Question: Can I perform a private property tow for a vehicle with an expired registration?
Answer: No. On March 13, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation, declaring a state of disaster for all counties in Texas due to the threat of COVID-19. Governor Abbott also issued a statement on March 16, 2020, granting a temporary extension to obtain an initial registration and renewal of registration for a vehicle. Tex. Occ. Code § 2308.253 (d) and (e) prohibit the towing of vehicles from private property on the basis of an expired license plate or registration unless certain requirements are met. Due to the extension granted for obtaining the initial registration or renewal of registration for a vehicle, tow companies may not tow vehicles from private property for expired registration or renewals until further notice.
Important – Essential Businesses
We hope that you and your families are doing well and remain safe during these unusual times. It goes without saying that none of us have experienced anything like this in our lifetime. Regardless of orders in particular counties in Texas, our association is still working on your behalf.
While we believe the services that we render to consumers, law enforcement, and auto mechanics around the state fall within the “essential duties” set out by the U.S. Homeland Security Office, we have been hearing different jurisdictions may be handling it differently depending on the local order.
Today, Southwest Tow Operators contacted Governor Abbott’s staff to request that tow truck operators and businesses be deemed an essential business. It is important to the safety of those still on the roadways to not have to worry about vehicles on the side of the road. Likewise, it does not make sense for these vehicles to be sitting until the order is lifted when auto mechanics and body shops are considered essential.
Please contact Governor Abbott’s office today to ask him to deem towing companies as an essential business to keeping our roadways safe and clear.
Governor Abbott’s Phone Number: 512-463-2000.
Thank you,
Southwest Tow Operators
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The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR)’s mission, operations, and performance are undergoing Sunset review as directed by the Texas Legislature in the Texas Sunset Act. The Sunset Advisory Commission evaluates state agencies to determine if they are still needed and operating effectively. Based on the commission’s recommendations, the Legislature decides whether to continue an agency and, if so, how to improve its effectiveness, efficiency, fairness, and accountability. As the Sunset Commission’s staff, we are seeking input from licensees to help identify problems and propose workable solutions for agencies under Sunset review. Please complete the Sunset survey on TDLR linked below by December 6, 2019. Completing the survey should take about 15 minutes. TDLR is sending this notice to you on behalf of the Sunset Commission, but your responses will come directly to Sunset staff, are confidential, and will not be shared with TDLR. To ensure the free flow of information, any other comments you wish to provide before the Sunset staff report is published in June 2020 also are confidential and will not be shared with the agency. Please note: State law specifies that programs transferred to TDLR on or after September 1, 2016, are not under review. Although these programs are not subject to abolishment, and Sunset staff will not evaluate their professional standards or requirements, we would like to hear your views regarding how TDLR operates and appreciate you also completing the survey. Sunset survey on TDLR: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SunsetTDLRLicensees. Join our email list for updates on the Sunset staff report and public hearings on TDLR. Visit the Sunset website to learn more about the Sunset review process. If you have specific questions about the Sunset review on TDLR, please contact Emily Johnson at (512) 463‐1300 or sunset@sunset.texas.gov. We greatly appreciate your assistance and look forward to receiving your comments and ideas. Sincerely, Jennifer Jones |
HOW TO HAVE A SUCCESSFUL (AND VIOLATION-FREE) VSF INSPECTION
By Brian Edward Walters, Attorney at Law
VSF inspections are triggered by one of two events. Either it is just time for your periodic inspection (which is required at least once every two years) or an inspection can be the result of a complaint filed against your vehicle storage facility at TDLR. Regardless of the cause of the inspection, there are several rather simple things you can do to properly prepare for a VSF inspection.
First, be aware of when your “every two years” inspection is coming up. You may not receive notice from TDLR of when you will be inspected, but you can make a fairly good estimate of approximately when it will occur based on your last inspection date. For example, if it has been 18 months since your last inspection, the odds are just about certain that your inspection will occur in the next 6 months.
Second, look at what TDLR uses when they inspect your facility. A VSF inspection checklist is available on TDLR’s website. As of Aug 1, 2019, it was located at this web address: https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/towing/forms/vsfchecklist.pdf. While many VSFs do not utilize this document, it is effectively you being given the answers to part of an examination that you know you will have to take. Why any person would choose not to study and review the TDLR VSF Inspection checklist is a mystery, but it happens. We strongly recommend that you conduct a personal inspection using the checklist – it will help you not only familiarize yourself with the VSF inspection process, but it will shed light on areas where you may find that you have problems. If those problems are capable of being fixed before the inspection, you will have saved yourself thousands of dollars in administrative fines.
Third, know where your documents and records are and be absolutely certain that they are complete. If you store your records off-site, you should be certain that those off-site records will be easy to locate and bring to your VSF. If you store records on site, you should ensure that you have met the minimum information and document retention requirements under Texas law (if you have questions on what is required and which documents to keep, please see our record retention and information articles on that subject for VSFs).
Fourth, remember that an inspector is not a lawyer and may not be the end-all authority on towing and storage laws in Texas. We have heard many complaints from towing companies and vehicle storage facilities alike that sound like this, “The inspector was out here last time and said that my signs were fine!” That may well be the case, but you should always remember that it is a prosecutor (a licensed attorney at TLDR), not the inspector, who makes the final determination on when to prosecute a violation and when a violation will be alleged to have occurred.
Fifth, be polite and cooperative. Some inspectors are professional and, from time to time, some are less than professional. However, regardless of how the inspector behaves, you should always maintain a cool and professional approach to inspections. This is, after all, an examination of your business that the state has given you a license to perform. That license, like all other licenses, can be forfeited if the state determines you have failed to follow the law or the rules. If a violation is found, that does not mean that you have already lost. It simply means that a non-lawyer representative of the state believes, based on his or her personal opinion and knowledge, that your vehicle storage facility failed to follow the law. It is certainly not a finding of guilt or liability.
Finally, know the law! Even if you are not a lawyer, operating a vehicle storage facility in Texas requires a good deal of understanding in relation to both the Texas Vehicle Storage Facility Act, the Texas Towing and Booting Act, and the administrative rules that govern vehicle storage facilities and towing companies. To a certain degree, an inspection will be a test of your knowledge of those laws. If you do not know what you need to write down, what documents you need to keep, or what you need to do to charge a fee for a particular service, you will certainly find yourself on the receiving end of a TDLR administrative violation. These laws are available on TDLR’s website and a few other websites on the internet. A Google search for these terms, “Texas Vehicle Storage Facility Act” or “Texas Towing and Booting Act” will likely get you what you need. Read them in full and then read them again. They may be confusing and written in legalese, but as a licensee, you have the responsibility to comply with those laws and rules.
This article can best be summarized as follows: Be Prepared and Be Professional! VSF inspections are a frequent source of administrative violations on everything from sign lettering to sign content to broken windows on vehicles stored in the yard to fence height in the yard. Inspectors have a great deal of latitude in conducting an inspection and will very likely dig into documents and areas with the intent of finding a violation (even if it is difficult to fine or only a minor violation). Prosecutors are not present during the inspection process and must base their decisions on the information they receive from inspectors. The most successful (i.e. the “no violation”) inspections will be at VSFs that maintain a strict level of diligence when it comes to maintaining their yard (protecting vehicles), keep all required documents, document and saving all required vehicle information, and being prepared ahead of time for inspections. If you can implement office systems that help your employees to maintain compliance year-round, you will dramatically reduce the need for of pre-inspection preparation and find that administrative violations are few and far between.
