(a) A towing company that tows an unauthorized vehicle from private property must notify the County or municipal Police Department with jurisdiction over the site of the tow before the towing company leaves the property. The towing company must tell the Police Department:
(1) the name of the towing company;
(2) the make, model, color, year, vehicle identification number and registration plate number of the towed vehicle;
(3) the address the vehicle was towed from;
(4) the time the vehicle was towed;
(5) the reason the vehicle was towed; and
(6) the storage site where the vehicle will be stored.
(b) The towing company must promptly notify the police department if the towing company moves the vehicle to another storage site.
(c) The property owner and the towing company must retain each tow authorization form and, for those vehicles towed without a tow authorization form, the towing company must retain a record of the information furnished to the police for one year after the tow. The Police Department, the Office, and the owner of any vehicle towed by the service may inspect and copy tow authorization forms at any time during normal business hours.
(d) The towing company must promptly notify the County Police Department by telephone of each vehicle that has remained in a towing company’s possession for 72 hours. The towing company must tell the Police Department:
(1) all information required under subsection (a); and
(2) the vehicle identification number of the towed vehicle.
(e) Within seven days after the towing or removal of the vehicle, the towing company must notify the owner, any secured party, and the insurer of record by certified mail, return receipt requested, and first class mail, of the same information required to be given to the Police Department under subsection (a) of this Section.
(f) The towing Company must provide to the owner, any secured party, and the insurer of record the itemized actual costs of providing notice under this Section. (1988 L.M.C., ch. 29, § 2; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 1997 L.M.C., ch. 21, §1; , § 1; , § 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a function transferred to the Office of Consumer Protection by this Act continues in effect until otherwise amended or repealed, but any reference to any predecessor department or office must be treated as referring to the Office of Consumer Protection.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.
