[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Norwood by Ord.
No. 86-0-27 (Sec. 4-5 of the Revised General Ordinances).
Amendments noted where applicable.]
In order to protect the property of and persons
who operate a motor vehicle in the Borough of Norwood as well as to
further promote the free flow of traffic in the Borough, it is desirable
and necessary to adopt this chapter to ensure proper licensing, availability
and other controls over persons and firms providing wrecker services
at police request.
No person may engage in municipal towing at
police request without first obtaining a license therefor as provided
by this chapter. Nothing in this chapter shall apply to persons who
operate a wrecker or tow truck that picks up disabled vehicles outside
the Borough limits and are in the course of taking such vehicles to
a garage or other location, either within or without the Borough,
nor to wreckers or tow trucks whose services are specifically requested
by the driver or owner of a disabled vehicle.
Any person, corporation or business firm with
its place of business within the Borough who desires to perform towing
work at police request shall submit an application for a towing license
on forms furnished by the Borough Clerk to the Chief of Police. The
application shall state:
A.
The full name and address of the applicant. If the
application is made for a corporation, it shall state the corporation's
registered office and its registered agent.
B.
The year, make and type of each wrecker used in said
business, its serial number, registration number and registered owner.
C.
The address where the wrecker or tow truck shall be
regularly garaged, the telephone numbers available on a twenty-four-hour
per day basis and the names of all operators, their addresses and
their New Jersey motor vehicle license numbers.
D.
The location, size and security features of the storage
lot on which towed vehicles will be stored.
E.
The name and address of the insurance carriers and
agents and the policy numbers of garage keepers and garage liability
insurance policies.
F.
A statement of willingness to be available 24 hours
a day, each day of the year, and to abide by the fees set forth herein.
After receiving a letter of application for
a towing license, the Chief of Police shall conduct or cause to be
conducted an investigation to determine the truth and accuracy of
all the information contained in the application, whether the applicant
and all employees are fit and proper persons to conduct the proposed
business, whether the applicant has demonstrated, by his equipment
capacity, the location of the business and the location to which requests
will be directed during on-call hours, the ability to respond to calls
24 hours a day and whether such ability to respond is sufficient to
provide a response to any location within the Borough of Norwood within
15 minutes of request made by the Police Department of the Borough
of Norwood. Upon completion of his investigation, the Chief of Police
shall forward a copy of the letter of application for a towing license
to the Borough Council, along with a recommendation for approval or
disapproval of the license and the reasons, if any, for disapproval.
Upon receipt of the application, the Borough Council shall determine
whether or not the applicant has complied with all the necessary standards
and criteria, and if it shall so find, the license shall be issued
to the applicant, and the applicants name shall be placed at the end
of the towing list.
[Amended 12-5-2000 by Ord. No. 00:17]
The Borough Clerk shall promptly notify the
applicant of the approval of his application and shall issue the license.
The license shall contain the following information: name and address
of the licensee, number of the license and amount of fee paid, date
of issuance of the license and expiration date, the signature of the
Borough Clerk and the Seal of the Borough. All licenses shall expire
on December 31 of the year issued. The Borough Clerk shall keep a
copy of the license for filing and maintain a permanent record of
all licenses issued. The license fee for the license issued under
this chapter shall be $50 per year.
[Amended by Ord. No. 91-0-14]
A.
The Borough Council may terminate a license under
the following circumstances:
(1)
When it is found that the license was secured by fraud
or the concealment of a material fact by the applicant, which fact,
if known, would have caused the refusal to issue the license.
(2)
When it is found that the applicant has violated any
of the requirements or regulations established by the Chief of Police
or any of his employees.
(3)
When the Borough is not satisfied with the general
services of the owner and/or employees or with the cooperation it
has received in rendering service.
B.
A license issued to a person or business firm under
this chapter shall not be transferable.
C.
The Borough Council shall notify the licensee in writing
that it intends to revoke the license. This written notice shall be
served by certified mail, return receipt requested, and shall specify
the reasons why the Borough Council intends to revoke the license.
The licensee may request a hearing on the charges by requesting same
in writing within seven days of its receipt of the notice of revocation.
Thereafter, the Borough Council shall conduct a hearing not later
than 21 days after it receives the licensee's request for said hearing.
The Borough Council can continue the hearing from time to time to
hear additional evidence. Upon the close of the hearing, the Borough
Council shall notify the licensee of its final decision as to revocation
of the license.
No towing license shall be issued under this
chapter until the applicant has provided the following:
A.
Garage-keeper's policy. A certificate of full garage-keeper's
legal liability coverage, including fire, theft, collision and comprehensive,
including vandalism and malicious mischief in the minimum amount of
$50,000 with each vehicle damaged deemed a separate claim.
B.
Garage liability policy.
(1)
A certificate of liability and property damage insurance
covering the operation of the applicant's business, equipment or other
vehicles shall be in the minimum amount of $500,000 single-limit coverage
and an additional $100,000 for all damage arising from injury to or
destruction of property.
(2)
Every policy required under this chapter must contain
an endorsement by the insurance carrier providing 30 days' notice
to both the Borough of Norwood and the licensee in the event of any
change of coverage under the policy or cancellation thereof.
(3)
In the event the policy is changed so that it fails
to conform with any of the above requirements or if the policy of
any licensee is canceled for any reason, the Chief of Police shall
notify the person responsible for the policy, and it shall be corrected
or reinstated or replaced with a conforming policy within 10 days
after notice is received and before the date of cancellation, and
in no event will any license be valid after cancellation of such policy.
If the policy or certificate is not corrected, reinstated or replaced
within the required time, the Chief of Police shall immediately suspend
the towing license and immediately remove the name of the licensed
wrecker from the towing list.
C.
The owner or applicant shall assume all liability
and shall indemnify and save the Borough, its subdivisions, departments,
agents and employees harmless from damages sustained by vehicles while
being towed or stored and from all personal injuries occurring to
any of the firms' employees or any other persons as a result of towing
and storage or activities related to the towing and storage under
this chapter.
D.
A hold harmless agreement executed on behalf of the
applicant.
[Amended 10-5-2004 by Ord. No. 04:16]
[Amended 4-1-2003 by Ord. No. 03:03]
Each wrecker or tow truck must meet all of the
requirements of N.J.S.A. 39:1-1 et seq. and must have a lifting capacity
of at least four tons. In addition, each wrecker must have the following
equipment:
A.
One large broom and shovel.
B.
At least one set of dolly wheels.
C.
Steering wheel lock for towing vehicles from the rear.
D.
Tow sling type tow bar to prevent any part of crane
metal from touching towed vehicles.
E.
Emergency warning lights.
F.
Portable safety lights to be installed on rear of
towed vehicle, if necessary.
G.
Safety flares for night work.
The Chief of Police shall maintain a monthly
revolving list of licensed wreckers to provide service where needed
and shall instruct all officers to utilize said list. Nothing in this
chapter shall be construed so as to prevent any owner or operator
of a motor vehicle from calling any tower or wrecker of his own choice.
It is specifically permitted for the Chief of Police or his designee
to call a wrecker out of sequence or seek the services of a nonlicensed
wrecker if the nature of the wreck requires specialized equipment
or if the proximity to the wreck or estimated response time makes
it practical to do so. No wrecker or person shall respond to the scene
of an accident, except upon notification by the Police Department
or upon the request of the driver or owner of the disabled vehicle.
In the event that the firm that is on call fails to respond within
15 minutes of notification or is for any reason unavailable, the next
service in line on the towing list shall be called upon. An unexcused
failure to respond shall be grounds for removal from the towing list.
All vehicles towed at the request of the Police
Department must be removed to a place within the Borough or a mile
radius outside the Borough unless the owner or operator of the vehicle
specifically requests that it be towed to a place outside the Borough
limits or to a location approved by the Chief of Police of the Borough
of Norwood. The towing firm must provide a safe area for the storage
of towed vehicles. This area shall be screened and protected by a
fence no less than six feet in height and no greater than eight feet
high, having a gate with padlock assembly. The fenced-in area used
for the storage of towed vehicles shall be illuminated. The fencing
and illumination measures are to provide adequate security for the
towed and stored vehicles and to prevent unsightliness.
By making application to be utilized as a tower
or wrecker by the Police Department and by accepting such employment,
the person or firm agrees to:
A.
Provide a prompt response to each call.
B.
Clean all debris at the accident site emanating from
the accident.
D.
Maintain a ledger of all towing or wrecking jobs handled,
the name of the owner or operator, if known, the charges made for
the service and the date and amount of payment.
E.
Comply with all other terms and conditions of this
chapter.
F.
Comply with all motor vehicle rules and regulations
found in N.J.S.A. 39:1-1 et seq.
[Amended by Ord. No. 91-0-14; 4-1-2003 by Ord. No. 03:03; 10-5-2004 by Ord. No.
04:16]
A.
The following fees may be charged by authorized contractors:
(1)
Towing, flatbed or regular tow to garage, passenger
cars, small vans and pickups: $110.
[Amended 12-12-2012 by Ord. No. 12:11]
(2)
Towing, flatbed or regular tow to garage, motorcycles,
mopeds and trail bikes: $110.
[Amended 12-12-2012 by Ord. No. 12:11]
(3)
Service calls during regular business hours, 8:00
a.m. to 4:00 p.m.: $50.
[Amended 12-12-2012 by Ord. No. 12:11]
(4)
Service calls after hours, Sundays and holidays: $75.
[Amended 12-12-2012 by Ord. No. 12:11]
(5)
Service call (flat tires, remove tire and replace
with serviceable spare) add to above rates: $15.
(7)
Additional charges may be added at the rate of $70
per hour due to unreasonable delays or unusual difficulties encountered
at the scene.
(8)
Vehicles will be released during normal business hours
only.
B.
Fees for all other types of vehicles shall be determined
in accordance with this subsection:
|
NOTE: Class 1 vehicles are all vehicles 6,000
pounds gross vehicle weight to 16,000 pounds gross vehicle weight;
Class 2 vehicles are all vehicles 16,000 pounds gross vehicle weight
to 80,000 pounds gross vehicle weight.
|
(2)
The following is the fee schedule for storage services:
(3)
The fees for nonpassenger vehicles in this section
are the maximum charges that shall apply for basic towing services.
The official towers, however, shall be allowed for winching and wrecking
services over and above the basic towing services an additional $50.00
per hour for light-duty wrecker, $100 per hour for medium-duty wrecker
and $150 per hour for heavy-duty wrecker. There shall be no additional
charges for any other services, including but not limited to waiting
time, cleanup costs and additional labor when only basic towing services,
as defined, are provided.
C.
The fees set forth in Subsections A and B of this section for towing rates are the maximum charges that shall apply to basic towing services. There shall be no additional charges other than those provided herein, including, but not limited to, flatbedding, waiting time, winching, cleanup cost and additional labor when only basic towing services as defined are provided. The official towers, however, shall be allowed to charge for services other than basic towing services, as defined in this section, the sum of $25 per hour for any additional winching services required over and above the basic towing services when removing a 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.
