(A) When a police officer investigating an accident determines that any vehicle which has been involved in a collision or accident upon a public street is unable to proceed safely under its own power or when the owner thereof is physically unable to drive such vehicle such officer shall:
(1) Request the owner to designate on the Wrecker Selection Form the towing or wrecker company the owner desires to remove the vehicle. Such designation by the owner shall be indicated on said form by writing in the blank space provided, the name of the company selected, and the form when completed shall be signed by the owner. The police officer shall give a copy of the authorization thus made on the form to the owner, and the tow truck or wrecker driver, and shall retain for record the original thereof. Upon leaving duty on the same day, the police officer shall place such original in a well-bound book in the Police Department provided for that purpose.
(2) When the owner has designated the towing or wrecker company desired, the police officer shall communicate that fact immediately to the Police Department headquarters, and the officer receiving such information or other appropriate dispatcher shall then cause the designated towing or wrecker company to be called and directed to send to the scene of the collision a wrecker capable of removing the wrecked vehicle.
(3) If the designated towing or wrecker company does not have available a wrecker of the type authorized by state and federal law to move the vehicle or the Police Department is unable to contact the requested company, the owner will be requested to make another designation.
(4) In the event that the owner is unable or unwilling to designate another towing or wrecker company, the Police Department is unable to contact the requested company, or the company does not respond in a timely manner, and it is necessary to remove the vehicle for public safety reasons, or to protect such vehicle in the event the owner is incapacitated, or the owner of the vehicle so requests, the next permit holder in line on the Wrecker Rotation List will be called to tow the vehicle to the location designated by the owner; provided that if in such event the owner does not specify a designation to which the vehicle will be removed, the vehicle may be removed to any approved storage site.
(B) In the event the owner of a vehicle involved in an accident or collision is physically unable to designate the towing or wrecker company desired, or refuses to designate a towing or wrecker company, the police officer shall call the next permit holder in line on the Wrecker Rotation List. Request the permit holder to tow the disabled vehicle and remove the same from the city streets.
(C) In the event that a vehicle is operated by a person a police officer arrests for an alleged offense and the officer is required by law to take the person into custody, the officer may proceed under division (B) of this section.
(D) On each succeeding communication of the inability or refusal of an owner to designate a towing or wrecker company, the next permit holder on the list shall be called, and proper rotation of each such call shall be made on the Wrecker Rotation List.
(E) Failure of any permit holder selected from the Wrecker Rotation List to deliver a licensed wrecker from the permit holder's wrecker company of the type required to the scene within 30 minutes of notification without justification acceptable to the police officer shall cause the permit holder to forfeit that call. If selection of the entity occurred under division(A)(4), then the police officer may proceed as it would under division (B) of this section, so notifying the requesting police officer.
(Ord. O-2006-005, passed 4-25-06)