(a) A licensee shall procure and keep in full force and effect automobile liability insurance written by an insurance company that:
(1) is approved, licensed, or authorized by the State of Texas;
(2) is acceptable to the city; and
(3) does not violate the ownership/ operational control prohibition described in Subsection (j) of this section.
(b) The insurance must be issued in the standard form approved by the Texas Department of Insurance, and all provisions of the policy must be acceptable to the city. The insured provisions of the policy must name the city and its officers and employees as additional insureds. The coverage provisions must provide coverage for any loss or damage that may arise to any person or property by reason of the operation of an emergency wrecker service by the licensee, including but not limited to damage to a towed vehicle caused directly or indirectly by improper hookup or improper towing.
(c) The automobile liability insurance must provide combined single limits of liability for bodily injury and property damage of not less than $500,000 for each occurrence, or the equivalent, for each wrecker used by the licensee. Aggregate limits of liability are prohibited.
(d) The cargo/on hook insurance for vehicles while being loaded, unloaded, or transported must provide limits of liability of not less than $25,000 for each light duty wrecker or tilt bed/roll back carrier and $50,000 for each medium duty wrecker, heavy duty wrecker, or lowboy unit.
(e) If a vehicle is removed from service, the licensee shall maintain the insurance coverage required by this section for the vehicle until the director receives satisfactory proof that all evidence of operation as an emergency wrecker has been removed from the vehicle.
(f) Insurance required under this section must include:
(1) a cancellation provision in which the insurance company is required to notify the director in writing not fewer than 30 days before canceling, failing to renew, or making a material change to the insurance policy;
(2) a provision to cover all vehicles, whether owned or not owned by the licensee, that are operated under the license; and
(3) a provision requiring the insurance company to pay every claim on a first-dollar basis.
(g) Insurance required by this section may be obtained from an assigned risk pool if all of the policies and coverages are managed by one agent, and one certificate of insurance is issued to the city.
(h) A license will not be granted or renewed unless the applicant or licensee furnishes the director with such proof of insurance as the director considers necessary to determine whether the applicant or licensee is adequately insured under this section.
(i) If the insurance of a licensee lapses or is canceled and new insurance is not obtained, the director shall suspend the license until the licensee provides evidence that insurance coverage required by this section has been obtained. A person shall not operate an emergency wrecker service while a license is suspended under this section whether or not the action is appealed. A $100 fee must be paid before a license suspended under this section will be reinstated.
(j) No person with any direct or indirect ownership interest in the licensee’s emergency wrecker service may have any operational control, direct or indirect, in any insurance company that provides insurance required by this section to the emergency wrecker service. For purposes of this subsection, “operational control” means holding any management position with the insurance company (including, but not limited to, the chief executive officer, the president, any vice-president, or any person in a decision-making position with respect to insurance claims) or having the right to control the actions or decisions of any person in such a management position in the insurance company. (Ord. Nos. 21175; 21238; 24661; 25215; 27487)