This chapter is titled "Towing Local Law of the Town of New
Windsor."
The Town of New Windsor hereby determines that providing regulations
for the fair, prompt and safe removal of disabled, abandoned, and
impounded vehicles from public roadways within the Town is necessary
to protect the public from predatory business practices, and in order
to protect the health, safety and general welfare of the residents
and traveling public within the Town. This chapter will not supersede
any specific orders issued by law enforcement agencies addressing
specific situations (such as vehicles impounded for criminal investigation
purposes). This chapter shall apply only to the rotating tow lists
for towing agencies summoned by the Town of New Windsor Police Department
for the purpose of removing vehicles due to impounds, motor vehicle
accidents, disabled vehicles, abandoned motor vehicles, police investigations,
or motorists requesting a service call.
Whenever used in this chapter, the terms below shall have the
following meanings:
ACCIDENT
Any incident or occurrence in which one or more motor vehicles
contact each other or another object, thereby causing personal injury
or property damage.
AUTOMOBILE
Any passenger motor vehicle or vehicle included in the definition
of "automobile" under the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law.
BASIC TOWING SERVICE
The removal and transportation of an automobile or other
motor vehicle from a highway, street or other public or private road,
parking area or storage facility, and other services normally incident
thereto. This does not include the recovery of an automobile or other
motor vehicle from a position beyond the right-of-way or berm or from
being impaled upon any other object within the right-of-way or berm.
DRIVER
Any person driving a tow truck for hire.
IMPOUND/STORAGE FACILITY
A secure lot used for the temporary storage of automobiles,
trucks, buses, recreational vehicles, or other motor vehicles which
is separate and apart from any property that may be used for vehicle
repair or dismantling.
MOTOR VEHICLE
Any self-propelled vehicle that does not operate on rails
or tracks and is generally used for the transportation of people or
cargo, excluding motorized bicycles.
OWNED
Owned, rented or leased.
PERSON
An individual, partnership, incorporated association, corporation
or any other legal entity.
SERVICE CALL
A request for assistance from a tow truck that does not involve
towing but is limited to rendering emergency assistance for other
services, including, but not limited to, battery charges, flat tires,
lockouts or gasoline.
TOW OPERATOR
A person, company or entity that applies for and receives
a license to engage in the business of towing and/or storing motor
vehicles, or offering the services of a tow vehicle or tow truck and/or
storage services, pursuant to this chapter of the Town Code of the
Town of New Windsor.
TOW VEHICLE or TOW TRUCK
A motor vehicle that tows or carries a disabled, illegally
parked or abandoned motor vehicle or a motor vehicle involved in an
accident.
TOWING
The removal and transportation of an automobile or motor
vehicle from a highway, street or other public or private road, or
a parking area or storage facility, and other services normally incident
thereto. Towing does not include the recovery of an automobile or
motor vehicle from a position beyond the right-of-way or berm or from
impalement upon any other object within the right-of-way or berm.
WINCHING
The act of using a motorized cable on a tow truck to pull
an automobile or motor vehicle for any purpose, including, but not
limited to, aligning a vehicle that is sideways, overturned, off road
in a ditch or embankment, a vehicle that is locked in a parking lot
with no keys available, or a vehicle that has suspension/axle damage
which will not allow the vehicle to roll off the flatbed. Winching
shall not apply to automobiles or motor vehicles being pulled onto
a tow truck from the street.
Applicants for a license under this chapter shall file with
the Town Clerk a sworn application to be provided by the Town Clerk,
which shall be signed before a notary public and contain the following
information and certifications:
A. The applicant's name, phone number, physical home and/or business
address/location (not a P.O. Box), and hours of operation. If the
application is made for a corporation, it shall state the names and
addresses of the officers and directors thereof, its registered agent,
and the names and residential addresses of every stockholder owning
10% or more of the issued stock;
B. The year, make and type of each tow vehicle to be used in said business,
its vehicle identification number, registration number, the name of
the registered owner, the highway usage permit number, DOT number
(if applicable), and the address where each vehicle will be regularly
garaged;
C. A copy of each operator's driver's license. If additional
drivers should be employed after the initial application or yearly
renewal is submitted, the applicant or licensee must provide the Town
Clerk with a copy of the new operator's driver's license
within 15 days of the new operator's hire. Written notice that
an operator will no longer be working for the applicant/licensee must
also be provided to the Town Clerk's office within 15 days of
such operator's termination;
D. Proof that a criminal background check for each tow truck operator
was conducted at the time of hire must be provided at the same time
the Town Clerk's office is provided with an operator's driver's
license. Each driver must provide written consent and present to a
digital fingerprinting service, with the results of such service being
submitted to and approved by the Town Police Department before they
will be permitted to operate a tow truck in the Town of New Windsor.
All costs associated with the requirements outlined in this provision
are the sole responsibility of the tow trucking company applying for
the license;
E. Proof of insurance in a form approved by the Town Board or by the
Police Chief for the Town of New Windsor (or his/her designee);
F. Certification that all on-call towing and storage services will be
available 24 hours per day, every day of the year;
G. Certification that the fees and procedures required by this chapter
shall be complied with at all times;
H. Written acknowledgment that the Police Chief or their designee may
at any time during the licensing period conduct an inspection of the
tow vehicles or storage facility licensed pursuant to this chapter
in order to determine compliance with this chapter; or have a Commercial
Vehicle Safety Bureau Inspector from the NYS Department of Transportation
inspect any tow vehicle or storage facility licensed pursuant to this
chapter; and
I. Any other information which the Town Board, Town Supervisor, Town
Clerk or Police Chief may reasonably request.
No person under the age of 18 years shall drive a tow vehicle.
All tow vehicle operators must possess a valid New York State driver's
license for the class of vehicle that is being operated and the tow
truck endorsement.
Each licensee responding to a call for service must supply the
owner/operator of the vehicle who is at the scene with a card containing
the tow firm's business name, address, telephone number, hours
of operation, a written estimate of the expected charges, and the
accepted manner of payment.
The Police Department shall have the power to require tow vehicles
to remove vehicles where:
A. It obstructs a public right-of-way or private property;
B. It has been vandalized, presents a fire or safety hazard, or is a
nuisance;
C. It bears no discernible registration or identification data;
D. It is not licensed or operable;
E. It is in violation of any emergency "no parking" provision, as set
forth in the Vehicle and Traffic Law or Town Code; or
F. If such removal may otherwise be permitted or required by law.