The intent of this chapter is to provide to the Town of Wallkill
residents safe and reliable tow options and provide for the prompt
and safe removal of vehicles in need of a tow or requiring tow service
in the Town at reasonable rates; additionally, to prevent traffic
hazards or secondary accidents as a result of ill-equipped tow vehicles
or inexperienced or unscrupulous operators on public roadways or at
accident scenes and to protect the public from excessive charges by
towers. To that end, it shall be unlawful to operate a towing vehicle(s)
for hire in the Town of Wallkill unless the owner has registered their
towing service with the Town and has obtained a license from the Town
Board as set forth herein. Additionally, the Town Police Department
shall maintain a list of authorized and permitted tow operators to
be used in instances where the Town Police require a towing service
to clear a motor vehicle accident.
Unless otherwise expressly stated, whenever used in this chapter,
the following words shall have the meanings given to them by this
section:
ABANDONED VEHICLE
Any vehicle which is parked on or along the streets and highways
of the Town of Wallkill that is unattended, and which, in the judgment
of the Police Department, poses a safety/traffic hazard.
ACCIDENT
Any incident or occurrence where one or more vehicles come
into contact with each other or another object, thereby causing personal
injury or property damage.
AUTHORIZED TOWER PERMIT
Issued to the owner of a licensed towing truck/s, permitting
the holder to be placed on a preferred roster of tow trucks, which
roster is located at the Police Station, and used by the Town Police
for all related towing.
DAY
A twenty-four-hour period from the time of the tow.
DISABLED VEHICLE
Any vehicle that requires towing because of i) mechanical
failure; ii) an accident/incident that has rendered it unable to proceed
under its own motive power or otherwise unsafe to drive; or iii) the
incapacity or inability of the vehicle's operator to safely operate
the vehicle.
DRIVER
Any person driving a tow truck for hire 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 disabled 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.
LICENSE
Issued to the owner of a towing truck, permitting the holder
of said tow truck/s, to operate within the Town to tow abandoned or
disabled vehicles.
OPERATE
Includes the control and direction of the use of a vehicle
for hire for towing from places within the Town of Wallkill.
SCENE OF ACCIDENT
Includes any area of a street to which a vehicle is removed
to prevent the obstruction of traffic, and will remain so until the
vehicle or vehicles is removed, either under its own power or by a
properly permitted tow car.
TOW TRUCK
A motor vehicle for hire which is either equipped for the
purpose of carrying, lifting, pushing, pulling or otherwise removing
any motor vehicle or motor vehicles, or which is used in the business
of removing such vehicles.
TOWING
The moving or removing of disabled or abandoned motor vehicles
by a tow truck for hire.
TOWING TOWN CODE
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Towing
Town Code of the Town of Wallkill."
WINCHING AND DOLLY WORK
Work above and beyond that required of a normal tow service.
Winching and dolly work is work used to remove a vehicle that is not
in a position to be towed by normal means that may be off the roadway.
Winching a vehicle onto a flatbed shall not be considered a winching
under this statute.
Application requirements; expiration and renewal of license.
The following requirements must be met to receive a License to perform
towing services for abandoned and disabled vehicles in the Town:
A. All tow truck owners and operators must obtain an annual license
from the Town to conduct towing operations as described in this chapter
at an annual cost for each vehicle. There shall be a charge for each
additional vehicle to be used for towing. Each tower must provide
to the Town a list of each towing vehicle to be used for towing services.
Towers will be monitored annually to assure compliance with this chapter.
B. All tow truck owners and operators must be in compliance with all
local laws, rules and regulations of the New York State Department
of Transportation (DOT) motor vehicle laws, Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Regulations and Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations, (see
attached addendum) with respect to their towing facility, Failure to be
in compliance will preclude being on the list until all compliance
is met. Anyone not in compliance will have 45 days in which to meet
compliance after notice by certified mail.
C. A tow truck owner and operator license shall be obtained following
the submission of an application, in a form furnished by the Town,
which shall state:
(1) The name, address, age and business address of the applicant.
(2) The number of tow trucks proposed to be operated within the Town
by the applicant and a description of each tow truck, including the
make, model, year of manufacture, New York State registration number,
New York State inspection certificate number, and expiration of the
inspection certificate.
(3) The address, including a description of the facility, of the place
from which tow trucks are proposed to be garaged and dispatched.
(4) The name and address of the insurance carrier which covers each tow
truck against public liability in an amount of at least $1,000,000
combined single limit, including bodily injury and property damage.
The applicant must produce a valid certificate of insurance with such
application which names the Town of Wallkill as an additional insured
and which indemnifies the Town from liability to the fullest extent
allowable by law. The certificate of insurance shall be maintained
in full force and effect during the period covered by the license.
The certificate must state that the Town of Wallkill will be notified
in the event of cancellation.
(5) 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) The experience of the applicant in the towing of vehicles for hire.
(7) A copy of the New York State driver's license with Class C towing
endorsement for each driver who shall be operating a tow truck.
D. No person who has been convicted of any felony, including, but not
limited to, those involving the theft, larceny, dismantling, alteration
of vehicle identification numbers or conversion of motor vehicles,
either in whole or in part, any violent felony, or is a person who
is currently registered as a sex offender within the State of New
York, shall be permitted to hold a towing license in the Town of Wallkill
or to be a tow truck operator, or crew for a licensed owner on the
list. The Town of Wallkill shall conduct a criminal background check
upon all applicants for a towing license, along with all towing operators
who will work for the applicants, using the following procedure:
(1) The applicant shall provide to the Town its name, the names of its
principals if a corporate entity, and the names of its tow truck operators.
Failure for the applicant to comply with this requirement shall result
in a rejection of the application.
(2) If a licensee obtains a new tow truck operator, principal, etc.,
it must provide the name of said individual to the Town for a background
check before said individual can participate in any towing operation
within the Town of Wallkill. Failure for the licensee to comply with
this requirement shall result in a suspension of the license.
(3) All fees associated with the criminal background check shall be borne
by the applicant, or licensee, and shall be paid to the Town at the
time the application, or updated information, is submitted to the
Town for review.
(4) Failure for a licensee to suspend a tow truck operator from operating
within the Town of Wallkill upon learning of said operator's conviction
for a disqualifying felony shall result in an immediate suspension
of the licensee's towing license.
(5) In connection with the required background checks, all fingerprint
cards and any applicable fees shall be submitted to the New York State
Division of Criminal Justice Services ("DCJS") in the form and manner
prescribed by DCJS.
[Added 6-24-2021 by L.L.
No. 5-2021]
(6) The Towing List Coordinator within the Town Police Department shall
be responsible for reviewing the criminal history record information
received from DCJS and reporting the results thereof to the Town Board.
[Added 6-24-2021 by L.L.
No. 5-2021]
(7) In addition to the criteria set forth in this section, if a prospective
applicant has been convicted of a crime, any decision regarding such
prospective applicant's fitness for a license must be made upon
consideration of New York State Correction Law §§ 701
through 703-b and 751 through 753.
[Added 6-24-2021 by L.L.
No. 5-2021]
E. A nonrefundable application fee shall be submitted along with the
application to the Town. The application fee, costs, or deposits required
to be paid pursuant to this chapter shall be set by resolution of
the Town Board.
At the time the application is granted, the applicant shall
be required to submit a licensing fee of in an amount to be set by
resolution of the Town Board. This fee shall cover the first vehicle
in the towing company's fleet. An additional fee in an amount to be
set by resolution of the Town Board must be submitted for each additional
vehicle in the towing fleet.
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 Wallkill.
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.
Nothing within this chapter shall prevent a vehicle owner from
choosing to call a tower who is not on the Town towing list; provided,
however, that should that tower be unable to respond in a reasonable
period of time and the police officer at the scene has safety concerns,
the officer may supersede the desires of the owner and call a tower
on the list.
Following the establishment of the calendar year's towing list,
the Town will update the list, based upon any new applications, on
a semiannual basis. On January 1 thru January 14 and again on July
1 thru July 14 of each year, the list will be open to new applicants.
Any new applications for inclusion on the towing list, which are deemed
to be complete following submission to the Town Police Department,
shall be forwarded by the Chief of Police, or his designee, to the
Town Board for final approval.