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No person licensed to engage in the business of towing, through any employee or agent, may obtain at the scene of an accident the signature of any person authorizing the repair of a vehicle disabled in the accident or at a hospital, if such person requires hospitalization, until at least twenty-four hours after the accident. Any such written authorization so obtained shall be voidable at the option of the owner or of the person in charge of the vehicle.
(a) An "Authorization to Repair" shall not be signed at the scene of an accident. It can be signed only at:
(1) The place to which the vehicle is towed; or
(2) The home of or place designated by the person in charge of a disabled vehicle; or
(3) The hospital, if such person requires hospitalization. In such case, the authorization shall not be presented to the injured party for signature at the hospital until at least twenty-four hours after the accident.
(b) Any "Authorization to Repair" which is not properly completed shall be voidable at the option of the owner or the person in charge of a disabled vehicle. It shall be the responsibility of the tow truck operator to make certain that the person signing the "Authorization to Repair" writes in his or her own handwriting the location where the form is signed. No blank "Authorization to Repair" forms shall be carried on a tow truck or on the person of a tow truck operator while on a tow truck.
(c) The authorization to repair form shall require the following information:
(1) The tow truck company's name, address and business telephone number.
(2) The name, signature, address, and telephone number of the person in charge of the disabled vehicle.
(3) The make, type and year of manufacture of the disabled vehicle.
(4) The New York State Department of Motor Vehicle registration number of the disabled vehicle.
(5) The date and time the authorization is signed.
(6) The operator's name and license number.
(7) A notice to the owner or person in charge of the damaged vehicle to read as follows:
NOTICE: TO OWNER OR PERSON IN CHARGE OF DAMAGED VEHICLES: PLEASE READ ALL PRINTED MATTER BEFORE SIGNING. ALL COMPLAINTS AS TO QUALITY OF REPAIRS MUST BE MADE TO THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES. NO TOWING COMPANY OR INSURANCE COMPANY MAY REQUIRE THAT REPAIRS BE MADE TO A MOTOR VEHICLE IN A PARTICULAR PLACE OR REPAIR SHOP. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO HAVE YOUR MOTOR VEHICLE REPAIRED IN THE SHOP OF YOUR CHOICE.
(8) A statement of the following:
You cannot be required to sign this "AUTHORIZATION TO REPAIR" at the scene of an accident. In any case, where the tow truck operator knows that the person in charge of a vehicle is injured and is to be removed to a hospital, it shall be unlawful to enter into an agreement authorizing repairs with such injured person, until the expiration of a period of at least twenty-four hours from the time of the accident, unless the injured person is not admitted to or has been discharged from the hospital before the expiration of such period. Before signing your name to the bottom of this form, write in your own handwriting in the space provided below your name and the address of the premises at which this form is signed.
(9) Statement to appear on form along with a space provided for signature: I AUTHORIZE THE REPAIR OF THE VEHICLE INDICATED ABOVE.
(10) Statement to appear on form: ALL OF THE ABOVE ENTRIES MUST BE MADE AT THE TIME THE AUTHORIZATION TO REPAIR IS SIGNED.
No person shall cause or permit the removal of a disabled vehicle from an arterial highway, parkway, and expressway, roadway tunnel, and bridge, except by a licensed tow truck under authority issued by the Commissioner of the Department of Transportation as specified in the Traffic Regulations, § 2-256(j). Those who are issued arterial tow authority may charge the additional service fees as specified in § 2-256(j)(2) of the Traffic Regulations.
Note: All other rules within these regulations, in addition to the above, are applicable to permittees operating on arterial highways under permit from the Department of Transportation.
(a) Applicants must be licensed to engage in the business of towing by the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs. Applicants who apply to be in the DARP program must be licensed to engage in the business of towing for a period of not less than one year immediately prior to the date of their application. The applicant's business premises, which include the applicant's storage facilities and auxiliary storage facilities, must be located within the geographic boundaries of New York City. In addition, all of the tow truck operators employed by the licensee must be licensed as such by the Department and comply with all applicable laws and rules.
(b) Any vehicle with a maximum gross vehicle weight of less than fifteen thousand pounds which has been involved in a vehicular accident and which cannot be safely driven under its own power must be removed from the accident scene by the authorized DARP tower to the premises address on the responding company's license or to a location designated by a person in charge of such vehicle; provided, however, that such location is within the boundaries of the City of New York and placement of such vehicle is not in violation of any other law. A police officer may make the determination whether the vehicle may be safely driven under its own power. No vehicle removed from the accident scene to the DARP tower's premises address shall be left by a licensee on the street in front of, or adjacent to, the licensee's business premises (which include the licensee's storage facilities and auxiliary storage facilities).
(c) Applicants who apply to be in the DARP program must make application to participate only in the zone in which their business premises is located. Such premises shall be under the exclusive control of the applicant, shall not be used by any other towing company and shall consist of a location that is open to the public, where towing company personnel are employed, calls requesting towing service are received and towers are dispatched, and where all records required by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code are maintained. An applicant's approval to participate in DARP is valid only for such applicant's business premises as identified in its application that has been inspected and has qualified for participation in DARP. Such approval to participate in DARP is revoked when the business premises of such applicant is moved from the location that was identified in the application unless such move has been approved as provided in subdivision (aaa) of this section.
(d) Applications for the DARP program will be accepted by the Department on an ongoing basis. Upon approval, new participants will initially be placed at the bottom of the rotation list for the zone for which they have been accepted.
(e) In the event that a sufficient number of qualified, licensed companies do not make application for participation in a particular zone, the Commissioner may modify the proposed zones and assign qualified companies to such zones.
(f) Applicants for DARP must be willing and able to provide towing services, in the zone(s) for which they have applied to participate, seven days a week on a twenty-four hour a day basis.
(g) Applicants for DARP must immediately respond to a rotation call. To be eligible to participate in a particular zone, an applicant must be able to provide a tow truck at the disabled vehicle's location within thirty minutes after notification by the tow truck notification operator. If no DARP participant is available in the zone where the disabled vehicle is located the tow truck notification operator may call a DARP participant in a geographically adjacent zone.
(h) [Reserved.]
(i) [Reserved.]
(j) [Reserved.]
(k) Applicants must have a minimum of two (2) tow trucks for each zone for which they apply to participate, at least one of which must be a flat-bed tow truck suitable for removing accident vehicles.
(l) Applicants must own or possess and have at their immediate disposal equipment to tow vehicles with damaged or missing wheels.
(m) Applicants must own, lease, or sublease business premises, which include either indoor, or lighted and fenced outdoor, storage facilities. The storage facilities must have a locked gate and be suitable for the storage of vehicles. The minimum footage requirements for storage of DARP vehicles is 1,200 square feet per licensed tow truck over and above any storage requirements for the Rotation Tow Program. Applicants who apply to be in the DARP program on or after December 6, 1994 must demonstrate that the towing company owns, leases or subleases its business premises by providing the Department with a deed if the applicant owns such premises or by providing the Department with the actual lease or sublease agreement if the applicant leases or subleases such premises. Common or shared business premises, including storage facilities and auxiliary storage facilities, with another towing company is not permitted.
(n) Applicants must separate the storage facilities that they share with another company other than a towing company by a physical separation, such as a fence. Upon approval by the Department, applicants may use auxiliary storage facilities to satisfy the minimum footage requirements of subdivision (m) of this section. For those applicants who apply to be in the DARP program on or after December 6, 1994, any such auxiliary storage facilities shall be within 2,640 feet of the applicant's premises address. At the request of the owner of the disabled vehicle, his or her agent or an authorized insurance company representative, a vehicle being stored at the applicant's auxiliary storage facilities shall be immediately produced at the applicant's premises address and no fee other than fee authorized by 6 RCNY § 2-368 may be imposed for such production of such vehicle at the applicant's premises address.
(o) Participants shall take reasonable care to prevent damage to or loss of a customer's vehicle or personal property contained therein.
(p) Participants shall not be required to tow motor vehicles with a maximum gross vehicle weight of at least fifteen thousand pounds.
(q) Participants may withdraw from the DARP program thirty days after they have notified the Department, in writing, by regular mail, of their intention to end their participation.
(r) Participants shall pay a biennial fee of $300.
(s) [Reserved.]
(t) Participants must abide by all lawful instructions, directions and requests of the police official in charge of the accident.
(u) Participants must record in a bound record book, or in an electronic format as prescribed in subparagraphs ii or iii of paragraph 3 of subdivision b of 6 RCNY § 2-378, all calls for service, all occasions when towing service was rendered and the reason for refusal of any call to which they were unable to respond. If the participant elects to use a bound record book, the inside cover of the book kept for this purpose shall contain the DARP towing company's business name, premises address, towing zone number(s) and the dates the book covers. Each double page shall be consecutively numbered and must contain the following information:
Date and time Police Department tow truck notification
operator call was received
Name of person who accepted call
Disposition: Accepted/refused
Reason for refusal
Location vehicle towed from
Time tow was completed
Location vehicle towed to
Tow fees/Storage fees
Total charges
Fees paid by credit card: Y/N
Redemption date
Vehicle disposition
(v) Participants must be open for redemption of vehicles towed in the DARP program during the hours of 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. In addition, they must be opened for redemption from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on either Saturday or Sunday, as such participant has informed the Department in writing, provided, however, that if such participant fails to so notify the Department, the participant shall be deemed to have elected to be open for redemption from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. In all instances, participants shall make vehicles immediately available for redemption to the owner of the disabled vehicle, his or her agent, or an authorized insurance company representative. The participant may be closed for redemption on New York City public holidays.
(w) No participant shall release a vehicle that has been involved in a vehicular accident and which cannot be safely driven under its own power to another towing company unless that towing company is licensed or otherwise exempt from the licensing provisions of Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code, or that towing company is based outside of New York City and thereby is not required to be licensed pursuant to such provisions of the New York City Administrative Code.
(x) Participants shall not release vehicles towed in the DARP program unless the person redeeming the vehicle presents sufficient proof that he or she is the owner of the vehicle or is the owner's agent. Sufficient proof of ownership includes the vehicle's New York State Department of Motor Vehicles' registration receipt (or equivalent out-of-state vehicle registration) or certificate of title. If the vehicle is being redeemed by an insurance company as agent for the owner, the insurance company shall present a notarized "receipt for release form" on the insurance company's letterhead signed by a representative of the insurance company. Upon presentation of sufficient proof of ownership and payment of the authorized charges, the disabled vehicle shall be immediately released. Payment of the authorized charges may be made in legal tender, by a major credit card for which a decal is required to be affixed to a tow truck as provided in 6 RCNY § 2-368.1, by a first party insurance check or in any other form acceptable to the licensee. At any time when a participant is required to be open for redemption pursuant to subdivision (v) of this section, any vehicle owner shall be permitted to inspect his or her vehicle and remove items of personal property contained therein if it can be dismantled and removed from the vehicle without the use of any tool, and any agent shall be permitted to inspect such vehicle, whether or not the payment for towing and storage has been made. No charge shall be assessed to the vehicle owner or the vehicle owner's agent for such inspection. The participant shall be given a receipt for any property removed from a vehicle while it is in the custody of the participant.
(y) After due notice and opportunity to be heard, the Commissioner may disqualify any towing company participating in the DARP program from continued participation in such program for violation of any of the provisions of § 20-518 of the New York City Administrative Code or any rule promulgated thereunder or upon the occurrence of any one or more of the conditions set forth in Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code which constitute grounds for suspension or revocation of any license issued under such subchapter. The Commissioner, for good cause, may, prior to giving notice and an opportunity to be heard, temporarily suspend a towing company from participation in the DARP program for up to ten days. Notice of such suspension shall be served on the towing company. The Commissioner shall provide the towing company with the opportunity for a hearing within ten days after the notification of suspension, after which the Commissioner shall forthwith make a determination as to whether such suspension should continue and the length of such suspension, and in addition may impose any penalty or sanction authorized by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code.
(z) The DARP tower must affirmatively disclose that a customer has the right to have his or her vehicle repaired at the facility of the DARP tower or at any other facility of the customer's choice. Such disclosure shall include, but not be limited to, the posting of a sign in a conspicuous place in the repair shop stating that: NO TOWING COMPANY OR INSURANCE COMPANY MAY REQUIRE THAT REPAIRS BE MADE TO A MOTOR VEHICLE IN A PARTICULAR PLACE OR REPAIR SHOP. YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO HAVE YOUR MOTOR VEHICLE REPAIRED IN THE SHOP OF YOUR CHOICE.
(aa) Unless otherwise provided by law or by rule, the term "applicant" shall include (1) persons who are applying to participate in the DARP; and (2) DARP participants who are currently applying for renewal of their license to engage in the business of towing.
(bb) A participant who is to relocate his or her business premises from the location which has been approved by the Department for participation in DARP shall remain in such program only if:
(1) Such participant first notifies the Department in writing of the address of its new business premises and the effective date of such relocation. Such written notification shall be made no later than 15 days before the effective date of such relocation;
(2) The Department, upon receiving timely relocation notification, determines that the new location qualifies the participant to continue in the DARP and furnishes such participant a contingent approval to relocate its premises subject to such conditions as are specified therein; and
(3) The participant provides a sworn statement and such other proof as the Department may require that such participant has fully and completely complied with each condition specified in such contingent approval that relates to DARP requirements that can be fulfilled only after such business premises are relocated, such as, but not limited to, the required lettering on tow trucks, the place where the DARP log book is to be kept, and the place where calls to the business are answered. Failure to provide such a sworn statement, and such other proof as the Department requires, not later than 15 days after the effective date of such relocation shall void such contingent approval to relocate, and the participant shall be immediately removed from the DARP.
(a) Applicants must be licensed to engage in the business of towing by the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs. Applicants who apply to be in the ROTOW program on or after March 1, 1993 must be licensed to engage in the business of towing for a period of not less than one year immediately prior to the date of their application. In addition, all tow truck operators employed by the licensee must be licensed as such by the Department and comply with all applicable laws and rules.
(b) Applicants can only make application to participate in one primary zone and one geographic adjacent zone. The applicant's business premises must be located within the primary zone. Such premises shall be under the exclusive control of the applicant, shall not be used by any other towing company and shall consist of a location that is open to the public, where towing company personnel are employed, calls requesting towing service are received and towers are dispatched, and where all records required by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code are maintained.
(c) Applications for the ROTOW program will be accepted by the Department on an ongoing basis. Upon approval, new participants will initially be placed at the bottom of the rotation list for the zone for which they have been accepted.
(d) In the event that a sufficient number of qualified, licensed companies do not make application for participation in a particular zone, the Commissioner may modify the proposed zones and assign qualified companies to such zones.
(e) Applicants for ROTOW must be willing and able to provide towing services, in the primary and adjacent zone for which they have applied to participate, minimally on a five-day, twenty-four-hour a day basis. Applicants who will be available to respond to ROTOW calls for fewer than seven days a week shall notify the Department in writing and shall specify in such written notification which days of the week they shall be available. Furthermore, any change in the days of availability shall be submitted to the Department in writing at least thirty days prior to the effective date thereof. If no written notification is received regarding availability for fewer than seven days per week, applicants shall be deemed to have elected to accept ROTOW calls seven days a week.
(f) Applicants for ROTOW must immediately respond to a rotation call they accept. To be eligible to participate in a particular zone, an applicant must be able to provide a tow truck at the vehicle's location within thirty minutes after notification by the Police Department. If no ROTOW participant is available in the zone where the vehicle is located, the Police Department may call a ROTOW participant in the adjacent zone.
(g) Applicants must have a minimum of two (2) tow trucks for the zone for which they have applied to participate.
(h) Applicants must own or possess and have at their immediate disposal equipment to tow vehicles with damaged or missing wheels.
(i) Applicants must own, lease or sublease premises, which provide either indoor, or lighted and fenced outdoor, storage facilities. The storage facilities must have a locked gate and be suitable for the storage of vehicles. Applicants who apply to be in the ROTOW program on or after December 6, 1994 must demonstrate that the towing company owns, leases or subleases its business premises by providing the Department with a deed if the applicant owns such premises or by providing the Department with the actual lease or sublease agreement if the applicant leases or subleases such premises. The minimum footage requirements for storage of ROTOW vehicles is 1,600 square feet over and above any storage requirements for the Directed Accident Response Program. All vehicles towed pursuant to ROTOW must, at all times, be secured at the premises address of the responding company, or at its auxiliary storage facilities if such facilities have been approved by the Commissioner for storage of DARP vehicles pursuant to 6 RCNY § 2-371(n). At the request of the owner of a disabled vehicle, his or her agent or an authorized insurance company representative, a vehicle being stored at the applicant's auxiliary storage facilities shall be immediately produced at the applicant's premises address and no fee other than a fee authorized by 6 RCNY § 2-368 may be imposed for such production of such vehicle at the applicants premises address. Common or shared business premises with another towing company, including storage facilities and auxiliary storage facilities they share with another company other than a towing company by a physical separation, such as a fence. No participant shall release a vehicle to another towing company unless that towing company is licensed or otherwise exempt from the licensing provisions of Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code, or that towing company is based outside of New York City and thereby is not required to be licensed pursuant to such provisions of the New York City Administrative Code.
(j) Participants may withdraw from the ROTOW program thirty days after they have notified the Department, in writing, by regular mail, of their intention to end their participation.
(k) [Reserved.]
(l) Any participant who has failed to respond within 30 minutes to a call on three or more occasions within any 180 consecutive days may be suspended and/or removed from participation in the ROTOW program. Repeated refusal to accept rotational calls will also be a basis for suspension and/or removal from participation in the ROTOW program.
(m) Participants must abide by the Police Department's written orders, which establish the operating procedures for this program.
(n) Participants must abide by all lawful instructions, directions and requests of the police official in charge of the scene, incident, or location to which it or its representatives respond.
(o) Participants must record in a bound record book, or in an electronic format as prescribed in subparagraphs ii or iii of paragraph 3 of subdivision c of 6 RCNY § 2-378, all calls for service, all occasions when towing service was rendered and the reason for refusal of any call to which they were unable to respond. If the participant elects to use a bound record book, the inside cover of the book kept for this purpose shall contain the ROTOW towing company's business name, premises address, towing zone number(s) and the dates the book covers. Each double page shall be consecutively numbered and must contain the following information:
Date and time Police Department call was received
Caller: rank, name
Precinct voucher number
Precinct
Name of person who accepted call
Disposition: Accepted/refused
Reason for refusal
Location vehicle towed from
Time tow was completed
Storage location vehicle towed to
Tow fees/Storage fees
Total charges Fees paid by credit card: Y/N
Redemption date Vehicle disposition
(p) Participants must be open for redemption of vehicles towed in the ROTOW program during the hours of 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. In addition, they must be open for redemption from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on either Saturday or Sunday, as such participant has informed the Department in writing. In all instances, participants shall make vehicles immediately available for redemption to the owner of the disabled vehicle, his or her agent, or an authorized insurance company representative. The participant may be closed for redemption on New York City public holidays.
(q) Participants shall not release vehicles towed in the ROTOW program unless the person redeeming the vehicle presents sufficient proof that he or she is the owner of the vehicle or is the owner's agent. Sufficient proof of ownership includes the vehicle's New York State Department of Motor Vehicles registration receipt (or equivalent out-of-state registration) or certificate of title. If the vehicle is being redeemed by an insurance company as agent for the owner, the insurance company shall present a notarized "receipt for release form" on the insurance company's letterhead signed by a representative of the insurance company. Upon presentation of sufficient proof of ownership and payment of the authorized charges, the disabled vehicle must be immediately released. Payment of authorized charges may be made in legal tender, by a credit card in accordance with generally accepted business practices, by a first party insurance check or in any other form acceptable to the licensee. At any time when a participant is required to be open for redemption pursuant to subdivision (p) of this section, any vehicle owner or agent shall be permitted to inspect his or her vehicle and remove items of personal property contained therein whether or not the payment for towing and storage has been made. No charge shall be assessed to the vehicle owner or the vehicle owner's agent for such inspection. The participant shall be given a receipt for any property removed from a vehicle while it is in the custody of the participant.
(r) Participants who transfer an unclaimed vehicle into the custody of the Police Department Property Clerk shall be entitled to charge the Police Department amounts not in excess of those listed in § 20-519(c) of the Administrative Code of the City of New York.
(s) During the period commencing on the eighth day after the vehicle is removed to such storage facilities and ending on the thirtieth day after such removal, vehicles that have not been claimed must be transferred by the ROTOW participants into the custody of the Police Department Property Clerk. A ROTOW participant may continue to store at such ROTOW participant's storage facilities a vehicle that has been claimed by an owner or other person and shall be entitled to charge for such continued storage and storage rates ROTOW participants are entitled to charge owners or other persons claiming such vehicles pursuant to § 20-519(c)(1) of the New York City Administrative Code where such owner or such other person has claimed such vehicle before the end of the thirtieth day after such vehicle was towed and has entered into an agreement with such ROTOW participant for continued storage of such vehicle. An agreement for continued storage of a vehicle by a ROTOW participant may include provision for storage of such vehicle beyond the end of the thirtieth day after such vehicle was towed by such ROTOW participant.
(t) The following schedule of rates shall apply for vehicles towed under the Rotation Towing Program:
(1) Rates paid to towing company by owners or other persons claiming a vehicle:
(i) $125.00 flat rate towing fee for the towing of a vehicle registered at a weight of ten thousand pounds or less; $140.00 for the towing of a vehicle registered at a weight of more than ten thousand pounds.
(ii) $25.00 per/day storage for first three days.
(iii) $27.00 storage thereafter up to the maximum of thirty days.
(2) An additional charge of $50.00 may be charged for unusual recoveries requiring two tow trucks. Written authorization of the investigating police officer is required in the "Remarks" section of the invoice to substantiate the need for a second tow truck in unusual recovery circumstances.
(3) The special rate for this program shall be prominently posted within the participant's premises on a sign no less than 14 inches by 20 inches in size.
(4) Rates paid to towing company by the Police Department:
(i) $60 flat rate transfer fee for the unclaimed vehicles towed to the property clerk's facilities, plus tolls, when applicable.
(ii) $5.00 per/day storage for the first three days.
(iii) $8.00 per/day storage thereafter up to the maximum ten days.
(u) After due notice and opportunity to be heard, the Commissioner may disqualify any towing company participating in the ROTOW program from continued participation in such program for violation of any of the provisions of § 20-519 of the New York City Administrative Code or any rule promulgated thereunder or upon the occurrence of any one or more of the conditions set forth in Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code which constitute grounds for suspension or revocation of any license issued under such subchapter; provided, however, that the Commissioner, for good cause, may, prior to giving notice and an opportunity to be heard, temporarily suspend a towing company from participation in the ROTOW program for up to ten days. Notice of such suspension shall be served on the towing company. The Commissioner shall provide the towing company with the opportunity for a hearing within ten days after the notification of suspension, after which the Commissioner shall forthwith make a determination as to whether such suspension should continue and the length of such suspension, and in addition may impose any penalty or sanction authorized by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code.
(v) Participants shall take reasonable care to prevent damage to or loss of a customer's vehicle or personal property continued therein.
(w) Unless otherwise provided by law or by rule, the term "applicant" shall include (1) persons who are applying to participate in the ROTOW program; and (2) ROTOW participants who are currently applying for renewal of their license to engage in the towing business.
(x) A participant who is to relocate his or her business premises from the location which has been approved by the Department for participation in the ROTOW program shall remain in the ROTOW program only if:
(1) Such participant first notifies the Department in writing of the address of its new business premises and of the effective date of such relocation. Such written notification shall be made not less than 15 days before the effective date of such relocation;
(2) The Department, upon receiving timely relocation notification, determines that the new location qualifies the participant to continue in the ROTOW program and furnishes such participant a contingent approval to relocate its premises subject to such conditions as are specified therein; and
(3) The participant provides a sworn statement and such other proof as the Department may require that such participant has fully and completely complied with each condition specified in such contingent approval that relates to ROTOW program requirements that can be fulfilled only after such business premises are relocated, such as, but not limited to, the required lettering on tow trucks, the place where the ROTOW log book is to be kept, and the place where calls to the business are answered. Failure to provide such a sworn statement, and such other proof as the Department requires, not later than 15 days after the effective date of such relocation shall void such contingent approval to relocate, and the participant shall be immediately removed from the ROTOW program.
(a) Applicants must be licensed to engage in the business of towing by the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs. Applicants who apply to be in the Evidence Vehicle program on or after March 1, 1993 must be licensed to engage in the business of towing for a period of not less than one year immediately prior to the date of their application. In addition, all of the tow truck operators employed by the licensee must be licensed as such by the Department and comply with all applicable laws and rules.
(b) Applicants can only make application to participate in one primary zone and one geographic adjacent zone. The applicant's business premises must be located within the primary zone. Such premises shall be under the exclusive control of the applicant, shall not be used by any other towing company and shall consist of a location that is open to the public, where towing company personnel are employed, calls requesting towing service are received and towers are dispatched, and where all records required by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code are maintained.
(c) Applications for the Evidence Vehicle program will be accepted by the Department on an ongoing basis. Upon approval, new participants will initially be placed at the bottom of the rotation list for the zone for which they have been accepted.
(d) In the event that a sufficient number of qualified, licensed companies do not make application for participation in a particular zone, the Commissioner may modify the proposed zones and assign qualified companies to such zones.
(e) Applicants for Evidence Vehicle must be willing and able to provide towing services, in the primary and adjacent zone for which they have applied to participate, minimally on a five day, twenty-four hour a day basis.
(f) Applicants for Evidence Vehicle must immediately respond to a rotation call they accept. To be eligible to participate in a particular zone, an applicant must be able to provide a tow truck at the vehicle's location within thirty minutes after notification by the Police Department. If no Evidence Vehicle participant is available in the zone where the vehicle is located, the Police Department may call an Evidence Vehicle participant in the adjacent zone.
(g) Applicants must have a minimum of two (2) tow trucks for the zone for which they have applied to participate.
(h) Applicants must own or possess and have at their immediate disposal equipment to tow vehicles with damaged or missing wheels.
(i) Participants may withdraw from the Evidence Vehicle program thirty days after they have notified the Department, in writing, by regular mail, of their intention to end their participation.
(j) [Reserved.]
(k) Repeated failure by a participant to meet the thirty minute requirement may be a basis for suspension or removal from participation in the Evidence Vehicle Program. Repeated unjustifiable refusal to accept rotational calls will also be a basis for suspension or removal from participation in the Evidence Vehicle Program.
(l) Participants must abide by the Police Department's written orders, which establish the operating procedures for this program.
(m) Participants must abide by all lawful instructions, directions and requests of the police official in charge of the scene, incident, or location to which it or its representatives respond.
(n) Participants must record in a bound record book all calls for service, all occasions when towing service was rendered and the reason for refusal of any call to which they were unable to respond. The inside cover of the book kept for this purpose shall contain the Evidence Vehicle towing company's business name, premises address, towing zone number(s) and the dates the book covers. Each double page shall be consecutively numbered and must contain the following information:
Date and time Police Department call was received
Caller: rank, name
Precinct voucher number
Precinct
Name of person who accepted call
Disposition: Accepted/refused
Reason for refusal
Location vehicle towed from
Storage location vehicle towed to
Time tow was completed
Total Charges
(o) The following schedule of rates shall apply for vehicles towed under the Evidence Vehicle Towing Program:
$60.00 flat rate transfer fee for vehicles towed to the Police Department facility, plus tolls, when applicable.
An additional charge of $60.00 may be charged for unusual recoveries requiring two tow trucks. Written authorization of the investigating police officer is required in the "Remarks" section of the invoice to substantiate the need for a second tow truck in unusual recovery circumstances.
(p) After due notice and opportunity to be heard, the Commissioner may disqualify any towing company participating in the Evidence Vehicle program from continued participation in such program for violation of any of the provisions of § 20-519 of the New York City Administrative Code or any rule promulgated thereunder or upon the occurrence of any one or more of the conditions set forth in Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code which constitute grounds for suspension or revocation of any license issued under such subchapter; provided, however, that the Commissioner, for good cause, may, prior to giving notice and an opportunity to be heard, temporarily suspend a towing company from participation in the Evidence Vehicle program for up to ten days. Notice of such suspension shall be served on the towing company. The Commissioner shall provide the towing company with the opportunity for a hearing within ten days after the notification of suspension, after which the Commissioner shall forthwith make a determination as to whether such suspension should continue and the length of such suspension, and in addition may impose any penalty or sanction authorized by Subchapter 31 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the New York City Administrative Code.
(q) Participants shall take reasonable care to prevent damage to or loss of a customer's vehicle or personal property contained therein.
(a) DARP applicants who apply to be in the DARP program on or after December 6, 1994 must make application to participate only in the zone in which their business premises is located.
(b) ROTOW and EVIDENCE VEHICLE applicants may apply for one Primary Zone and one Adjacent Zone. The Primary Zone must be the zone in which the business premises is located; the Adjacent Zone can be any zone which shares a border with the Primary Zone. Zones which are adjacent except for a body of water will be considered adjacent for purposes of the ROTOW and EVIDENCE VEHICLE programs.
(c) If enrolled in both the ROTOW and EVIDENCE VEHICLE programs, the Primary Zones must be identical, and the Adjacent Zones must be identical.
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