New law keeps towing companies off private property
Ordinance requires parking lot owners' approval prior to towing
BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer
Private towing companies can no longer tow motor vehicles parked in privately owned parking lots without warning.

The Woodbridge Township Council unanimously voted in favor of the predatory towing prevention ordinance at the council meeting on Sept. 4.

Mayor John E. McCormac said the ordinance was in response to aggressive towing tactics that occurred in the privately owned parking lot across the street from town hall in recent months.

"These tactics were not even directed by the tenant, and the vehicles were taken without their discretion, which is outright wrong," he said.

Predatory towing is when a towing company removes a motor vehicle from a private lot on their own accord without consulting law enforcement or the property owner.

The ordinance follows the recent state Predatory Towing Prevention Act, which regulates the removal of vehicles that are on private property without proper authorization. Assembly members Robert Gordon, Nilsa Cruz-Perez, Gordon M. Johnson and Louis M. Manzo sponsored the bill.

The ordinance says a towing company shall not tow any motor vehicle parked for an unauthorized purpose from any privately owned parking lot without the consent of the lot owner or operator unless there is a sign approximately 36 inches high and 36 inches wide posted in a conspicuous place at all vehicular entrances to the property.

The sign should state the times parking is permitted, that unauthorized parking is prohibited, and that unauthorized motor vehicles will be towed at the owner's expense.

Council President Brenda Velasco said the concerns brought up about the color of the signs would be addressed in the ordinance.

The name and telephone number of the towing company that will perform the towing and the charges for the towing and storage of towed motor vehicles and the decoupling fee should also be stated.

The ordinance goes on to say that a towing company shall not remove a motor vehicle from private property until obtaining the written authorization from the property owner or lessee or its employee or agent who shall be present at the time of the removal to verify the alleged violation if it occurs during normal business hours.

The exceptions to the written authorization are if a motor vehicle interferes with the entrance or exit of the property or if the vehicle is parked on private property within 15 feet of a fire hydrant, standpipe or other water source for fighting fires, in a fire lane, or in any space that is indicated by sign or painted curb as a noparking area.

A towing company shall, upon removal of a vehicle, notify the police department whenever the owner or operator of the vehicle is not present at the time the vehicle is towed.

The ordinance adds that a charge to the owner or operator of a vehicle that is just hitched onto the tow truck should be no more than a $50 decoupling fee and also includes penalties for any tower who violates any provision in the ordinance, by a fine not to exceed $1,000 or by imprisonment for a term not to exceed 90 days, or both.