Print
E-mail
Comment
License to hitch: Laws for tow tuck drivers to become more stringent
By VAL CLIFTON
Daredevils with a love for the of illegal parking can rest easy. At least , the person driving the tow truck has a license to take your car. And they are also drug free.
Sept. 1, all tow operators and vehicle storage facility employees must be licensed including both office and field staff.
District 16’s Senator John Corona sponsored the revision to the current policy, said Angie Cervantes, Policy Analyst with the Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security.
Brought to the committee by the tow trucking industry during the last legislative session, the law was instated to regulate tow truck businesses using an entity that handles licensing and regulation.
“They felt that TxDOT is busy and they have a lot of things going on; they felt that a lot of the enforcement was falling through the cracks,” Cervantes said.
Now handled by the Texas Department of Licensing and Registration, problems that exist in the field, such as inappropriate fees or company misconduct, may see a reduction.
“(The TDLR) can go and investigate these things,” Cervantes said. “They really want to make sure that everyone’s following the rules and that it’s all very fair.”
Operating out of Waller County, Tex-Wide Towing, which has two trucks, conducts most of their business on US 290. Owner Guy Buckley said the new law doesn’t really affect him.
“It’s just a matter of coming up with the extra money and getting all the drug testing and background checks done,” Buckley said.
He hasn’t received his license yet, but he said it should be in the mail, and he completed his criminal background check requirement online. To operate as an incident management driver, a drug test is also necessary.
Tow truck operators are required to have a license in one of the following areas:
• An Incident Management license holder can perform non-consent tows, private property tows and consent tows
• A Private Property license permits non-consent tows and consent tows
• A Consent Tow license holder can perform consent tows.
Consent tow trucks may only do Consent Tows.
To apply for a license online, visit www.license.state.tx.us/App_Online. For more information call the TDLR Customer Service Contact Center at 800-803-9202 or 512-463-6599.
Sept. 1, all tow operators and vehicle storage facility employees must be licensed including both office and field staff.
District 16’s Senator John Corona sponsored the revision to the current policy, said Angie Cervantes, Policy Analyst with the Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security.
Brought to the committee by the tow trucking industry during the last legislative session, the law was instated to regulate tow truck businesses using an entity that handles licensing and regulation.
“They felt that TxDOT is busy and they have a lot of things going on; they felt that a lot of the enforcement was falling through the cracks,” Cervantes said.
Now handled by the Texas Department of Licensing and Registration, problems that exist in the field, such as inappropriate fees or company misconduct, may see a reduction.
“(The TDLR) can go and investigate these things,” Cervantes said. “They really want to make sure that everyone’s following the rules and that it’s all very fair.”
Operating out of Waller County, Tex-Wide Towing, which has two trucks, conducts most of their business on US 290. Owner Guy Buckley said the new law doesn’t really affect him.
“It’s just a matter of coming up with the extra money and getting all the drug testing and background checks done,” Buckley said.
He hasn’t received his license yet, but he said it should be in the mail, and he completed his criminal background check requirement online. To operate as an incident management driver, a drug test is also necessary.
Tow truck operators are required to have a license in one of the following areas:
• An Incident Management license holder can perform non-consent tows, private property tows and consent tows
• A Private Property license permits non-consent tows and consent tows
• A Consent Tow license holder can perform consent tows.
Consent tow trucks may only do Consent Tows.
To apply for a license online, visit www.license.state.tx.us/App_Online. For more information call the TDLR Customer Service Contact Center at 800-803-9202 or 512-463-6599.
Submit a Comment
|
You must be logged in to post a comment.
|
Not yet a registered member?
Click here to become one. Comments to stories and articles on the Web site are not edited or pre-approved before appearing online. Readers posting comments are solely responsible for those comments. Comments must be germane to the story to which they apply. Online comments that are libelous, profane or personally attack another site participant can be reported as abuse using the link provided on each comment. Comments reported as abusive will be reviewed and may be removed from view, as will off-topic comments. BE CIVIL. Individuals continually posting abusive comments to the site may have their registrations revoked. |
