Caldwell Council Approves 5 Tow Companies For 2017 Licenses

CALDWELL, NJ — When a car crash happens, serious parking violation occurs or a vehicle is abandoned this year, who will Caldwell officials call?

During the Caldwell Town Council’s reorganizational meeting on Jan. 3, council members unanimously approved five companies that will be authorized for municipal towing operator licenses during 2017.

The list includes:

• Ajaco Towing, Inc
• C & L Towing Service
• J & M Towing
• Criger Auto Body
• M & M Road Side Service

A pair of additional companies made applications but were denied because they allegedly “failed to abide by the fee ordinances,” according to council minutes from the meeting.

According to municipal code, all Caldwell tow licenses expire on Dec. 31 of the year issued, except licenses issued after July 31, which expire on Dec. 31 of the following year. Each application is subject to review by the Caldwell Chief of Police.

When a municipal towing job comes up, officials rotate assignments from a list of companies that changes every week, or “for such period as designated by the chief of police.”

To get a tow operator license in Caldwell, companies have to fulfill a list of stringent requirements that include:

• Must be able to provide towing services anywhere in the borough with a maximum response time of 20 minutes, except when “extraordinary circumstances occur”
• Must be available for service 24 hours a day
• Must submit a non-refundable application fee of $200
• Must maintain garage keeper's liability insurance in the amount of $500,000 for any one claimant, and $1 million for more than one claimant along with $500,000 of coverage for property damage for any one event
• Must maintain auto insurance that insures every tow truck operator against liability up to $1 million for bodily injury to each person, $3 million for bodily injuries in each accident and $500,000 for property damage in each accident
• Must own or lease a minimum of two regular-duty wreckers and one flatbed vehicle, or their equivalent, and must own, lease or subcontract for the services one heavy-duty wrecker
• Must have an outside secured storage area that is in one location sufficient to accommodate 50 vehicles at any one time and an indoor secured storage facility in one location sufficient to accommodate at least five vehicles at any one time

In addition, each company’s storage facility must be available 24 hours a day, 365 days per year for police investigations, and must be open to the public on weekdays during normal business hours and for four hours on Saturdays.

Read the full Caldwell town code section on towing here.

Photo: Flickr Commons

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