(a) Requirement. Before towing a motor vehicle from private property without the consent of the vehicle owner, the property owner and the towing company must comply with all applicable provisions of this section.
(b) Signs.
(1) A property owner must post a sign, notifying the public of parking restrictions, at least 24 hours before towing or ordering the towing of an unauthorized vehicle.
(2) The property owner must post a sufficient number of signs so that:
(A) at least one sign is clearly readable from each parking area and each vehicle entrance to the property at all times; or
(B) in a parking lot with more than 45 parking spaces, at least one sign must be posted in a conspicuous place for each 45 parking spaces and each sign can be read from all affected spaces.
(3) Each sign must:
(A) be at least 24 inches high by 30 inches wide;
(B) summarize all parking restrictions on the property enforced by towing unauthorized vehicles, including time and area restrictions;
(C) state that a vehicle parked in violation of the restrictions may be towed at the vehicle owner’s expense;
(D) state that County and State law require that towed vehicles be available for redemption 24 hours per day, seven days per week;
(E) state the maximum amount that the owner of the vehicle may be charged for the towing or removal of an unauthorized vehicle;
(F) list the name and telephone number of each towing company hired to tow unauthorized vehicles from the property, and the location to which the vehicle will be towed;
(G) be sized and located so that it is able to be read by motorists in daylight and at night; and
(H) be maintained in a legible and unobstructed condition.
(4) An owner of residential property, including a condominium, cooperative or homeowners’ association, may also have an unauthorized vehicle towed from that property by posting the signs required in subsection (b)(2) only at the entrances to that property and:
(A) a notice specifying a violation of an applicable rule or covenant is securely attached to the vehicle in a conspicuous place;
(B) the date and time the notice was attached is written on it;
(C) the notice informs the vehicle owner that:
(i) the violation must be corrected or the vehicle may be towed at the vehicle owner’s expense 48 hours after the notice is attached; and
(ii) an unauthorized vehicle that has received a notice of the same violation under this Section on the same property within the previous 180 days may be towed without any further notice; and
(D) the vehicle is not towed until at least 48 hours after the notice is attached unless the unauthorized vehicle received a notice of the same violation under this Section on the same property within the previous 180 days.
(5) An owner of a commercial parking lot may have an unauthorized vehicle towed from that property by posting the signs required in subsection (b)(2) only at the entrances to that property and:
(A) a notice specifying a violation of an applicable rule or covenant is securely attached to the vehicle in a conspicuous place;
(B) the date and time the notice was attached is written on it;
(C) the notice informs the vehicle owner that:
(i) the violation must be corrected or the vehicle may be towed at the vehicle owner’s expense 24 hours after the notice is attached; and
(ii) an unauthorized vehicle that has received a notice of the same violation under this Section on the same property within the previous 180 days may be towed without any further notice; and
(D) the vehicle is not towed until at least 24 hours after the notice is attached unless the unauthorized vehicle received a notice of the same violation under this Section on the same property within the previous 180 days.
(c) Tow procedures.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (c)(8), a towing company must not tow a motor vehicle from private property unless the property owner has, directly or through an agent, expressly authorized the towing of the particular vehicle.
(2) The property owner must authorize the towing of a vehicle in writing via tow authorization form in person, or via fax, email, or other electronic means approved by the Director of the Office of Consumer Protection.
(3) The Office may issue a model tow authorization form.
(4) Any property owner or any person acting as an agent of a property owner, must not:
(A) falsely state that a property owner authorized the towing of a particular vehicle; or
(B) record any false information about the towing of a particular vehicle.
(5) A towing company must not charge a vehicle owner any fee for the services of another agent of the property owner.
(6) A person must not act as a property owner’s agent for the purpose of ordering the towing of an unauthorized vehicle, unless the owner or property manager has expressly authorized in writing the person to so act.
(7) An agent of a property owner, for the purpose of ordering the towing of an unauthorized vehicle, must not:
(A) be employed by, or have any member of his or her immediate family employed by, any towing company; or
(B) have any financial interest in any towing company or the towing of any motor vehicle.
This provision does not apply if the towing company is the record owner of property from which a motor vehicle is towed.
(8) An unauthorized vehicle may be towed from private property without the express authorization of the property owner or the owner’s agent only:
(A) between 2:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.; or
(B) if the vehicle is blocking a clearly marked fire lane or access to another vehicle, the property or a building on the property.
(9) Before towing or authorizing the towing of an unauthorized vehicle from private property under this Section, a person must obtain photographic evidence of the violation or event that precipitated the towing of the vehicle. The photograph must be available for inspection by any interested party for at least one year, and a copy of the photograph must be provided to the vehicle owner along with the receipt required under Section 30C-9.
(d) (1) A property owner may move a vehicle within a parking lot without prior notice to the vehicle owner, but must not remove the vehicle from the lot, when moving the vehicle is necessary to:
(A) remove large quantities of snow or debris;
(B) repair the parking lot; or
(C) respond to a threat to a person’s safety or health.
(2) In moving a vehicle within a parking lot, a property owner must:
(A) take reasonable care not to damage the vehicle;
(B) pay any cost of moving the vehicle; and
(C) inform the vehicle owner where the vehicle was relocated or return the vehicle to its original location as soon as possible.
(e) A vehicle must not be towed from private property solely for a violation of failure to display a valid current registration under Section 13-411 of the Transportation Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland until 72 hours after a notice of violation is placed on the vehicle.
(f) Except between 2:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., a towing company must not monitor, patrol, or otherwise surveil commercial property for the purposes of identifying unauthorized parked vehicles for towing and removal. (1988 L.M.C., ch. 29, § 2; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 1997 L.M.C., ch. 21, §1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1; 2015 L.M.C., ch. 40, § 1; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 7, § 1.)
Editor’s note—2005 L.M.C., ch. 26, §§ 2 and 3, state:
Sec. 2. Regulations. A regulation which implements a function transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection by this Act continues in effect until otherwise amended or repealed, but any reference to any predecessor department or office must be treated as referring to the Office of Consumer Protection.
Sec. 3. Transition. This act does not invalidate or affect any action taken by the Department of Housing and Community Affairs before this Act took effect. Any responsibility or right granted by law, regulation, contract, or other document, and which is associated with a function transferred by this Act from the Department of Housing and Community Affairs, is transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection.