Source: https://ecode360.com/30025501
Timestamp: 2020-08-03 15:19:00
Document Index: 432298342

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268', '§ 268']

Village of Whitesboro, NY Towing
Ch 268 Art I Required Distance from Accident Scenes
§ 268-1 Distance to be maintained from accidents.
§ 268-2 Penalties for offenses.
Ch 268 Art II Towing Service and Storage
§ 268-3 Purpose.
§ 268-4 Authorization to tow.
§ 268-5 Towing rotation list.
§ 268-6 Standards for rotation list.
§ 268-7 Applications for towing service; removal; fees.
§ 268-8 Promulgation of rules and regulations.
§ 268-9 Storage and charges.
§ 268-10 Penalties for offenses.
§ 268-11 Effective date.
Chapter 268 Towing
Storage of vehicles — See Ch. 280.
Article I Required Distance from Accident Scenes
Article II Towing Service and Storage
[Adopted 3-9-2000 by L.L. No. 1-2000]
From and after the passage of this article, it shall be unlawful for any person operating a tow truck wrecker service within the corporate limits of the Village of Whitesboro or any agent working on behalf of such operator to be within 1,000 feet of any accident or to cause any wrecker to approach nearer than 1,000 feet of the scene of any accident of any automobile or other vehicle within the corporate limits of said Village until the Police Department has had an opportunity to investigate said accident and has directed and authorized said person(s) and/or wrecker to approach within said prohibited distance.
Any person, firm, or corporation or other entity engaged in the wrecker or tow service or any other person violating this article shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine not exceeding $250 for the first offense and/or imprisonment of up to 15 days. The limit for the fine shall increase by $250 for each conviction of any defendant with five years of the date of the subject offense.
[Adopted 12-31-2014 by L.L. No. 2-2014]
This article is intended to help ensure public safety when vehicles are obstructing public rights-of-way within the Village and to establish a rotating towing list for providers to ensure orderly services and to establish maximum fees and standards for members of such list.
The Village of Whitesboro hereby authorizes the Village Police Department to cause vehicles to be towed from the public right-of-way in the following circumstances:
Public emergency when a vehicle is impeding emergency services that require the public right-of-way to be unobstructed, such as firefighting, emergency medical services, snow storm, flooding or flood remediation.
Abandoned or inoperable vehicles; vehicle operated by a driver who is incapable of driving due to such causes as illness, injury, suspension, revocation, driving while impaired from drugs or alcohol or having no license and such vehicle is deemed to be a hazard to the public and no other appropriate driver has the consent of the owner of the vehicle to drive.
The Village Board is hereby authorized to establish a list of persons or businesses to be used on a rotating basis by the Village of Whitesboro Police Department whenever towing services are required pursuant to this article.
All towing services shall provide and maintain facilities for secure storage of towed vehicles.
Towing service shall be available for assignment on a twenty-four-hour per day/seven days per week basis.
The towing service must be able to arrive at the location in which its service is needed within 20 minutes from the time in which it was first called.
The towing service operator shall maintain and equip its towing vehicle(s) in accordance with the laws of the State of New York and such additional requirements as may be prescribed by the Village Board.
The towing service shall remove any glass or other debris/materials from the highway which originates from the vehicle being towed with no additional fee charged to the owner/operator or the Village of Whitesboro.
All towing service operators must have a certificate of insurance coverage that will consist of a minimum of $250,000 for bodily injury for each person, $500,000 for bodily injury per occurrence, and $50,000 for property damage for each occurrence.
All towing service operators will keep a logbook listing the date and time the vehicle was picked up; the location from where the vehicle was towed; the time it was released to the owner or owner's representative; the make, model, vehicle color, and the license plate number; the services provided and the fees charged. This logbook will be subject to inspection by any police officer or the Police Commissioner and will be delivered to the Village of Whitesboro within 24 hours of any request thereof.
The tow operator shall also provide extra services upon request to include winch outs, lock out service, and removal of off-road vehicles, such as ATVs, snowmobiles, or motorcycles, at reasonable costs to the owner/operator of any such vehicle.
Towing services will notify the Whitesboro Police Department, orally and in writing, of any towed vehicle left unclaimed for more than 48 hours after notification by the Police Department of the registered owner of said vehicle.
Towing services shall indemnify and hold the Village of Whitesboro harmless from any claim or liabilities which occur as a result of performing towing or wrecker services at the request of the Village of Whitesboro, including the reasonable cost of attorneys for the defense of any such claim. By applying for the privilege of being on the rotation list hereof, the towing service hereby agrees to the terms and conditions hereof.
Upon request for a rotation tow service, the service next on rotation is the only service authorized to respond. Other tow services, whether on the rotation list or not, cannot respond in the place of such tow service. In the event the tow service on the rotation cannot respond to the call, then the one next on the list shall be called to respond, and so forth, until a tow service does respond to the call.
Applications can be obtained from the Whitesboro Village Clerk. After completion, the application is to be submitted to the Village Clerk, containing all of the information required. The applications are valid for one calendar year, commencing on January 1 of each year. There shall be no more than five towing services participating on the towing rotation list at any one time with application preference given to towing services located within the corporate limits of the Village.
All tow services must reapply annually prior to December 1 to ensure that all interested tow services have the opportunity to participate in the rotation for the next calendar year.
There is a yearly application fee of $75 to be paid to the Village Clerk upon time of application to be paid upon by good funds.
In the event more than five towing services apply to be on the rotation, preference shall be given to towing services located within the limits of the Village. If more than five towing services apply from within the Village of Whitesboro, or if there are any slots available after all eligible Village towing services have filed applications, the remaining slots on the rotation list shall be selected on a lottery basis to be drawn at a public meeting of the Village Board of Trustees in the month of December. Such list shall be maintained for the next calendar year. In the event a provider is removed or surrenders its right to be on the list, the next provider on the lottery drawing will be placed on the towing rotation.
The Village Board is hereby given authority to promulgate such other rules or regulations, as it deems necessary, consistent with the intent of this article and to modify the application fee as the Board deems appropriate.
After removal of any vehicle as provided in this article, the vehicle will be stored in a suitable location. Towing and storage charges will be at the expense of the owner. Such person in charge of said vehicle may redeem same upon payment to the tow service of the amount of all expenses actually and necessarily incurred. In effecting such tow and storage, standard tow charge shall not exceed $65. If a flatbed tow is required, the tow charge shall not exceed $75. Storage charges shall not exceed $15 per day, and the first 12 hours of storage shall be at no charge. These fees may be modified by resolution of the Village Board as deemed appropriate by the Board from time to time.
Any person engaged in wrecker or tow services who violates § 268-9 shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine not exceeding $250 for the first offense and/or imprisonment for up to 15 days. The limit for the fine shall increase by $250 for each conviction of any defendant within five years of the date of the subject offense.
The Chief of Police shall notify the Village Board if any of the tow services on the rotation list materially violate any part of this article, including any and all requirements hereof, or violates the limitations placed on the charges allowed herein on one or more occasions. The Village Board, after notice and opportunity to be heard, may suspend or remove the towing service from the rotation list and add a towing service from the existing list of qualified tow service operators.
This article shall take effect December 31, 2014.