[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall
have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
AUTOMOBILE
Shall mean a private passenger automobile or motorcycle.
BASIC TOWING SERVICE
Shall mean the removal and transportation of an automobile
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, but does not include recovery of an automobile that has left
the roadway and does not include any additional labor required to
clean up the scene.
DAYTIME HOURS
Shall mean from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., prevailing time.
NIGHTTIME HOURS
Shall mean from 4:31 p.m. until 7:59 a.m., prevailing time.
OUTSIDE STORAGE
Shall mean 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.
RECOVERY OF VEHICLE
Shall mean the recovery of an automobile from a position
off the roadway, the recovery of a vehicle on the roadway which is
overturned or on its side or in any other position other than its
normal position. Recovery charges are in addition to any towing charges.
TOW VEHICLE
Shall mean a vehicle equipped with a boom or booms, winches,
slings, tilt beds, wheel lifts or underreach equipment specifically
designed by its manufacturer for the removal and transport of private
passenger automobiles.
TRUCK
Shall mean any motor vehicle other than an automobile as
defined above. Trucks up to 6,999 lbs. GVWR shall be subject to light
duty towing rates; vehicles between 7,000 lbs. GVWR and 29,999 lbs.
GVWR shall be subject to medium duty towing rates and vehicles over
30,000 lbs. shall be subject to heavy duty towing rates.
WAITING TIME
Shall mean time spent at the scene standing or waiting for
extrication of victims, police investigation, etc. after one-half
hour.
WINCHING
Shall mean moving a vehicle by use of the cable or winch
from a position that is not accessible for direct hookup by conventional
means of loading onto a tow vehicle. It shall not include pulling
a motor vehicle onto a tilt bed or car carrier or lifting a vehicle
with a conventional tow sling.
YARD TOW
Shall mean removal of the vehicle from the towing operator's
storage yard for the benefit of another towing operator who is taking
the vehicle from the storage site and whose tow vehicle is physically
unable to gain access to the vehicle while it is inside the storage
yard.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
Whenever a police officer orders the removal of automobiles from private or public property, the officers shall utilize the rotation lists established in subsection
24-2.2 of this chapter.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1; Ord. No. 74-01 § 1]
At every annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee
shall establish by resolution a list of automobile towing contractors
and a list of truck towing contractors to be utilized by the Police
Department on a rotating basis. An operator may, if qualified, be
on both lists. Such lists shall be utilized by members of the Police
Department on a nonexclusionary and nondiscriminatory basis. Only
those towing contractors who meet the minimum standards of operator
performance set forth in this chapter shall be included on such lists.
There shall be no limit on the number of operators on either list.
Operators may be added to the list at any time.
a. Equipment. All towing operators shall meet the following requirements:
1. For classification as an automobile towing service the operator must
possess one flatbed-style tow truck and one hoist-type tow truck with
a wheel lift and one (1) other vehicle with wheel lift or flat bed
capability.
2. For classification as a truck towing service, the contractor must
have one heavy duty tow vehicle capable of towing a fully loaded tractor
trailer weighing 80,000 pounds.
3. All tow vehicles must carry the following equipment:
(i)
Speedy Dry or similar liquid absorbent.
4. All towing vehicles must have amber emergency warning lights mounted
on the vehicle so as to warn approaching traffic of their presence.
The size and location of these lights must conform to New Jersey Division
of Motor Vehicle standards. The operator must have an amber light
permit.
5. All towing vehicles must carry a copy of their rate schedule. Said
schedule must also be displayed in a conspicuous manner at the operator's
place of business.
b. Facilities. Each operator must have a storage lot and place of business
within five miles of the Long Hill Township corporate line. The towing
business and storage lot must comply with all zoning ordinances and
regulations in the municipality in which they are located.
c. Availability and Response Time. Each operator must be available 24
hours a day, seven days a week and must respond within 20 minutes
during daytime hours and 30 minutes during nighttime hours of the
original telephone call request by the Police Department.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
The following is the fee schedule for towing services and storage:
a. Automobiles. The fee schedule for towing services and storage for
automobiles shall be established by the Township Committee by resolution.
b. Trucks. The fee schedule for towing services and storage for trucks
shall be established by the Township Committee by resolution.
c. Cancellation. No fee may be charged when a request for towing service
is canceled by a Township Police Officer, even if the towing request
is canceled after the towing operator has arrived at the scene.
d. Rate Schedule to be Submitted to Division of Consumer Affairs. Pursuant
to the requirements of N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.55b, the Township Clerk shall
submit copies of all schedules of services and rates adopted pursuant
to this chapter for the towing and storage of motor vehicles to the
Division of Consumer Affairs for review within 90 days of adoption
of any resolution establishing the rates for towing and storage.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
No impounded vehicle is to be released without proper authorization
from the Police Department. Vehicle release arrangements must be available
from the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday
(excluding New Jersey State holidays). In accordance with N.J.S.A.
39:3-40.6, no motor vehicle which has been impounded shall be released
by the Police Department unless proof of valid motor vehicle insurance
for that vehicle is presented to the Department. The recovery or salvage
of the impounded motor vehicle by, or on behalf of, an insurer, financial
institution or other lending entity, shall not require proof of valid
motor vehicle insurance for that vehicle.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
The Police Department is designated to enforce the provisions
of this chapter in accordance with due process of law. In carrying
out the provisions of this chapter, the Police Chief is hereby authorized
to adopt additional reasonable regulations which are not inconsistent
with this chapter.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
This chapter, all regulations adopted by the Police Chief and
the fee schedules of individual towers shall be available to the public
during normal business hours.
[Ord. No. 69-00 § 1]
There shall be no privity of contract between the Township and any towing operator on the rotation list and utilized by the Police Department pursuant to subsection
24-2.2. Except to the extent that the Township will use the proceeds from the sale of abandoned and junk vehicles to satisfy towing and storage charges pursuant to subsection
24-4.4, the Township will not be liable for any towing or storage or related charges for services rendered pursuant to this chapter.