License revocation and regulations

(a)

Revocation. On its own motion or the written complaint of any person, the police department may investigate the action of a business enterprise licensed under this article and cause to be conducted a proceeding before the city manager, or his/her designated representative, to consider whether or not to revoke or suspend a license. Such license revocation or suspension proceeding shall be conducted substantially in accordance with the hearing provisions of the City Code. A finding of fact by the city manager, or his/her designee, that a licensed business enterprise has not complied with a regulation as hereinafter set forth shall be sufficient but not exclusive grounds for the city manager to revoke or suspend the license of a business enterprise. Revocation or suspension proceedings may be initiated on the basis of a recommendation from the towing review board, a body formed as a result of the city's cooperative effort with members of the towing industry engaged in removing vehicles from public property.

(b)

Regulations. No business enterprise licensed under this article shall:

(1)

Recover or tow a vehicle unless the business enterprise's tow truck or other vehicle used in towing shall clearly display, on the front of the tow truck or car carrier body, the towing license number in letters at least three inches high, and on the driver and passenger sides of the vehicle and/or doors, the licensee's name, in letters at least three inches high; and in letters at least one inch high, the licensee's principal address and telephone number; or

(2)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless the business enterprise shall file and keep on record with the city clerk and the police department a complete copy of the current rates charged for towing and storage of vehicles and copies of all written contracts or agreements between the business enterprise and property owners which relate to the towing and removal of vehicles;

(3)

Pay or rebate money, or solicit or offer the payment or rebate of money, or other valuable consideration, to property owners from which vehicles may be towed or removed;

(4)

a.

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless notice is posted fulfilling the following requirements:

1.

Notice, in the form of a sign structure, shall be prominently placed at each driveway access or curb cut allowing vehicular access to the property, within five feet from the public right-of-way line. If there are no curbs or access barriers, signs shall be posted not less than one sign for each 25 feet of lot frontage;

2.

The notice shall clearly display:

i.

In not less than two-inch-high, light-reflective letters on a contrasting background, that unauthorized vehicles will be towed away at the owner's expense;

ii.

In not less than four-inch-high, light-reflective letters on a contrasting background, the words "tow-away zone";

iii.

In not less than two-inch-high, light-reflective letters on a contrasting background, the days of the week and hours of the day during which vehicles will be towed away at the owner's expense where the property owner or business enterprise selectively causes the towing of vehicles dependent on the day of the week and hour of the day the vehicle is parked and if not on a 24-hour-a-day continuous basis;

iv.

In not less than two-inch-high, light-reflective letters on a contrasting background, the name and telephone number of the towing business enterprise, if there exists a written contract between the property owner and business enterprise for the towing of vehicles;

v.

In not less than one-inch-high, light-reflective letters on a contrasting background, an address or description of the location of the storage site; and

3.

The sign structure displaying the required notices shall be permanently installed with the bottom of the sign not less than four feet above ground level and shall be continuously maintained on the property for not fewer than 24 hours before the towing or removal of vehicles;

b.

The posting of notice requirements of subsection (b)(4)a above shall not be required where:

1.

The private property on which a vehicle is parked is property appurtenant to and obviously a part of single-family type residences;

2.

Notice is personally given to the owner or operator of the vehicle that the private property on which the vehicle is or will be parked is reserved or otherwise not available for unauthorized vehicles and the vehicle is subject to being removed at the owner's expense;

(5)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle except upon the express instruction and written authorization demonstrating a signature of the property owner or agent to the business enterprise requesting the tow or removal. Such agent shall not be an officer or employee of the business enterprise (as defined herein). No such instruction shall be considered to have been given by the mere posting of the notice requirement of subsection (b)(4)a of this section. No such instruction shall be considered to have been given by virtue of the mere terms of any contract or agreement between a business enterprise and a property owner. No such instruction shall be considered to have been given where the instruction occurs in advance of the actual unauthorized parking of the vehicle. No such instruction shall be considered to have been given where the instruction is general in nature and unrelated to specific, individual and identifiable vehicles which are already unauthorizedly parked. No such instruction shall be considered to have been given where the property owner or business owner has entered into an agreement with a third party, with or without compensation, for the purpose of providing such instruction;

(6)

Tow or remove or store a vehicle where the registered owner or other legally authorized person in control of the vehicle arrives at the scene of potential towing prior to towing or removal, except where:

a.

The registered owner or other legally authorized person in control of the vehicle refuses to remove the vehicle;

b.

The vehicle is connected to the towing or removal apparatus and the registered owner or other person in control of the vehicle refuses to pay a reasonable service fee of not more than one-half of the posted rate for such towing service as required by this article;

(7)

Tow or remove a vehicle where there is a natural person occupying the vehicle;

(8)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless the business enterprise reports to the Miami Police Department, by an electronic towing reporting system which has been approved by the city manager, within 30 minutes of the completion of the recovery, towing, or removal. The electronic report shall include, but not be limited to, the following information related to the recovery, towing, or removal of the vehicle:

a.

The name and address of the registered owner of the vehicle;

b.

The location of the stored vehicle;

c.

The date and time that the vehicle was towed, recovered, or removed;

d.

A description of the stored vehicle, including the color, make, and model;

e.

Vehicle license plate number and state;

f.

Vehicle identification number (VIN); and

h.

The location from where the vehicle was towed;

(9)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless the business enterprise shall maintain trip records relating to the previous calendar year. The trip records shall legibly indicate at a minimum:

a.

The name of the business enterprise;

b.

The date and times of the day in hours and minutes when a specific vehicle was recovered, towed, removed and stored;

c.

The make, model, color, and license plate number of the specific vehicle;

d.

The precise address or description of the location from which the specific vehicle was removed;

e.

The full name of the property owner who expressly instructed the removal of the specific vehicle;

f.

The precise address or description of the location of the storage site of the business enterprise to which the specific vehicle was removed and stored;

(10)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless the vehicle shall be towed directly to the business enterprise's storage site and the vehicle shall not be kept in any temporary holding area;

(11)

Store or impound a towed vehicle at a distance that exceeds a ten-mile radius of the location from which the vehicle was recovered, towed and removed; however, notwithstanding the foregoing, where there is no business enterprise licensed under this article that is located within a ten-mile radius of the location from which the vehicle might be recovered, towed, and removed, then in that event, no business enterprise licensed under this article shall store or impound a towed vehicle at a distance that exceeds a 20-mile radius of the location from which the vehicle was recovered, towed, and removed;

(12)

Recover or tow or remove or store a vehicle unless the business enterprise shall permit the registered owner to enter onto the storage site and remove and take into his/her possession and carry away whatever goods, chattels, things, and documents are contained within the stored vehicle;

(13)

Use physical force or violence, or threat of physical force or violence, in dealing with persons who have had or are about to have their vehicles recovered or towed or removed or stored; or

(14)

Connect a vehicle to the towing or removal apparatus unless the yellow flashing light on the tow truck is in use as the vehicle is being connected.

(15)

It shall be prohibited for a property owner or business enterprise to employ, with or without compensation, any individual, firm, company, or business, to serve as "spotters" who report the presence of unauthorized parked vehicles for purposes of towing.

(16)

Prior to performing the tow or immobilization service, the business enterprise shall take a photograph of the front of the vehicle being towed, a photograph of the back of the vehicle being towed, a photograph of any existing damage that is readily seen on the vehicle being towed, and a photograph demonstrating the violation for which the vehicle is being towed. The photographs must be time and date stamped.

(17)

It shall be unlawful for any unauthorized wrecker operator to respond to the scene of a traffic crash within the city for the purpose of directly or indirectly soliciting towing service for a disabled vehicle(s). Only authorized wrecker operators dispatched by the police department to a traffic crash scene involving a disabled vehicle(s) shall tow such vehicle(s). This subsection shall not preclude owners or operators of vehicles from requesting a specific business enterprise/wrecker operator of their choice.

(Ord. No. 9762, § 1(8), 12-8-83; Ord. No. 10537, § 3, 1-12-89; Ord. No. 10564, § 1, 3-23-89; Code 1980, § 42-78; Ord. No. 11382, § 2, 7-25-96; Ord. No. 13676, § 2, 4-27-17; Ord. No. 13939, § 2, 11-19-20; Ord. No. 14071, § 2, 6-9-22)