AB1187: Bill Text

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB1187,1 Section 1. 349.13 (3m) (a) 1e. of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,2,5 349.13 (3m) (a) 1e. “Fully hooked up” means a vehicle to be towed by a towing service is fully prepared for transport by attachment to a tow truck, lifted in tow position, with tow lights and safety chains attached, and, if required, placed on a dolly in a raised position.

AB1187,2 Section 2. 349.13 (3m) (d) 4. of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,2,12 349.13 (3m) (d) 4. Upon payment of the charges for removal and storage of the vehicle, the towing service shall provide the vehicle owner a printed receipt that includes signatures of both a representative of the towing service and the vehicle owner, the date and time the vehicle was removed, and information regarding the local law enforcement agency to which the towing service provided the information required under subd. 2.

AB1187,3 Section 3 . 349.13 (3m) (d) 5. of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,2,19 349.13 (3m) (d) 5. If a towing service charges a vehicle owner as provided under par. (dw) 4., the towing service shall include on the receipt required under subd. 4. a description of the conditions specified in par. (dw) 4. a. to c. that apply to the vehicle removal. If a towing service charges a vehicle owner as provided under par. (dw) 4. b., the towing service shall also provide the vehicle owner a photograph of the vehicle as it was parked prior to removal.

AB1187,4 Section 4. 349.13 (3m) (dn) of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,3,4 349.13 (3m) (dn) If the towing service charges a service fee to the vehicle owner as required under par. (dm), the towing service may charge the vehicle owner an additional service fee not to exceed the fee amount remitted to the municipality under par. (dm).

AB1187,5 Section 5. 349.13 (3m) (dw) of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,3,8 349.13 (3m) (dw) A towing service may not charge a vehicle owner an amount related to removal and storage of the vehicle from private property that exceeds the following:

AB1187,3,9 1. For vehicle removal, $150.

AB1187,3,11 2. For each period of 24 consecutive hours that the vehicle is stored at an outdoor storage facility, $25.

AB1187,3,13 3. For each period of 24 consecutive hours that the vehicle is stored at an indoor storage facility, $35.

AB1187,3,20 4. For any other necessary and commercially reasonable charges relating to the use of special equipment in the removal or storage, or both, of the vehicle, and for any expenses incurred by the towing service relating to travel exceeding 20 miles, $150. Administrative fees, gate fees, lien processing fees, or any other fees for equipment or procedures ordinarily required for the removal or storage of a vehicle may not be charged under this paragraph. A towing service may collect charges under this subdivision if any of the following applies:

AB1187,3,24 a. The removed vehicle possesses unusual characteristics, such as size or mechanical condition, that make the maximum removal charge under subd. 1. unreasonably low or the vehicle has a gross vehicle weight rating or registered weight of 10,001 pounds or more.

AB1187,4,3 b. The location in which the removed vehicle was parked contains certain spatial constraints or limited access to the parked vehicle impeding the tow that make the maximum removal charge under subd. 1. unreasonably low.

AB1187,4,13 c. The round trip travel by the towing service exceeds 20 miles. A towing service may charge a surcharge of $3 per mile under this subd. 4. c. for miles in excess of 20 miles traveled to and from the storage facility. The towing service shall establish the mileage from the tow truck odometer and shall include on the tow slip the beginning and ending odometer readings to the one-tenth per mile. If the tow truck is dispatched from a location other than the storage facility, the one-way mileage between the location from which the vehicle is removed and the storage facility shall be multiplied by 2. Mileage fractions less than five-tenths shall be omitted and mileage fractions of five-tenths or more shall be rounded up to the nearest whole number.

AB1187,6 Section 6. 349.13 (3m) (dx) of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,4,21 349.13 (3m) (dx) For purposes of determining charges under par. (dw), the storage period is the number of consecutive 24-hour periods beginning on the date and time that the towing service provides the notice required under par. (d) 2. and ending when the vehicle is retrieved, rounded up to the nearest whole number. No towing service may charge a storage fee for any calendar day that the storage facility is open less than 4 consecutive hours between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. for retrieval of the vehicle.

AB1187,7 Section 7. 349.13 (3m) (e) 1. of the statutes is repealed.

AB1187,8 Section 8. 349.13 (3m) (f) of the statutes is created to read:

AB1187,4,25 349.13 (3m) (f) The governing body of a municipality may, by ordinance, authorize any of the following:

AB1187,5,4 1. If the owner or authorized operator of any motor vehicle to be towed is present and offers to remove the vehicle from the property or correct the violation before the vehicle is attached in any way to a tow truck, the towing service may not charge any fee to the vehicle owner.

AB1187,5,10 2. If a towing service has attached towing equipment to a vehicle to be towed but the vehicle is not fully hooked up, the owner or authorized operator of the vehicle may request that the vehicle not be towed and shall be liable for a drop fee in an amount not to exceed $50, in lieu of towing, provided the vehicle owner or authorized operator is willing and able to pay the drop fee and remove the vehicle or otherwise correct the violation.

AB1187,5,16 3. If an owner or authorized operator of a motor vehicle to be towed is present before the vehicle is fully hooked up, the towing service shall advise the owner or authorized operator that he or she may pay the drop fee to prevent the towing of the vehicle. The towing service shall advise the owner or authorized operator of acceptable forms of payment and allow the owner or authorized operator at least 5 minutes to arrange for payment of the drop fee.

AB1187,5,21 4. If an owner or authorized operator of a motor vehicle to be towed pays the applicable drop fee, the towing service may not tow the vehicle. For purposes of this paragraph, a towing service shall accept payment by cash, credit card, or debit card for the drop fee and shall issue the person making the payment a receipt of payment of the drop fee.

AB1187,5,24 5. If the owner or authorized operator of a motor vehicle is advised of and declines to pay the drop fee, the owner or authorized operator shall sign in duplicate a drop fee waiver form provided by the towing service.

AB1187,9 Section 9. Trans 319.03 of the administrative code is repealed.

AB1187,10 Section 10. Effective dates. This act takes effect on the day after publication, except as follows:

AB1187,6,3 (1) The treatment of administrative rules takes effect as provided in s. 227.265.

AB1187,6,4 (End)