[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Kingston 9-3-1987 as L.L. No. 4-1987, approved 8-10-1987 (Ch. 112 of the 1984 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Parking of trucks — See Ch. 376.
Abandoned vehicles — See Ch. 384.
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 390.
It is hereby declared and found that it is of vital importance to the traveling public that disabled vehicles be removed from the highways as promptly as possible, that delay in removal results in retarding the movement of traffic unnecessarily and causes street accidents and that the towing of disabled motor vehicles in the streets of the City of Kingston is a matter affecting the public interest and consequently should be subject to supervision and administrative control for the purpose of safeguarding the public against fraud and exorbitant rates and similar abuses.
Unless otherwise expressly provided, the following words for the purpose of this chapter shall have the meanings herein indicated:
ACCIDENT
Any incident or occurrence in which one or more vehicles come into contact with each other or other objects thereby causing personal injury or property damage.
CITY
The corporate area of the City of Kingston.
DRIVER
Any person driving a tow truck upon public highways for hire.
FOR HIRE
Includes any incident where a fee, charge or other consideration is directly or indirectly imposed for towing, carrying or removing a vehicle, and it shall include any case where any person makes repairs on a towed vehicle for consideration, although no charge is expressly imposed for towing such vehicle.
GARAGE
Any place of business which is not in violation of the existing Zoning Ordinance or Building Code of the City of Kingston,[1] and, as a substantial source of its activity, engages in the repair of motor vehicles and provides on-premises parking for their storage.
OPERATE
Includes the control and direction of the use of vehicles for towing from places within the City of Kingston for hire.
OWNER
Includes a person owning or leasing or controlling one or more tow trucks and driving or operating or causing any such vehicle to be operated upon the public highways for hire.
PERSON
Includes an individual, partnership, any incorporated association, a corporation or any other entity.
REGISTERED REPAIR SHOP
As defined in the Vehicle and Traffic Law of New York.
TOWING
The moving or removing of disabled or abandoned motor vehicles by another vehicle for hire.
TOW TRUCK
A motor vehicle which is either equipped for the purpose of carrying, lifting and removing, for hire, any disabled motor vehicle or is used in the business of removing disabled motor vehicles.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 405, Zoning and Ch. 172, Building construction.
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of towing within the City without having obtained a valid license issued hereunder or to operate a tow truck in the course of such business without having displayed thereon a valid sticker issued hereunder, except that no license or stickers shall be required for persons whose business is operated outside the City and whose towing consists solely of towing from or to registered repair shops or garages.
[Amended 12-4-2001; approved 12-28-2001]
A. 
Every license issued hereunder shall remain in effect unless revoked, as hereinafter provided.
B. 
Every person, firm or corporation who desires to operate, except as herein otherwise provided, the business of automotive towing by a tow truck or tow trucks owned or controlled by him upon the public highways within the City shall be duly licensed as a tow truck operator in the City and must make written application under oath providing the following information:
(1) 
The name and address of the applicant, address of the place from which tow trucks are proposed to be garaged and dispatched, specifying, in the case of any unincorporated association, the names and addresses of each member thereof and, in the case of any corporation, the names and addresses of each officer.
(2) 
All crimes, if any, of which the applicant or any member thereof has been convicted and, if an unincorporated association, that any officer thereof has been convicted, stating the name, if any, and location of the courts and the dates on which such convictions were had and the penalties imposed therefor.
(3) 
The experience of the applicant, or, if an unincorporated association or corporation, of its officers in the towing of vehicles for hire.
(4) 
The number of vehicles proposed to be operated by the applicant and a description of each such vehicle, including the make, model, year and manufacture, New York State registration number and vehicle identification number.
(5) 
The name, address and driver's license number of each driver employed by the applicant.
(6) 
The location of any and all depots and terminals proposed to be used by the applicant.
(7) 
Whether the applicant wishes his name to appear on the towing roster as detailed herein.
(8) 
Proof of insurance in the minimum amount of $1,000,000 or higher liability and $150,000 property damage liability covering each tow truck and/or place of business. Coverage limits must be maintained throughout the duration of the license. Coverage shall also be provided for the towed vehicle. Said proof shall be provided annually.
[Amended 5-6-2008, approved 5-12-2008]
(9) 
Proof of valid registration and inspection of each tow truck to be operated.
(10) 
Any other relevant information which the Chief of Police may require.
The Chief of Police shall accept all applications for licenses from persons desiring to engage in the business of towing on such forms as he shall provide. Upon certification by the Chief that the applicant has complied with all applicable provisions of law, the Chief of Police or his agent shall issue a license to the applicant along with a sticker for each vehicle listed on the application specifically identifying the vehicle to which each sticker is to be affixed and the license under which the sticker is issued.
Each license and sticker issued hereunder shall not be transferred from one person to another nor from one vehicle to another.
[Amended 12-4-2001; approved 12-28-2001]
Applicants for a license will be required to pay a nonrefundable fee of $100. The licensee will qualify, provided that:
A. 
The licensee owns, operates and maintains a bona fide registered repair shop within the City of Kingston or a town or incorporated village within the metropolitan area of the City of Kingston, viz., within five miles of the geographical limits thereof.
B. 
Such applicant maintains twenty-four-hour capacity to answer emergency calls regarding motor vehicles.
C. 
Such applicant has a tow truck equipped with a lifting boom on rear of truck or a flatbed track, a minimum of three-ton power winch, equipped with 75 feet of 3/8 inch steel cable, a dry-chemical fire extinguisher with a minimum of 10 pounds of pressure, three Department of Transportation approved (triangular) road reflectors and three Department of Transportation approved road flares, a broom, a hacksaw, an ax and a shovel.
D. 
The licensee possess a N.Y.S. driver 's license with a tow truck endorsement.
Every applicant for license shall, at the time of submitting his application, submit a complete current schedule of fees for all services in connection with the towing and storage of motor vehicles that the applicant charges in cases other than when called from the towing roster, as hereafter provided. The schedule of maximum prices to be charged may be revised at any time but shall not be effective until filed with the Kingston Police Department.
All applicants shall execute such consents for releases of information as may be required.
On each side of every tow truck for which a sticker has been issued, the owner shall prominently display, by painting, magnetic sign or other similar means, the business name and address of the licensee, together with the business phone number, by letters of not less than three inches high.
The Chief of Police or his agent may, in his discretion, before the issuance of a license, require the applicant and any others having knowledge of the facts to submit to an examination under oath and to procedure for the adducing of evidence relating thereto and shall hold a hearing upon such application, as hereinafter provided.
[Amended 12-4-2001; approved 12-28-2001]
Every owner licensed hereunder who desires to add to the number of tow trucks he is duly licensed to operate shall file a written application under oath with the Chief of Police or his agent stating:
A. 
The name and address of the applicant.
B. 
The applicant owner's license number.
C. 
Proof of required insurance, valid registration and inspection.
D. 
A description of each such additional tow truck, including the make, motor number and the year manufactured.
Any license and sticker issued hereunder may be renewed annually for additional periods of one year each from the date of expiration upon the submission of an amendment to the original application or subsequent amendments, containing all the information required by the provisions of this chapter for original applications.
[Amended 12-4-2001, approved 12-28-2001; 5-6-2008, approved 5-12-2008; 9-2-2014 by L.L. No. 2-2014, approved 9-11-2014]
No license or sticker shall be issued or renewed annually which shall permit the use of any vehicle as a tow truck unless and until it has been inspected and certified annually by the Chief of Police or his designee as conforming to the requirements of this chapter and has been duly inspected as required by the Vehicle and Traffic Law of New York. There shall be a fee as set forth in the fee schedule to be established by resolution of the Common Council of this City[1] for each annual inspection and as set forth in the fee schedule to be established by resolution of the Common Council of this City for each tow vehicle inspected. Annual inspections must be completed once a year.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 217, Fees.
Motor vehicles not involved in accidents but which are otherwise disabled and which are disrupting the flow of traffic and whose owners do not otherwise request assistance from a licensee, or motor vehicles which are to be impounded for other reasons, shall be towed away by licensees from the towing roster on a rotating basis. In the event that a licensee is called pursuant to this section, it shall be unlawful for the licensee to charge more than the rates provided for in § 370-16.
[Amended 3-6-1990, approved 3-7-1990; 12-4-2001, approved 12-28-2001]
Any licensee who agrees to abide by the following requirements shall be placed on the towing roster to be called in rotation to remove vehicles from scenes of accidents, disabled vehicles or vehicles otherwise left in violation of law, provided that:
A. 
The licensee swears under oath that he owns or rents and operates and maintains a bona fide legally permitted registered repair shop within the City of Kingston; but applicants shall not qualify as herein provided if applicants state that they maintain a registered repair shop on the very same premises or real property owned by another licensee and on which property said licensee operates or maintains or another licensee operates or maintains a place of like business, or the applicant states that he is a lessee of a licensee.
B. 
Such garage maintains twenty-four-hour capability to answer calls regarding motor vehicles.
C. 
The licensee agrees to charge no more than the following maximum rates for towing from the accident scene to his place of business or any other place within the City of Kingston designated by the owner or operator of a motor vehicle, regardless of distance within the City of Kingston when called by the Kingston Police Department:
(1) 
Towing charges.
[Amended 5-6-2008, approved 5-12-2008]
(a) 
Passenger vehicles and trucks up to 3/4 ton.
[1] 
Day: $100.
[2] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $125.
(b) 
Above three-quarter-ton trucks.
[1] 
Day: $125.
[2] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $150.
(c) 
Tractor trailers.
[1] 
Tractor trailers 18,000 GVW (gross vehicle weight) and over: said fee is left to the discretion of the owner/operator of the tow truck.
(d) 
Return empty.
[1] 
Days: $75.
[2] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $100.
(e) 
Snow tows.
[1] 
Day or night, includes dig out: $125.
(2) 
Additional charges. The licensee shall be permitted to charge additional fees for additional services. Any fees not provided for herein shall be in accordance with the schedule of fees filed with the Kingston Police Department.
(a) 
Flatbeds: add $20 to rates for three-quarter-ton vehicles.
(b) 
Dollies.
[1] 
Tractor trailers.
[a] 
Day: $120.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $170.
[2] 
All others.
[a] 
Day: $25.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $45.
(c) 
Winching.
[1] 
Passenger vehicles and three-quarter-ton trucks.
[a] 
Day: $80 per hour.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $80 per hour.
[2] 
All other vehicles.
[a] 
Day: $100 per hour.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $120 per hour.
(d) 
Unusual waiting cleanup time.
[1] 
With small wreckers.
[a] 
Day: $50 per hour.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $60 per hour.
[2] 
With large wreckers.
[a] 
Day: $70 per hour.
[b] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $100 per hour.
(e) 
Additional service vehicles: same rates as above.
(f) 
Additional labor.
[1] 
Day: $40 per hour.
[2] 
Nights, weekends and holidays: $50 per hour.
(g) 
Mileage. Outside of the City: $3 per loaded mile.
[Amended 5-6-2008, approved 5-12-2008]
(3) 
"Days" shall mean 8:00 a.m. through 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8:00 a.m. through 12:00 noon, Saturday. "Nights, weekends and holidays" shall mean all other times, with "holidays" being those established by the State of New York.
D. 
Storage. The licensee agrees to charge a maximum of $40 per day for storage; provided, however, that no storage shall be charged if the vehicle is picked up prior to the close of the next business day of the licensee; and provided, further, that no additional storage may be charged from the time the owner of the vehicle contacts the licensee for the purpose of attempting to pick up the vehicle, so long as the owner does pick up the vehicle prior to the end of the next business day of the licensee. Reasonable charges not to exceed $40 may be imposed by the licensee to enable the owner to pick up the vehicle at other than normal business hours of the licensee. Licensees shall be available to owners desiring to pick up vehicles at least 10 hours per day, Monday through Saturday, holidays excepted, which hours must include either 8:00 a.m. or 6:00 p.m., as the licensee shall elect. Hours of availability shall be filed with the Kingston Police Department.
[Amended 5-6-2008, approved 5-12-2008]
E. 
The charges and fees herein provided may he modified from time to time by resolution of the Common Council of the City of Kingston, New York.
[Amended 12-4-2001; approved 12-28-2001]
The Chief of Police of the Kingston Police Department or his authorized agent is hereby authorized to designate licensees from the towing roster on a rotating basis for the purpose of towing motor vehicles to the place of business of the tow truck applicant, except elsewhere at the request of the owner. The roster shall be filed with the City Clerk for availability to the public and shall be amended on the first working day of the month only in the event of an addition or deletion of a licensed applicant.
The licensee shall furnish twenty-four-hour telephone numbers for the licensee, his business and/or his designated agent. If a licensee or his designated agent does not answer the call of the duty officer of the Kingston Police Department or is not available when called, he shall lose his turn on the towing roster and must wait for the roster to be called in its entirety before he is eligible to be called again.
A licensee called to the scene of an accident, if necessary, must sweep or clean up any debris, but only if he is provided with police protection against vehicles at the scene.
It shall be unlawful for a licensee to transfer or exchange his place on the roster with any other licensee or other person on the towing roster.
If more than one tow truck is needed at the scene of an accident, the aforesaid Police Department, through its authorized agent, shall call the next licensee in rotation. The police officer at the scene shall designate which licensee tows which vehicle. The first licensee to appear on the scene shall, however, assist the police officer in clearing the motor vehicles from the public highways onto the shoulder of the highway.
It shall be unlawful for any person who is not designated from the towing roster, as aforesaid, or who does not have the prior consent and direction of the police officer at the scene or owner of the vehicle, to tow away any motor vehicle which has been involved in an accident. The police officer, if at the scene, will determine when the aforesaid vehicle shall be removed. No vehicle will be towed in any event unless the Kingston Police Department is notified or has been at the scene.
It shall be unlawful for any licensee on the towing roster to willfully refuse to tow away a motor vehicle after having appeared upon the scene, or to willfully fail to arrive at the disabled vehicle scene after being duly designated as herein provided, regardless of the hour of day or distance to the scene of the disabled vehicle, provided that his equipment is not otherwise employed, personnel are unavailable or the licensee is physically incapacitated. A conviction of violating this section shall result in an automatic suspension from the towing roster for 60 days.
A licensee duly qualified shall have but one place on the towing roster, although he maintains several licensed tow trucks in the City of Kingston.
It shall be unlawful for any licensee to charge any person more than the maximum fees set forth in its application or filed with the Kingston Police Department for the towing and storage of motor vehicles, except when called from the towing roster, the maximum fees as herein provided shall apply.
It shall be unlawful for any person to solicit towing or body work at the scene of any motor vehicle accident on private property or on a public highway within the City of Kingston.
It shall be unlawful for any person to drive along any public street or highway within the City of Kingston for the purpose of soliciting towing work, or repair work, or both.
A. 
Whenever it shall be provided herein that a hearing shall be held, such hearing shall be held on a date and at a place and hour designated by the Chief of Police or his agent.
B. 
The Chief of Police or his agent shall give notice thereof, stating the name and address of the applicant or license holder concerned, the subject matter of the hearing and date, place and hour thereof designated therefor, by mailing a copy thereof to the applicant or license holder concerned at the address shown upon the most recent application of such applicant or licensee at least 10 days before such hearing.
C. 
Upon any hearings, the applicant or license holder involved shall be entitled to be represented by legal counsel and to present such competent and material testimony or other evidence in his own behalf that may be relevant to the subject matter at the hearing.
D. 
All witnesses shall be sworn and examined under oath.
A. 
Any license issued hereunder may be suspended for a period of not more than three months or revoked by the Chief of Police or his agent if the holder thereof shall violate any provisions of this chapter or any ordinance of the City or be convicted of the violation of any traffic law, ordinance or regulation of the State of New York or any municipality of the State of New York or of any crime, or be guilty of making a false statement or misrepresentation in his application. A license hereunder shall not be suspended or revoked by the Chief of Police or his agent without a hearing having been held thereupon, which hearing shall be held not less than 20 days after written notice thereof to the licensee, either in person or by certified mail.
B. 
The Chief of Police, upon receiving information giving him reasonable cause to believe that the holder of any license has violated any provisions of this chapter, or has been convicted of any violation referred to herein, or has been indicted or charged with or for any crime or offense, or is guilty of having made false statements or misrepresentations in his application, may temporarily suspend such licensee from the towing roster until such time as hearing is held by said Chief of Police or his agent, as provided herein, and the Chief of Police or his agent shall have rendered its determination thereon.
C. 
Towing authorization. No vehicle shall be removed without authorization of the police officer, the owner of the vehicle or other person in charge thereof. Such authorization shall be for the towing and the storage of the vehicle only.
The Chief of Police or his agent shall have the power to prescribe reasonable rules and regulations for the proper and efficient administration and enforcement of this chapter.
[Amended 12-4-2001; approved 12-28-2001]
A. 
A licensed tow truck driver:
(1) 
Shall have an identification card, approved by the Chief of Police, signed by the licensee, attesting to the employment and qualifications of such driver as required herein in his possession at all times while engaged in his occupation as a tow truck driver, and, while so engaged, shall also be in possession of his operator's or chauffeur's license.
(2) 
Shall not permit any other person to use his identification card.
(3) 
Shall not be engaged on an unlicensed tow truck or on a tow truck, the license for which has been suspended or revoked.
(4) 
Shall promptly report the loss of his identification card to the Chief of Police or his agent.
(5) 
Shall report a change of address to the Chief of Police or his agent within 48 hours.
(6) 
Shall have with him at all times properly authorized forms for towing and repair, such forms to be printed and maintained by the tow truck owners.
(7) 
Shall refrain from use of addictive drugs, except those medically prescribed, or intoxicating liquors, while on duty either at the garaging facility, office or place of accident.
B. 
Each driver at the scene of an accident:
(1) 
Shall exhibit his identification card to the owner of a disabled vehicle or person in charge thereof or to any City officer or member of the Kingston Police Department.
(2) 
Shall not remove any vehicle involved in an accident in which a person has been injured until released by a duly authorized member of the Kingston Police Department.
(3) 
Shall notify the Kingston Police Department of personal or property damage at an accident scene unless a police officer is or has been present.
(4) 
Shall notify the Kingston Fire Department if any evidence of fire or a liquid leak is apparent or if the vehicle to be towed may contain hazardous or contaminated substances.
(5) 
Shall notify the Kingston Police Department of their arrival and departure times from the scene of the call. The times shall also be noted on the bill for services.
C. 
Every tow truck driver shall obey all traffic laws, ordinances, local laws, rules and regulations while operating a tow truck and, upon receipt of a summons or his arrest for any alleged violation of any such law, ordinance, local law, rule or regulation, shall report the same within three days to the Chief of Police or his agent, advising him of the nature of the offense charged and the name and the location of the court and the date upon which said summons is returnable or the date upon which the hearing or such trial is to be held.
A. 
The owner or driver of any disabled vehicle shall have the right to require the services of any available licensed tow truck and it shall be unlawful for any owner or driver of any licensed tow truck to refuse to render such services if such owner or driver of such disabled motor vehicle is able and willing to pay the fee prescribed in the schedule of prices filed by the owner of such licensed tow truck with the Chief of Police or his agent; unless such tow service is physically unable for good cause shown to tow such motor vehicle in that all of its available equipment is already engaged in other towing operations.
B. 
Licensed tow truck owners and drivers, when required, will answer all communications received from the Chief of Police or his agent.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any owner or driver to refuse to surrender a license or licenses to the Chief of Police or his agent upon demand, after such license or licenses have been suspended, revoked or expired.
D. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to demand or receive any payment in excess of the maximum charges permitted by this chapter on the schedule filed by the owner with the Police Department.
E. 
Rules regulating agreements and estimates for repairs. It shall be unlawful for any tow truck owner, driver or any person to make repairs or to charge a fee directly or indirectly for making an estimate for repairs on any motor vehicle in an accident or otherwise disabled without entering into a signed agreement with the owner or other person in charge of said disabled motor vehicle, fixing the cost on a form prescribed.
F. 
If any other City or town in the County of Ulster shall adopt an ordinance or local law permitting holders of licenses issued hereunder to operate upon the public highways thereof without further license or fee and file a certified copy of such local law or ordinance with the Chief of Police or his agent of the City of Kingston, any holder of a license to operate tow truck issued by such City or town may operate tow trucks upon the public highways of the City of Kingston, provided, in all instances, that all standards of this chapter are complied with without further license or fee.
An offense against any provision of this chapter shall be a violation of the chapter, which shall be punishable by a fine of not more than $100 or imprisonment for a period not to exceed 30 days for each such offense, or by both such fine and imprisonment, except that any person or persons, associations or corporations committing an offense against any provisions of the licensing section of this chapter hereof shall be guilty of a Class B misdemeanor which shall be punishable by a fine of no more than $500 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months for each such offense, or by both such fine and imprisonment.