[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.