City street.
That portion of a State highway or City street ordinarily
used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the berm or shoulder.
A highway constructed or maintained by the State Highways
and Transportation Commission with the aid of State funds or United
States Government funds, or any highway included by authority of law
in the State highway system, including all rights-of-way.
Any person or entity which tows, removes or stores abandoned
property.
[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
A.
Any
officer may authorize a towing company to remove to a place of safety:
1.
Any abandoned property on the right-of-way of any State highway or
City street left unattended for more than twenty-four (24) hours;
provided that commercial motor vehicles not hauling waste designated
as hazardous under Section 49 U.S.C. 5103(a) may only be removed under
this Section to a place of safety until the owner or owner's representative
has had a reasonable opportunity to contact a towing company of choice;
2.
Any unattended abandoned property illegally left standing upon any
State highway, City street or bridge if the abandoned property is
left in a position or under such circumstances as to obstruct the
normal movement of traffic where there is no reasonable indication
that the person in control of the property is arranging for its immediate
control or removal;
3.
Any abandoned property which has been reported as stolen or taken
without consent of the owner;
4.
Any abandoned property for which the person operating such property
is arrested for an alleged offense for which an officer takes the
person into custody and where such person is unable to arrange for
the property's timely removal;
5.
Any abandoned property which due to any other State law or local
ordinance is subject to towing because of the owner's outstanding
traffic or parking violations;
6.
Any abandoned property left unattended in violation of a State law or local ordinance where signs have been posted giving notice of the law or where the violation causes a safety hazard, including, but not limited to, Hermann Municipal Code Section 355.090 authorizing the erection of no parking signs in areas that would create hazardous conditions or unusual delays in traffic; or
7.
Any abandoned property for which the person operating such property
or vehicle eludes arrest for an alleged offense for which the officer
would have taken the offender into custody.
B.
Any
officer may immediately remove any abandoned, unattended, wrecked,
burned or partially dismantled property, spilled cargo or other personal
property from the right-of-way of any State highway or City street
if the abandoned property, cargo or personal property is creating
a traffic hazard because of its position in relation to the State
highway or City street. In the event the property creating a traffic
hazard is a commercial motor vehicle, the officer's authority under
this Subsection shall be limited to authorizing a towing company to
remove the commercial motor vehicle to a place of safety, except that
the owner of the commercial motor vehicle or the owner's designated
representative shall have a reasonable opportunity to contact a towing
company of choice. The provisions of this Subsection shall not apply
to vehicles transporting any material which has been designated as
hazardous under Title 49, U.S.C. Section 5103(a).
C.
Any
officer authorizing a tow pursuant to this Section in which the abandoned
property is moved from the immediate vicinity shall complete a crime
inquiry and inspection report to the Director of Revenue on the form
created by the Director of Revenue per Section 304.155(6), RSMo.
D.
Neither
the officer nor anyone having custody of abandoned property under
his direction shall be liable for any damage to such abandoned property
occasioned by a removal authorized by this Section, other than damages
occasioned by negligence or by willful or wanton acts or omissions.
E.
The
owner of abandoned property removed as provided in this Section shall
be responsible for payment of all reasonable charges for towing and
storage of such abandoned property as provided in this Chapter.
F.
Upon
the towing of any abandoned property pursuant to this Section an officer
with the Department shall promptly make an inquiry with the National
Crime Information Center and any statewide Missouri law enforcement
computer system to determine if the abandoned property has been reported
as stolen and shall enter the information pertaining to the towed
property into the statewide law enforcement computer system.
G.
One
(1) copy of the crime inquiry and inspection report shall remain with
the Department, one (1) copy shall be provided to and retained by
the storage facility and one (1) copy shall be retained by the towing
facility in an accessible format in its business records for a period
of three (3) years from the date of the tow or removal.
H.
Any
person who removes abandoned property at the direction of an officer
shall have a lien for all reasonable charges for the towing and storage
of the abandoned property until possession of the abandoned property
is voluntarily relinquished to the owner of the abandoned property
or to the holder of a valid security interest of record. Any personal
property within the abandoned property need not be released to the
owner thereof until the reasonable or agreed charges for such recovery,
transportation or safekeeping have been paid or satisfactory arrangements
for payment have been made, except that any medication prescribed
by a physician shall be released to the owner thereof upon request.
The company holding or storing the abandoned property shall either
release the personal property to the owner of the abandoned property
or allow the owner to inspect the property and provide an itemized
receipt for the contents. The company holding or storing the property
shall be strictly liable for the condition and safe return of the
personal property. Such lien shall be enforced in the manner provided
by State Statute.
I.
Towing
companies shall keep a record for three (3) years on any abandoned
property towed and not reclaimed by the owner of the abandoned property.
Such record shall contain information regarding the authorization
to tow, copies of all correspondence with the Department of Revenue
concerning the abandoned property, including copies of any online
records of the towing company accessed and information concerning
the final disposition of the possession of the abandoned property.
J.
If
a lienholder repossesses any motor vehicle, trailer, all-terrain vehicle,
outboard motor or vessel without the knowledge or cooperation of the
owner, then the repossessor shall notify the Department where the
repossession occurred within two (2) hours of the repossession and
shall further provide it with any additional information the Department
deems appropriate. The Department shall make an inquiry with the National
Crime Information Center and the Missouri statewide law enforcement
computer system and shall enter the repossessed vehicle into the statewide
law enforcement computer system.
K.
Any
towing company who has complied with the notice provisions in this
Chapter may dispose of such property as provided in this Subsection.
Such sale shall only occur if at least thirty (30) days have passed
since the date of such notice, the abandoned property remains unredeemed
with no satisfactory arrangements made with the towing company for
continued storage, and the owner or holder of a security agreement
has not requested a hearing as provided herein. The towing company
may dispose of such abandoned property by selling the property on
a bill of sale as prescribed by the Director of Revenue to a scrap
metal operator or licensed salvage dealer for destruction purposes
only. The towing company shall forward a copy of the bill of sale
provided by the scrap metal operator or licensed salvage dealer to
the Director of Revenue within two (2) weeks of the date of such sale.
The towing company shall keep a record of each such vehicle sold for
destruction for three (3) years that shall be available for inspection
by law enforcement and authorized Department of Revenue officials.
The records shall contain the year, make, identification number of
the property, date of sale, and name of the purchasing scrap metal
operator or licensed salvage dealer and copies of all notifications
issued by the towing company as required in this Chapter. Scrap metal
operators or licensed salvage dealers shall keep a record of the purchase
of such property as provided by Missouri law on vehicles purchased
on a bill of sale pursuant to this Section.
[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
A.
Any
towing company which comes into possession of abandoned property pursuant
to this Chapter and who claims a lien for recovering, towing or storing
abandoned property shall give notice to the title owner and to all
persons claiming a lien thereon, as disclosed by the records of the
Department of Revenue or of a corresponding agency in any other State,
within ten (10) business days of the date of mailing indicated on
any correspondence received from the Department of Revenue identifying
the owner and lienholder, by certified mail, return receipt requested.
The notice shall contain the following:
1.
The name, address and telephone number of the storage facility;
2.
The date, reason and place from which the abandoned property was
removed;
3.
A statement that the amount of the accrued towing, storage and administrative
costs are the responsibility of the owner, and that storage and/or
administrative costs will continue to accrue as a legal liability
of the owner until the abandoned property is redeemed;
4.
A statement that the storage firm claims a possessory lien for all
such charges;
5.
A statement that the owner or holder of a valid security interest
of record may retake possession of the abandoned property at any time
during business hours by proving ownership or rights to a secured
interest and paying all towing and storage charges;
6.
A statement that, should the owner consider that the towing or removal
was improper or not legally justified, the owner has a right to request
a hearing as provided in this Section to contest the propriety of
such towing or removal;
7.
A statement that if the abandoned property remains unclaimed for
thirty (30) days from the date of mailing the notice, title to the
abandoned property will be transferred to the person or firm in possession
of the abandoned property free of all prior liens; and
8.
A statement that any charges in excess of the value of the abandoned
property at the time of such transfer shall remain a liability of
the owner.
B.
A towing
company may only assess reasonable storage charges for abandoned property
towed without the consent of the owner. Reasonable storage charges
shall not exceed the charges for vehicles which have been towed with
the consent of the owner on a negotiated basis. Storage charges may
be assessed only for the time in which the towing company complies
with the procedural requirements of this Chapter and State law.
C.
If
the records of the Department of Revenue fail to disclose the name
of the owner or any lienholder of record, the Department shall notify
the towing company which shall attempt to locate documents or other
evidence of ownership on or within the abandoned property itself.
The towing company must certify that a physical search of the abandoned
property disclosed that no ownership documents were found and a good
faith effort has been made. For purposes of this Section, "good faith effort" means that the following checks have
been performed by the towing company to establish the prior State
of registration and title:
1.
Check of the abandoned property for any type of license plates, license
plate record, temporary permit, inspection sticker, decal or other
evidence which may indicate a State of possible registration and title;
2.
Check the law enforcement report for a license plate number or registration
number if the abandoned property was towed at the request of a Law
Enforcement Agency;
3.
Check the tow ticket/report of the tow truck operator to see if a
license plate was on the abandoned property at the beginning of the
tow, if a private tow; and
4.
If there is no address of the owner on the impound report, check
the law enforcement report to see if an out-of-state address is indicated
on the driver license information.
D.
If
no ownership information is discovered, the Director of Revenue shall
be notified in writing and title obtained in accordance with Missouri
law.
E.
The owner of the abandoned property removed pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter or any person claiming a lien, other than the towing company, within ten (10) days after the receipt of notification from the towing company pursuant to Subsection (A) of this Section may file a petition in the Gasconade County Associate Circuit Court as provided in Section 304.156(5), RSMo., to determine if the property was wrongfully taken or withheld from the owner.
[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
A.
If
a person leaves abandoned property on any real property owned by another
without the consent of the owner or person in possession of the property,
at the request of the person in possession of the real property, any
officer may authorize a towing company to remove such abandoned property
from the property in the following circumstances:
B.
The
officer shall not be liable for any damage to such abandoned property
occasioned by a removal authorized by this Section other than damages
occasioned by negligence or by willful or wanton acts or omissions.
C.
The
owner of real property or lessee in lawful possession of the real
property or the property or security manager of the real property
may authorize a towing company to remove abandoned property or property
parked in a restricted or assigned area without authorization by an
officer only when the owner, lessee or property or security manager
of the real property is present. A property or security manager must
be a full-time employee of a business entity. An authorization to
tow pursuant to this Subsection may be made only under any of the
following circumstances:
1.
When there is displayed, in plain view at all entrances to the property,
a sign not less than seventeen (17) by twenty-two (22) inches in size,
with lettering not less than one (1) inch in height, prohibiting public
parking and indicating that unauthorized abandoned property or property
parked in a restricted or assigned area will be removed at the owner's
expense, disclosing the maximum fee for all charges related to towing
and storage, and containing the telephone number of the Department
where information can be obtained or a twenty-four (24) hour staffed
emergency information telephone number by which the owner of the abandoned
property or property parked in a restricted or assigned area may call
to receive information regarding the location of such owner's property;
2.
The abandoned property is left unattended on owner-occupied residential
property with four (4) residential units or less, and the owner, lessee
or agent of the real property in lawful possession has notified the
Department, and ten (10) hours have elapsed since that notification;
or
3.
The abandoned property is left unattended on private property, and
the owner, lessee or agent of the real property in lawful possession
of real property has notified the Department, and ninety-six (96)
hours have elapsed since that notification.
D.
Pursuant
to this Section, any owner or lessee in lawful possession of real
property that requests a towing company to tow abandoned property
without authorization from an officer shall at that time complete
an abandoned property report. The report shall be in the form designed,
printed and distributed by the Director of Revenue and shall contain
the following:
1.
The year, model, make and abandoned property identification number
of the property and the owner and any lienholders, if known;
2.
A description of any damage to the abandoned property noted by owner,
lessee or property or security manager in possession of the real property;
3.
The license plate or registration number and the State of issuance,
if available;
4.
The physical location of the property and the reason for requesting
the property to be towed;
5.
The date the report is completed;
6.
The printed name, address and phone number of the owner, lessee or
property or security manager in possession of the real property;
7.
The towing company's name and address;
8.
The signature of the towing operator;
9.
The signature of the owner, lessee or property or security manager
attesting to the facts that the property has been abandoned for the
time required by this Section and that all statements on the report
are true and correct to the best of the person's knowledge and belief
and that the person is subject to the penalties for making false statements;
10.
Space for the name of the Law Enforcement Agency notified of the
towing of the abandoned property and for the signature of the law
enforcement official receiving the report; and
11.
Any additional information the Director of Revenue deems appropriate.
E.
Any
towing company which tows abandoned property without authorization
from an officer pursuant to this Section shall deliver a copy of the
abandoned property report to the Department. The copy may be produced
and sent by facsimile machine or other device which produces a near
exact likeness of the print and signatures required. The report shall
be delivered within two (2) hours if the tow was made from a signed
location pursuant to this Section, otherwise the report shall be delivered
within twenty-four (24) hours.
F.
The
Department shall record the date on which the abandoned property report
is filed and shall promptly make an inquiry into the National Crime
Information Center and any statewide Missouri law enforcement computer
system to determine if the abandoned property has been reported as
stolen. The Department shall enter the information pertaining to the
towed property into the statewide law enforcement computer system,
and an officer shall sign the abandoned property report and provide
the towing company with a signed copy.
G.
The
Department shall search the records of the Department of Revenue and
provide the towing company with the latest owner and lienholder information,
if available, on the abandoned property, and if the tower has online
access to the Department of Revenue's records, the tower shall comply
with the requirements of Missouri law. If the abandoned property is
not claimed within ten (10) working days, the towing company shall
send a copy of the abandoned property report signed by a Law Enforcement
Officer to the Department of Revenue.
H.
If
any owner or lessee of real property knowingly authorizes the removal
of abandoned property in violation of this Section, then the owner
or lessee shall be deemed guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.
[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
A.
Notice as to the removal of any abandoned property per Code Section 376.040 shall be made in writing within five (5) working days to the registered owner and any lienholder of the fact of the removal, the grounds for the removal, and the place to which the property has been removed by either:
B.
If
the abandoned property is stored in any storage facility, a copy of
the notice shall be given to the operator of the facility. The notice
provided for in this Section shall include the amount of mileage,
if available, shown on the abandoned property at the time of removal.
C.
Any
owner of any private real property causing the removal of abandoned
property from that real property shall state the grounds for the removal
of the abandoned property if requested by the registered owner of
that abandoned property. Any towing company that lawfully removes
abandoned property from private property with the written authorization
of the property owner or the property owner's agent who is present
at the time of removal shall not be held responsible in any situation
relating to the validity of the removal. Any towing company that removes
abandoned property at the direction of the landowner shall be responsible
for:
D.
The
owner of abandoned property removed from private property may recover
for any damage to the property resulting from any act of any person
causing the removal of, or removing, the abandoned property.
E.
Any
owner of any private property causing the removal of abandoned property
parked on that property is liable to the owner of the abandoned property
for double the storage or towing charges whenever there has been a
failure to comply with the requirements of this Chapter.
F.
Any
towing company which tows abandoned property for hire shall have the
towing company's name, City and State clearly printed in letters at
least three (3) inches in height on the sides of the truck, wrecker
or other vehicle used in the towing.
G.
A towing
company may impose a charge of not more than one-half (½) of
the regular towing charge for the towing of abandoned property at
the request of the owner of private property or that owner's agent
pursuant to this Section if the owner of the abandoned property or
the owner's agent returns to the abandoned property before it is removed
from the private property. The regular towing charge may only be imposed
after the abandoned property has been removed from the property and
is in transit.
H.
Persons
operating or in charge of any storage facility where the abandoned
property is stored pursuant to this Section shall accept cash for
payment of towing and storage by a registered owner or the owner's
agent claiming the abandoned property. In addition, persons operating
or in charge of the storage facility shall have sufficient monies
on the premises to accommodate, and make change in, a reasonable monetary
transaction.
I.
Except
for the removal of abandoned property authorized by an officer pursuant
to this Chapter, a towing company shall not remove or commence the
removal of abandoned property from private property without first
obtaining written authorization from the property owner. All written
authorizations shall be maintained for at least one (1) year by the
towing company. General authorization to remove or commence removal
of abandoned property at the towing company's discretion shall not
be delegated to a towing company or its affiliates except in the case
of abandoned property unlawfully parked within fifteen (15) feet of
a fire hydrant or in a fire lane designated by a Fire Department or
the State Fire Marshal.
J.
Any
towing company, or any affiliate of a towing company, which removes,
or commences removal of, abandoned property from private property
without first obtaining written authorization from the property owner
or lessee, or an employee or agent thereof, who is present at the
time of removal or commencement of the removal, except as otherwise
permitted herein, is liable to the owner of the property for four
(4) times the amount of the towing and storage charges, in addition
to any applicable criminal penalty, for a violation of this Section.
[Ord. No. 1843 §1, 5-23-2011]
Any person who knowingly violates any provision of this Chapter
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
