[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Floral Park 12-6-1977 by L.L. No. 6-1977. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Access to criminal history records — See Ch. 3.
Parked or abandoned vehicles — See Ch. 90.
[Amended 1-22-1991 by L.L. No. 1-1991]
Except as provided in § 87-9, it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to operate or permit to be operated a tow car for hire within the limits of the Incorporated Village of Floral Park without first obtaining and having in force and effect a license therefor issued by the Board of Trustees. For the purposes of the chapter, a tow car includes a flatbed truck or trailer used to transport a motor vehicle. Applications for such license shall be made, in writing, to the Village Clerk upon a form prescribed by the Village Clerk and shall state and contain the following:
A. 
The name and business address of the applicant and, if he is a natural person, his age and residence address.
B. 
The registration number of each tow car to be operated.
C. 
A schedule of prices as prescribed in § 87-3 hereof.
[Amended 9-20-2011 by L.L. No. 6-2011]
Such license shall expire on the 31st day of December of the year of its issuance. The annual fee payable for each such license or renewal thereof, which license may cover one or more tow cars operated by the same owner, shall be established by resolution of the Board of Trustees. No license fee shall be prorated.
[Amended 5-20-1980 by L.L. No. 3-1980; 1-22-1991 by L.L. No. 1-1991; 9-20-2011 by L.L. No. 6-2011]
A. 
Schedules. The holder of a license issued hereunder shall file with the Village Clerk a schedule of the maximum prices to be charged for the towing and storage of disabled motor vehicles. Such charges shall be based on the distance that each disabled motor vehicle is to be towed and not estimated or based upon the availability of tow cars.
B. 
Towing and storage charges; emergency situations.
(1) 
As shown on the schedules filed as required herein, the charges for towing a disabled motor vehicle from the scene of an accident or from a public street where a vehicle has for any reason become disabled and constitutes a traffic hazard shall not exceed the maximum charges as established by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
(2) 
Storage charges for such vehicles, shown on the schedules filed as required herein, shall not exceed the maximum charges as established by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
(3) 
Inside storage charges may be determined by agreement of the parties. All vehicles must be stored on the premises of the licensee.
C. 
For the purposes of this section, the presence of a police officer called to the scene of an accident or to assist in the removal of a disabled motor vehicle shall be presumptive evidence of the existence of an emergency.
D. 
Exceptions. The maximum towing and storage charges set forth in this section shall not apply to:
(1) 
Motor trucks exceeding 1 1/2 tons' capacity.
(2) 
The towing of motor vehicles pursuant to a contract executed prior to the need for towing, provided that such motor vehicles are either owned or leased by the contracting party.
It shall be unlawful for any person to tow away any motor vehicle which has been involved in an accident without the prior consent of the owner or the police officer at the scene of the accident, and no car shall be removed from the scene of an accident where the police officer requires or requests that an examination be held for the purpose of finding out whether the car is defective.
It shall be unlawful for any person to drive along any street or highway in the Incorporated Village of Floral Park for the purpose of soliciting towing work.
On each side of every tow car to which a license has been issued there shall be legibly inscribed in letters not less than three inches high the name and address of the owner of such tow car or of the person having the license therefor, and the license number assigned to such tow car by the Village Clerk.
The Board of Trustees is hereby empowered to promulgate and prescribe rules and regulations for the proper administration and enforcement of this law.
The Board of Trustees shall have the power to suspend any license issued pursuant to this law for the violation of any rules hereof or of any rules and regulations promulgated hereunder or for the failure of the owner or operator of any tow car to render services to the owner or driver of a disabled vehicle who is able and willing to pay the fee prescribed in the schedule of prices filed by the licensee of such tow car as hereinbefore prescribed.
Except for § 87-4, the provisions of this law shall not apply to cases where without solicitation the owner or driver of a damaged motor vehicle shall have specifically requested that the same be towed by an unlicensed tow car.
This law shall become effective on January 1, 1978.