[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of New Hartford 9-7-1988 by L.L. No. 11-1988. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 113.
From and after the passage of this chapter, it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to have any of their agents, servants or employees engaged in tow truck wrecker service within the corporate limits of said town to come within 1,000 feet of the scene of any accident or to cause their wreckers to approach nearer than 1,000 feet of the scene of any accident of any automobile or other vehicle within the corporate limits of said town until the Police Department has had an opportunity to investigate said accident and have directed and authorized said wrecker to approach within said prohibitive distance and take charge of said wrecked vehicle and to remove the same from said scene.
[Amended 12-16-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992]
A. 
If a hazardous or emergency situation shall be present because of disabled vehicles, the New Hartford Town Police shall call in a tow operator to maintain orderly traffic flow and public safety, and such selection of tow operator shall be in accordance with the following Police Department regulations, hereinafter listed:
(1) 
In the event of multi-service calls, the New Hartford Police Department shall be responsible to contact additional wreckers.
(2) 
A customer may remove his/her vehicle within a twelve-hour free-storage period, upon payment of his/her towing charge.
B. 
If a hazardous or emergency situation does not exist resulting from a disabled vehicle or vehicles, then the vehicle operator shall make the decision or choice as to which tow truck operator he selects to employ.
C. 
If neither of the above situations set forth in Subsection A or B hereinabove occurs, then the New Hartford Town Police shall then call the nearest available tow truck operator in relation to location of main business garage.
A. 
The requirements for participation upon the rotation list and additional requirements are as follows:
(1) 
All towing service firms shall provide and maintain facilities for secure storage of towed vehicles.
(2) 
Towing service shall be available for assignment on a twenty-four-hour-per-day, seven-day-per-week basis.
(3) 
The towing service operator shall maintain a place of business within the Town of New Hartford.
(4) 
The towing service operator shall maintain and equip its towing vehicle in accordance with the laws of the State of New York and such additional requirements as may be prescribed by the Police Commission or, if there are none, the Town of New Hartford.
(5) 
Any person removing a wrecked or damaged vehicle from a highway shall retrieve any glass or other injurious substance dropped upon the highway from such vehicle.
(6) 
All towing service operators must have a certificate of insurance coverage that will consist of a minimum of $100,000 for bodily injury for each person, $300,000 for bodily injury per occurrence and $50,000 for property damage for each occurrence.
(7) 
All towing service operators will keep a log book in their office listing the date and time the vehicle was picked up, the location from where the vehicle was towed, the make, model and color of the vehicle and the license number on the vehicle. This log book will be subject to inspection by any police officer.
(8) 
The tow operator shall also provide lockout service, removal of motorcycles and off-road vehicles upon Police Department request for said services.
(9) 
Towing service operators will notify the Town of New Hartford Police Department, in writing, of any towed vehicle left unclaimed for more than 48 hours after notification by police of the registered owner of said vehicle.
(10) 
Towing service operators shall agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Town of New Hartford from any claim or liabilities which occur as a result of performing towing or wrecker services at the request of the Town of New Hartford Police Department.
(11) 
Any person removing a wrecked or damaged vehicle from a highway shall retrieve any glass or other injurious substance dropped upon the highway from such vehicle. Where no environmental hazard exists, the tow service is responsible to mitigate, absorb and retrieve fluid to include washer fluid, antifreeze, coolant, brake fluid and engine oil.
[Added 6-7-2023 by L.L. No. 2-2023]
B. 
Applications can be obtained from the Town Clerk of the Town of New Hartford. After completion, the application is to be submitted to the Town Clerk containing all the information requested therein, along with an application fee of $25.
The towing service operator, upon completion of a tow, shall levy tow service charges against the rightful owner of the vehicle in conformity with the Code of the Town of New Hartford. No fee may be levied for response not resulting in the removal of the vehicle. The cost of removal or towing shall be the responsibility of the vehicle owner or operator and shall not exceed the rates established by law.
The Police Commission or, if there is none, the Town Board is hereby given authority to promulgate such other rules or regulations as they deem necessary, consistent with the intent of this chapter.
Any person, firm or corporation engaged in the wrecker or tow service violating this chapter shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine not exceeding $250 and/or imprisonment of up to 15 days, or both.