[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Mount
Hope 2-17-2015 by L.L. No. 1-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 238.
Unless otherwise expressly stated, whenever used in this chapter,
the following words shall have the meanings given to them by this
section:
Any vehicle which is unattended or obstructing traffic and
which, in the judgment of the Police Department, shall be removed.
Any incident or occurrence in which one or more vehicles
come into contact with each other or another object thereby causing
personal injury or property damage.
Any vehicle that requires towing because of accident or because
it is unable to proceed under its own motive power.
Any person driving a tow truck upon the public highways for
hire.
Includes any incident where a fee, charge or other consideration
is directly or indirectly imposed for towing, carrying or removing
any vehicle, and shall be inclusive of repairs made on a towed vehicle
for a consideration, although no charge is expressly imposed for the
towing of such a vehicle.
Includes the control and direction of the use of a vehicle
for towing from places within the Town of Mount Hope, for hire.
That license issued to the owners of towing trucks authorizing
the holder thereof to engage in all tow truck operations, except that
he will not be permitted at scenes of accidents unless specifically
called by the person in charge of the disabled vehicle and will not
be placed on the preferred tow truck list at police headquarters.
Includes any area of a street to which a vehicle is removed
to prevent obstruction of traffic, and will remain so until the vehicle
or vehicles is removed, either under its own power or by a properly
licensed tow truck.
Any place of business where there is maintained or operated,
on a full-time basis, an automobile wrecking, filling station, public
garage, gasoline station, junkyard or motor vehicle service station,
as these terms are defined in the Code of the Town of Mount Hope,
with sufficient storage for at least two disabled vehicles, provided
that the same is a New York State licensed motor vehicle repair shop.
The moving or removing of disabled or abandoned motor vehicles
by a tow truck for hire.
A motor vehicle which is either equipped for the purpose
of carrying, lifting, pushing, pulling or otherwise removing, for
hire, any motor vehicle or motor vehicles, or is used in the business
of removing such vehicles.
That license which is issued to owners of towing trucks permitting
the holder thereof to be placed on a preferred roster of tow trucks
located at police headquarters in addition to being permitted to do
all normal towing.
It shall be unlawful to operate a tow truck for hire in the
Town of Mount Hope unless the owner thereof shall have obtained a
license from the Town Clerk.
A.Â
A license shall be obtained by filing an application therefor, on
forms furnished by the Town Clerk, verifying under oath:
(1)Â
The full name, residence address, date of birth, place of birth,
personal description, social security number and business address
of the applicant.
(2)Â
The number of tow trucks proposed to be operated by the applicant
and description of each tow truck, including the make, model, year
of manufacture and New York State registration number.
(3)Â
Address of place from which tow trucks are proposed to be garaged
and dispatched.
(4)Â
The name and address of the insurance carrier which covers each tow
truck against public liability in the limits required by law, which
insurance shall be maintained in force during the period covered by
the license in a sum not less than $500,000 for personal injury and
$50,000 for property damage, with the Town named as additional insured.
(5)Â
All crimes of which the applicant or any member thereof, or any officer,
if a corporation, has been convicted, stating the name and location
of the court and the date on which such convictions were had and the
penalties imposed therefor.
(6)Â
The experience of the applicant in the towing of vehicles for hire.
B.Â
Said license is to be for a period of one year and shall be renewable
yearly upon payment of the annual license fee to the Town Clerk. All
monies received for such license fees shall be paid to the Town Clerk
and shall be credited to the general funds of the Town.
C.Â
All licenses issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire on January
31 of each year and shall be renewed during the month of January.
D.Â
Upon receipt of a license application, the Town Clerk shall transmit
the same to the Town Police Department.
E.Â
Investigation.
(1)Â
The Town Police Department shall cause a full criminal background
check to be performed on all persons named in the application.
(2)Â
The Town Police Department shall have 30 days in which to report
back to the Town Clerk.
(3)Â
The criminal background check, together with the recommendation of
the Chief of Police or his designee, shall be provided to the Town
Board, and no license shall be issued except upon approval by a majority
of the Town Board.
Applicants for a restricted license will be required to pay
a nonrefundable fee determined by Town Board resolution and will be
limited to normal towing and will not be permitted at scenes of accidents
unless specifically called by the person in charge of the disabled
vehicle.
A.Â
Applicants for an unrestricted license will be required to pay a
nonrefundable fee determined by Town Board resolution, per year, and,
in addition to normal towing privileges, will be placed on a preferred
roster of tow trucks. Licensees will be assigned weeks in which they
will rotate with each other. The week will begin at 7:00 a.m. on Monday
morning and will conclude at 6:59 a.m. the following Monday. A copy
of the assigned weeks will be maintained at police headquarters. A
list will also be forwarded to the Orange County 911 Center for its
use. When a vehicle owner or other authorized person at the scene
of the accident requests the police officer at the scene for a specified
tow truck owner, the police officer shall so inform police headquarters
or the 911 Center, and the requested tow truck owner shall be notified
of the request, if available. In the event that no request is made,
or in the event the requested tow truck owner does not respond, the
desk officer at police headquarters or staff at the 911 Center shall
notify the tow truck owner assigned that week on the preferred roster.
Upon failure to respond, the desk officer at police headquarters or
the 911 Center staff shall call the next succeeding tow truck owner
on the preferred roster until the tow service is accepted. A record
concerning the date and the acceptance or refusal of each call shall
be made. Each licensed tow truck owner on the preferred roster who
fails or refuses to accept a tow service when called in his proper
turn on the roster shall be deemed to have forfeited that turn on
the roster.
A.Â
No such license shall be issued unless the applicant agrees to charge
no more than the following maximum rates for towing within the Town
of Mount Hope:
(1)Â
For all passenger cars, regardless of weight, and other vehicles
one ton to 1Â 3/4 tons and lighter, not to exceed $125, excluding
incidental work such as winching and dolly towing, during the hours
of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and not to exceed $175 between the hours
of 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
(2)Â
These towing charges shall not apply to the towing of motor trucks
or special equipment exceeding 1Â 1/2 tons' capacity.
B.Â
The rates set forth above may be altered by the Town Board by resolution
alone.
It shall be unlawful for any licensee to demand or receive any
payment in excess of the rates permitted by this chapter or shown
on the schedule filed by the tow truck owner with the Chief of Police,
and violation of this section shall subject the violator to loss of
license in addition to other penalties set forth herein.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to
solicit towing work by any means whatsoever from any person at or
near the scene of an automobile accident within the Town of Mount
Hope. It shall be unlawful for any tow truck to proceed to the scene
of an accident or disablement without having first been requested
or notified to do so by the vehicle owner or a police officer, and
the operator of any tow truck so doing shall be deemed to have committed
a violation of this chapter. Violation of this section shall subject
the violator to loss of license in addition to other penalties set
forth herein.
Each tow truck operated hereunder shall have inscribed on the
side of such vehicle the trade name and business address of the owner
in letters not less than three inches in height, either painted or
otherwise securely affixed in a conspicuous place as herein provided.
It shall be unlawful to tow away any motor vehicle which has
been involved in an accident, disablement or abandonment without prior
consent of the owner, or of an authorized operator, or of the police
officer at the scene of the accident.
In the event that the licensee called does not respond as quickly
as is necessary, in the opinion of the police officer in charge at
an accident scene, the police officer may call another licensed operator.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply when the owner
of a damaged car specifically requires the car to be taken from said
Town by an unlicensed tow truck from outside of the Town.
An offense against any provision of this chapter shall be a
violation which shall be punishable, upon conviction, by a fine of
not more than $250 or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or
by both such fine and imprisonment.
The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the Chief
of Police or his designated representatives.
