(a) The chief of a law enforcement agency of the municipal corporation, within the chief’s territorial jurisdiction, or a state highway patrol trooper, upon notification to the chief of such action and of the location of the place of storage, may order into storage any motor vehicle, including an abandoned junk motor vehicle as defined in R.C. § 4513.63, that:
(1) Has come into the possession of the chief or state highway patrol trooper as a result of the performance of the chief’s or trooper’s duties; or
(2) Has been left on a public street or other property open to the public for purposes of vehicular travel, or upon or within the right-of-way of any road or highway, for 48 hours or longer without notification to the chief of the reasons for leaving the motor vehicle in such place. However, when such a motor vehicle constitutes an obstruction to traffic it may be ordered into storage immediately unless either of the following applies:
A. The vehicle was involved in an accident and is subject to R.C. § 4513.66, or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance;
B. The vehicle is a commercial motor vehicle. If the vehicle is a commercial motor vehicle, the chief or state highway patrol trooper shall allow the owner or operator of the vehicle the opportunity to arrange for the removal of the motor vehicle within a period of time specified by the chief or state highway patrol trooper. If the chief or state highway patrol trooper determines that the vehicle cannot be removed within the specified period of time, the chief or state highway patrol trooper shall order the removal of the vehicle.
(3) Subject to division (c) of this section, the chief shall designate the place of storage of any motor vehicle so ordered removed.
(b) If the chief or a state highway patrol trooper issues an order under division (a) of this section and arranges for the removal of a motor vehicle by a towing service, the towing service shall deliver the motor vehicle to the location designated by the chief not more than two hours after the time it is removed.
(c) (1) The chief shall cause a search to be made of the records of an applicable entity listed in R.C. § 4513.601(F)(1) to ascertain the identity of the owner and any lienholder of a motor vehicle ordered into storage by the chief or a state highway patrol trooper within five business days of the removal of the vehicle. Upon obtaining such identity, the chief shall send or cause to be sent to the owner or lienholder at the owner’s or lienholder’s last known address by certified or express mail with return receipt requested, by certified mail with electronic tracking, or by a commercial carrier service utilizing any form of delivery requiring a signed receipt. The notice shall inform the owner or lienholder that the motor vehicle will be declared a nuisance and disposed of if not claimed within ten days of the date of the sending of the notice.
(2) A. The owner or lienholder of the motor vehicle may reclaim the motor vehicle upon payment of any expenses or charges incurred in its removal and storage, and presentation of proof of ownership, which may be evidenced by a certificate of title or memorandum certificate of title to the motor vehicle, a certificate of registration for the motor vehicle, or a lease agreement. Upon presentation of proof of ownership evidenced as provided above, the owner of the motor vehicle also may retrieve any personal items from the vehicle without retrieving the vehicle and without paying any fee. However, a towing service or storage facility may charge an after-hours retrieval fee established by the Public Utilities Commission in rules adopted under R.C. § 4921.25 if the owner retrieves the personal items after hours, unless the towing service or storage facility fails to provide the notice required under R.C. § 4513.69(B)(3), if applicable. However, the owner shall not do either of the following:
1. Retrieve any personal item that has been determined by the chief or a state highway patrol trooper, as applicable, to be necessary to a criminal investigation;
2. Retrieve any personal item from a vehicle if it would endanger the safety of the owner, unless the owner agrees to sign a waiver of liability.
B. For purposes of division (c)(2) of this section, “personal items” do not include any items that are attached to the vehicle.
(3) If the owner or lienholder of the motor vehicle reclaims it after a search of the applicable records has been conducted and after notice has been sent to the owner or lienholder as described in this section, and the search was conducted by the place of storage, and the notice was sent to the motor vehicle owner by the place of storage, the owner or lienholder shall pay to the place of storage a processing fee of $25, in addition to any expenses or charges incurred in the removal and storage of the vehicle.
(d) If the owner or lienholder makes no claim to the motor vehicle within ten days of the date of sending the notice, and if the vehicle is to be disposed of at public auction as provided in R.C. § 4513.62 or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, the chief, without charge to any party, shall file with the clerk of courts of the county in which the place of storage is located an affidavit showing compliance with the requirements of this section. Upon presentation of the affidavit, the clerk, without charge, shall issue a salvage certificate of title, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances, to the chief. If the vehicle is to be disposed of to a motor vehicle salvage dealer or other facility as provided in R.C. § 4513.62 or any substantially equivalent municipal ordinance, the chief shall execute in triplicate an affidavit, as prescribed by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles, describing the motor vehicle and the manner in which it was disposed of, and that all requirements of this section have been complied with. The chief shall retain the original of the affidavit for the chief’s records, and shall furnish two copies to the motor vehicle salvage dealer or other facility. Upon presentation of a copy of the affidavit by the motor vehicle salvage dealer, the clerk of courts, within 30 days of the presentation, shall issue a salvage certificate of title, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances.
(e) Whenever a motor vehicle salvage dealer or other facility receives an affidavit for the disposal of a motor vehicle as provided in this section, the dealer or facility shall not be required to obtain an Ohio certificate of title to the motor vehicle in the dealer’s or facility’s own name if the vehicle is dismantled or destroyed and both copies of the affidavit are delivered to the clerk of courts.
(f) No towing service or storage facility shall fail to comply with this section.
(R.C. § 4513.61)
(g) Abandonment of Junk Motor Vehicle Prohibited.
(1) A. No person shall willfully leave an abandoned junk motor vehicle, as defined in R.C. § 4513.63, on private property for more than 72 hours without the permission of the person having the right to the possession of the property, or on a public street or other property open to the public for purposes of vehicular travel or parking, or upon or within the right-of-way of any road or highway for 48 hours or longer without notification to the chief of a law enforcement agency of the municipal corporation of the reason for leaving the motor vehicle in that place.
B. For purposes of this division (g)(1), the fact that a motor vehicle has been so left without permission or notification is prima facie evidence of abandonment.
C. Nothing contained in this section and R.C. §§ 4513.60, 4513.61 and 4513.63 shall invalidate or prevent the enactment of further provisions of municipal ordinances regulating or prohibiting the abandonment of motor vehicles on streets, highways, public property or private property within the municipality.
(2) Whoever violates this division (g) is guilty of a minor misdemeanor and shall also be assessed any costs incurred by the municipality in disposing of the abandoned junk motor vehicle, less any money accruing to the municipality from the disposal.
(R.C. § 4513.64)
(a) If an owner of private property posts on the property in a conspicuous manner a prohibition against parking on the property or conditions and regulations under which parking is permitted, no person shall park a vehicle on the property without the owner's consent, and no person shall park a vehicle on the property in violation of any condition or regulation posted by the owner.
(ORC 4511.681)
(b) (l) The owner of private property may establish a private tow-away zone only if all of the following conditions are satisfied:
A. The owner posts on the owner's property a sign that is at least 18 inches by 24 inches in size, that is visible from all entrances to the property, and that contains at least all of the following information:
1. A notice that the property is a private tow-away zone and that vehicles not authorized to park on the property will be towed away;
2. The telephone number of the person from whom a towed- away vehicle can be recovered, and the address of the place to which the vehicle will be taken and the place from which it may be recovered;
3. A statement that the vehicle may be recovered at any time during the day or night upon the submission of proof of ownership and the payment of a towing charge, in an amount not to exceed ninety dollars ($90.00), and a storage charge, in an amount not to exceed twelve dollars ($12.00) per 24-hour period; except that the charge for towing shall not exceed one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00), and the storage charge shall not exceed twenty dollars ($20.00) per 24-hour period, if the vehicle has a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 10,000 pounds and is a truck, bus, or a combination of a commercial tractor and trailer or semitrailer.
B. The place to which the towed vehicle is taken and from which it may be recovered is conveniently located, is well lighted, and is on or within a reasonable distance of a regularly scheduled route of one or more modes of public transportation, if any public transportation is available in the municipality in which the private tow-away zone is located.
(2) If a vehicle is parked on private property that is established as a private tow-away zone in accordance with division (b)(1) without the consent of the owner of the property or in violation of any posted parking condition or regulation, the owner or the owner's agent may remove, or cause the removal of, the vehicle, the owner and the operator of the vehicle shall be deemed to have consented to the removal and storage of the vehicle and to the payment of the towing and storage charges specified in division (b)(1)A.3. of this section, and the owner, subject to division (c) of this section, may recover a vehicle that has been so removed only in accordance with division (e) of this section.
(3) If the Municipality requires tow trucks and tow truck operators to be licensed, no owner of private property located within the Municipality shall remove or shall cause the removal and storage of any vehicle pursuant to division (b)(2) of this section by an unlicensed tow truck or unlicensed tow truck operator.
(4) Divisions (b)(1) through (3) of this section do not affect or limit the operation of Ohio R.C. 4513.60 through 4513.65 as they relate to property other than private property that is established as a private tow-away zone under division (b)(1) of this section.
(c) If the owner or operator of a vehicle that has been ordered into storage pursuant to division Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) or of a vehicle that is being removed under authority of division (b)(2) of this section arrives after the vehicle has been prepared for removal but prior to its actual removal from the property, the owner or operator shall be given the opportunity to pay a fee of not more than one-half of the charge for the removal of vehicles under Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) or of vehicles under division (b)(2) of this section, whichever is applicable, that normally is assessed by the person who has prepared the vehicle for removal, in order to obtain release of the vehicle. Upon payment of that fee, the vehicle shelf be released to the owner or operator, and upon its release, the owner or operator immediately shall move it so that:
(1) If the motor vehicle was ordered into storage pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A), it is not on the private residential or private agricultural property without the permission of the person having the right to possession of the property, or is not at the garage or place of storage without the permission of the owner, whichever is applicable;
(2) If the vehicle was being removed under authority of division (b)(2) of this section, it is not parked on the private property established as a private tow- away zone without the consent of the owner or in violation of any posted parking condition or regulation.
(d) (1) If an owner of private property that is established as a private tow-away zone in accordance with division (b)(1) of this section or the authorized agent of such an owner removes or causes the removal of a vehicle from that property under authority of division (b)(2) of this section, the owner or agent promptly shall notify the Police Department, the vehicle's license number, make, model, and color, the location from which it was removed, the date and time of its removal, the telephone number of the person from whom it may be recovered, and the address of the place to which it has been taken and from which it may be recovered.
(2) The Police Chief shall maintain a record of vehicles that the Police Chief orders into storage pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) and of vehicles removed from private property in the Police Chiefs jurisdiction that is established as a private tow-away zone of which the Police Chief has received notice under division (d)(1) of this section. The record shall include an entry for each such vehicle that identifies the vehicle's license number, make, model, and color, the location from which it was removed, the date and time of its removal, the telephone number of the person from whom it may be recovered, and the address of the place to which it has been taken and from which it may be recovered. Any information in the record that pertains to a particular vehicle shall be provided to any person who, either in person or pursuant to a telephone call, identifies self as the owner or operator of the vehicle and requests information pertaining to its location.
(3) Any person who registers a complaint that is the basis of the Police Chief’s order for the removal and storage of a vehicle under Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) shall provide the identity of the law enforcement agency with which the complaint was registered to any person who identifies self as the owner or operator of the motor vehicle and requests information pertaining to its location.
(e) The owner of a vehicle that is ordered into storage pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) or of a vehicle that is removed under authority of division (b)(2) of this section may reclaim it upon payment of any expenses or charges incurred in its removal, in an amount not to exceed ninety dollars ($90.00), and storage, in an amount not to exceed twelve dollars ($12.00) per 24-hour period; except that the charge for towing shall not exceed one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00), and the storage charge shall not exceed twenty dollars ($20.00) per 24-hour period, if the vehicle has a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 10,000 pounds and is a truck, bus, or a combination of a commercial tractor and trailer or semitrailer. Presentation of proof of ownership, which may be evidenced by a certificate of title to the vehicle also shall be required for reclamation of the vehicle. If a vehicle that is ordered into storage pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4513.60(A) remains unclaimed by the owner for 30 days, the procedures established by Ohio R.C. 4513.61 and 4513.62 shall apply.
(f) No person shall remove, or cause the removal of, any vehicle from private property that is established as a private tow-away zone under division (b)(1) of this section other than in accordance with division (b)(2) of this section, and no person shall remove, or cause the removal of, any motor vehicle from any other private property other than in accordance with Ohio R.C. 4513.60 through 4513.65.
(ORC 4513.60(B) - (F); Ord. 69-92. Passed 10-27-92.)
(g) Whoever violates division (a) or (b)(3) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(ORC 4511.99(F), 4513.99(A); Ord. 69-92. Passed 10-27-92.)
(h) Whoever violates division (f) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor on a first offense; on a second or subsequent offense, such person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(ORC 4513.99(B); Ord. 69-92. Passed 10-27-92.)