(A) Any abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle which has been ordered removed following the procedures set out in this chapter shall be removed to a storage garage or area by the tow truck operator or towing business contracting to perform services for the town. Whenever a vehicle is removed, the Town Manager or the Town Manager’s designee shall immediately notify in writing the last known registered owner of the vehicle and, in the case of a junked motor vehicle, the owner, lessee, or occupant of the real property upon which the vehicle was located prior to towing if the names and mailing addresses of the owner, lessee, or occupant can be ascertained in the exercise of reasonable diligence. The written notice shall include the following:
(1) A description of the vehicle;
(2) The place where the vehicle is stored;
(3) The violation with which the owner is charged, if any;
(4) The procedure the owner must follow to have the vehicle returned to him or her; and
(5) The procedure the owner must follow to request a probable cause hearing on the towing.
(B) If the vehicle has a North Carolina registration plate or registration, notice shall be given to the owner within 24 hours; if the vehicle is not registered in the state, notice shall be given to the owner within 72 hours. This notice shall, if feasible, be given by telephone. Whether or not the owner is reached by telephone, notice shall be mailed to his or her last known address unless he or she or his or her agent waives this notice in writing. In the case of vehicles towed from private property, notice shall be given in like manner and in like time to the owner, lessee, or occupant of the real property upon which the vehicle was located prior to towing if the names and mailing addresses of the owner, lessee, or occupant can be ascertained in the exercise of reasonable diligence.
(C) Whenever a vehicle with neither a valid registration plate nor registration is towed hereunder, the Town Manager or the Town Manager’s designee shall make reasonable efforts, including checking the vehicle identification number, to determine the last known registered owner of the vehicle and to notify him or her of the information listed in division (A) above. Unless the owner has otherwise been given notice, it is presumed that the authorizing person has not made reasonable efforts, as required under this division (C), unless notice that the vehicle would be towed was posted on the windshield or some other conspicuous place at least seven days before the towing actually occurred; except, no pre-towing notice need be given if the vehicle impeded the flow of traffic or otherwise jeopardized the public welfare so that immediate towing was necessary.
(Prior Code, § 1308)