[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Glassboro 9-24-2019 by Ord. No. 19-41.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor’s Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch.
431, Towing, adopted 2-21-2001 by Ord. No. 01-15, as amended.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide standards, regulations,
and rates for police-requested towing and storage services. The further
purpose of this chapter is to regulate these services from a public
safety perspective to affect the quickest response time in good or
bad weather, minimize the waiting time for police officers and the
public for removal of damaged, abandoned, or impounded vehicles from
the scene, and restore the unimpeded flow of traffic on the highways,
streets, roads, and public rights-of-way of the Borough; additionally
to provide the Police Department, and members of the public whose
vehicles have been towed, convenient access to stored vehicles.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meanings given below. If
not inconsistent with the context, all words in singular terms shall
refer to the plural, and those in the plural the singular, words in
the present tense include the future tense. "Shall" as used in this
chapter is always mandatory and not merely directory.
A vehicle located on a highway, street, road, or public right-of-way, not in operation, with no operator or owner visible and as defined in Chapter 442 and Title 39 of the New Jersey Statutes.
A list of tow operators who satisfy the requirements of this
chapter, apply for, and receive approval by the Borough Council, on
recommendation of the Borough Chief of Police, to perform police-requested
towing in the Borough.
The Borough of Glassboro.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation or
legally formed organization.
A person engaged in the business of towing or storing motor
vehicles or offering the services of a tow vehicle, tow truck, and
storage services.
Those vehicles equipped with a boom or booms, winches, slings,
tilt beds, wheel lifts, or underreach equipment specifically designed
by their manufacturer for the removal or transport of motor vehicles,
including flatbed vehicles, employed for the purpose of towing, transporting,
conveying, or removing motor vehicles that are unable to be operated
under their own power or may not lawfully be operated from one place
to another. Each tow vehicle or tow truck shall display the name,
address, and contact information of the approved tow operator. The
tow operator shall disclose the vehicles to be used in carrying out
police-requested towing in their application and shall update such
information with the Police Chief in the event that equipment is withdrawn,
supplemented, or replaced.
The services of a vehicle wrecker or towing service, including
but not limited to holding, lifting, removal, hauling and transportation
of any type of vehicle of any size from the highways, streets, roads,
and public rights-of-way located in the Borough.
Any motor vehicle as defined by Title 39 of any type or size,
including but not limited to a passenger vehicle, truck, trailer,
heavy vehicle, and heavy equipment for on or off-road use.
A.
No police-requested towing will take place unless the tow operator,
as defined in this chapter, has first applied for and received approval
to provide police-requested towing services within the Borough. Applications
for this approval must be in the form approved by the Chief of Police
and submitted by a tow operator no later than October 15 of the odd-numbered
year before a new Approved Tow Operator List is adopted. On January
1 of each even-numbered year, the Borough Council will by resolution
adopt an Approved Tow Operator List including all applicants who qualify
under this chapter. This Approved Tow Operator List will be in operation
for a two-year period. Approved tow operators will be called for police-requested
towing on a monthly rotating basis according to a schedule established
by the Chief of Police. All approved tow operators will be treated
equally.
B.
If the tow operator on the rotation cannot respond within 15 minutes
or does not have the equipment or storage area necessary to handle
a particular call, the Chief of Police or his designee may bypass
the rotation or if necessary, these requirements, to call a tow operator
who can respond with what is needed.
C.
All tow operators are expected to respond within 15 minutes of being
called, without regard to time of day or weather conditions. The Chief
of Police will notify any tow operator who fails to respond to calls
on time without justification or fails to provide adequate service,
of their violations of this chapter. The tow operator will be provided
an opportunity to respond, and will be subject to withdrawal of the
Borough Council's approval and their placement on the Approved Tow
Operator List.
A.
No tow operator will be called until they have deposited with the
Chief of Police proof of insurance, as explained in the following
schedule, which proof will be reviewed by the Borough insurance broker
for acceptability of the companies and coverage.
B.
All insurance policies must be obtained from an insurer authorized
to conduct business in the State of New Jersey.
C.
The tow operator must furnish proof of insurance coverage by certificate
of insurance and must name the Borough of Glassboro as additional
insured on all liability policies. That certificate of insurance must
provide that the insurance company give the Borough of Glassboro 30
days' prior notice of any changes or cancellation of terms of such
policies throughout the coverage.
D.
The Borough of Glassboro will be exempt from, and in no way liable
for, any sums of money that may represent a deductible in any insurance
policy. The payment of any such deductible must be the sole responsibility
of the tow operator.
E.
It will be the responsibility of the tow operator to maintain in
force the insurance policies named below throughout their inclusion
on the Approved Tow Operator List.
(1)
Workers' compensation insurance, including occupational diseases,
shall be required of each approved tow operator, covering its employees
engaged in the work, in accordance with the statutory requirements
of the laws of the State of New Jersey. The Workers' compensation
insurance policy shall contain an employee's liability endorsement
providing limits of not less than statutory requirements.
(2)
Commercial general liability insurance written on an occurrence basis
and must not be altered by any endorsements limiting coverage.
(a)
Limits of liability shall not be less than the following:
(3)
Automobile liability insurance with a limit of not less than $1,000,000
single limit bodily injury and/or property damage combined for damages
arising out of bodily injuries to or death of all persons in any one
occurrence and for damages to or destruction of property, including
the loss of use thereof in any one occurrence covering owned, nonowned,
or hired vehicles.
(4)
Garage keeper's liability in an amount not less than $100,000 per
location.
The Chief of Police shall adopt and enforce reasonable rules
and regulations for tow operators and is hereby designated as the
Borough officer responsible for the enforcement of the provisions
of this chapter, in accordance with due process of law.
Any tow operator called to tow a vehicle at the request of the
Police Department shall charge no more than the maximum fees allowed
by statute and set forth in a schedule available at Borough Hall that
is incorporated into and made a part of this chapter by reference.
These maximum fees apply to all towing and storage requests initiated
by the Borough, not just requests due to automobile accidents or stolen
vehicles. The maximum daily storage charge applies to the entire period
of time the vehicle is stored subsequent to a tow requested by the
Borough.
Every tow operator called by the Police Department must keep
a record of the name and address of the owner of the towed vehicle
and must file reports, as required by the Chief of Police, which will
include, but not be limited to, itemized towing and storage charges
per vehicle, and disposition of the vehicle. Right after towing the
vehicle to their storage area, the tow operator must search the vehicle
in front of the owner or police officer at the scene and make a list
of all personal property or after-market equipment in or on the vehicle.
A.
Storage facilities.
(1)
The tow operator must have a business office open to the public between
8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. at least five days a week, excluding holidays,
available to release stored vehicles upon police authorization.
(2)
The storage area must be visually screened from the highway.
(3)
The storage area must be secure. The contractor is responsible for
safe storage.
(4)
The storage area must be lit from dusk to dawn.
(5)
There must be a sturdy six-foot fence with locks on gates.
(6)
All vehicles will be stored within five miles by radius of the Borough
of Glassboro Police Department or within the established boundaries
of the Borough in a storage area zoned for that use.
(7)
The tow operator must submit with the initial application proof of
ownership or lease of the storage area. Borough-approved towing companies
may not share the same storage area.
(8)
The storage area will be at least 1/2 acre (21,780 square feet).
(9)
Indoor, secured, and monitored storage may be required for vehicles
held for police purposes, including, but not limited to, criminal
or accident investigation. The Borough reserves the right to bypass
a tow operator who cannot provide this storage when necessary.
B.
Required towing equipment. Equipment must be garaged within a five-mile
radius of the Borough of Glassboro Police Department or within the
established boundaries of the Borough.
Before a tow operator may receive Borough approval, the Chief
of Police will direct an inspection of the tow operator's storage
facility and towing equipment to verify compliance with this chapter.
Every person found guilty of violating any of the provisions
of this chapter may be removed from the Approved Tow Operator List.
