(a) Outside business and residence districts. When a police officer finds a vehicle in violation of any of the provisions of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3551, relating to stopping, standing and parking outside business and residence districts, the officer may move the vehicle, or cause the vehicle to be moved, or require the driver or other person in charge of the vehicle to move the vehicle, to a position off the roadway where the vehicle will not interfere unduly with the normal movement of traffic or constitute a safety hazard.
(b) Unattended vehicle obstructing traffic. A police officer may remove or cause to be removed to a place of safety any unattended vehicle illegally left standing upon any highway, bridge or causeway, or in any tunnel, in such a position or under such circumstances as to interfere unduly with the normal movement of traffic or constitute a safety hazard.
(c) Removal to garage or place of safety. A police officer may remove, or cause to be removed, to the place of business of the operator of a wrecker, to a nearby garage or to another place of safety, any vehicle found upon a highway under any of the following circumstances:
(1) A report has been made that the vehicle has been stolen or taken without the consent of its owner;
(2) The person in charge of the vehicle is physically unable to provide for the custody or removal of the vehicle;
(3) The person driving or in control of the vehicle is arrested for an alleged offense for which the officer is required by law to take the person arrested before an issuing authority without unnecessary delay;
(4) The vehicle is in violation of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3353, relating to prohibitions in specified places, except for overtime parking; or
(5) The vehicle has been abandoned. The officer shall comply with subsection (d) below and Chapter 73 of the Vehicle Code relating to abandoned vehicles and cargoes.
(d) Notice to owner prior to removal.
(1) Prior to removal of an abandoned vehicle bearing a registration plate, certificate of inspection or vehicle identification number plate, by which the last registered owner of the vehicle can be determined, the Police Department shall send a notice by certified mail to the last registered owner of the vehicle informing the owner that unless the vehicle is removed to a suitable location within seven days of the date notice is mailed, the vehicle will be removed under this section and held at a suitable facility where it may be reclaimed by the owner in accordance with 75 Pa.C.S. § 7306 relating to payment of costs upon reclaiming a vehicle. If the abandoned motor vehicle does not bear an identifiable registration plate, certificate of inspection or vehicle identification number plate, the notice may be secured to the vehicle.
(2) If the owner so requests, within the seven-day period, he or she shall be given an opportunity to explain to the police officer or the Police Department why he or she believes the vehicle should not be removed. If the police officer or the Department determines that the vehicle shall, nonetheless, be removed, the owner shall be given an additional 48 hours to remove the vehicle, to have it removed or to demand a hearing which shall conform to the requirements of 2 Pa.C.S. Ch. 5, Subch. B, relating to practice and procedure of local agencies. The police officer or the Department shall inform the owner of the right to a hearing by delivering to the owner a notice warning the owner that unless the vehicle is removed or a hearing is demanded, the owner shall be subject to the provisions of § 7306 of the Vehicle Code. If, as a result of the hearing, it is determined that the vehicle will be removed, the owner shall be given an additional 48 hours to remove the vehicle or have it removed. The hearing shall be before a civilian officer or employee of the municipality in which the vehicle is located.
(3) The provision for notice of this subsection (d) is applicable only if the vehicle is abandoned upon a highway and is not in violation of subsection (d)(2) above or §§ 3351(a) or 3353(a) and (b) of the Vehicle Code. Notice under this subsection (d) is in addition to any other notice requirements provided in the Vehicle Code.
(e) Notice to owners and lienholders after removal.
(1) Upon receipt of the notice issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 7305, any owner or lienholder may, within 30 days of receipt of the notice, request from the Police Department a copy of the abandoned vehicle information report and request a hearing. This hearing will be before the Township Solicitor. If as a result of the hearing, it is determined that the vehicle was not abandoned, the owner or lienholder may retrieve the vehicle within 48 hours without payment of any fees or penalties.
(Ord. 586, passed 9-19-1984; Ord. 812, passed 12-17-2003; Ord. 1005, passed 10-21-2020)