15B-9.011. Storage Facilities

(1) Wrecker operators shall provide storage facilities which shall be maintained at the operator’s place of business and located within their assigned zone. These facilities must be fenced and locked for the protection of vehicles and property.

(2) The wrecker operator shall provide storage for all impounded/towed vehicles in the outside storage area unless specific written instructions are given for inside storage by the impounding trooper or the owner. If required for investigative purposes, the wrecker operator shall move the vehicle(s) to a designated area for processing prior to storage. In such instance, the Division will not authorize release of the vehicle until all outstanding charges by the operator, as authorized by the Division, have been satisfied.

(3) The wrecker operator shall not change the type of storage facility (inside or outside) afforded a vehicle without written permission from the Troop Commander. The wrecker operator shall not change the storage facility location without first obtaining written permission from the Troop Commander.

(4) If impractical because of zoning or other considerations such as lack of space, storage facilities may be maintained within the same zone at a place other than a wrecker operator’s place of business so long as the following requirements are met as to such storage facility:

(a) The storage facility is located in the same zone within 5 miles of the wrecker operator’s place of business.

(b) The storage facility must be owned or leased solely by the wrecker operator and vehicles stored by the operator must be separately fenced and locked.

(5) The registered owner of a vehicle or the owner’s representatives or owner’s insurance adjusters, upon proper identification, shall be permitted to inspect or photograph stored vehicles during the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The wrecker operator shall not require the owner, adjuster or representative to pay any fee in order to inspect or photograph the stored vehicle.

(6) All fencing shall be chain-link or solid-wall type, at least 6 feet high, to discourage theft of any vehicle or any property being stored inside. All storage facilities shall be illuminated with lighting of sufficient intensity to reveal persons and vehicles at a distance of at least 150 feet during nighttime.

(7) Permanent inside storage facilities must be available for 24-hour storage when weather or other conditions require inside storage for the protection of the vehicle or personal property. A lean-to, tent or shed does not meet the requirements of this section. Inside storage must be within a weather-tight building.

(8)(a) A minimum of 25 storage spaces with 3 inside storage spaces must be available. Wrecker operators who have been on the Division’s rotation system for six months prior to the effective date of this rule may continue on the list without regard to the minimum storage spaces required herein, so long as all other applicable provisions of these rules are met.

(b) Service bays or repair bays do not qualify as inside storage, nor does any area that is utilized for any activity other than serving as a permanent inside storage area, when vehicles are actually stored inside at the request of a law enforcement agency or the owner of a vehicle.

(9) Wrecker operators shall comply with hold orders placed by the Division, including any instructions for inside or outside storage. Vehicles involved in a fatality and sealed by the traffic homicide investigator shall remain intact until the seals are removed by the investigator. No property of any kind shall be released to anyone without authority of the homicide investigator. If no fatality occurred, then the vehicle and the property may be released by the wrecker operator upon valid proof of ownership once the hold is released.

(10) A copy of an inventory prepared by the Division, of all personal property found in a wrecked, disabled or abandoned vehicle shall be provided to the wrecker operator. The wrecker operator shall permit the removal of such property by the vehicle owner or his agent from a stored vehicle during normal business hours without charge. The agent’s authority shall be evidenced by a writing acknowledged by the owner before a notary public or other person empowered by law to administer oaths. A signed receipt for each article removed by the owner or his agent shall be obtained. Personal property shall be defined as any item not affixed to the vehicle which was in the vehicle at the time of the tow. In the case of vehicles stored where no “hold order” has been placed, the wrecker operator will directly release any vehicle upon presentation of proper proof of identification and ownership. If these conditions cannot be met due to unusual or extraordinary circumstances, the vehicle will be released only upon authorization obtained from the Division.

(11) Wrecker operators handling the initial tow shall exercise reasonable care and control of parts and contents located in vehicles while under their protection or while in storage.

(12) During the hours from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, wrecker operators will provide adequate staffing at the storage facility so that personal property may be removed from the vehicle or the vehicle itself may be released without undue delay.

(13) Should it become necessary that personal property be removed from a vehicle or a vehicle be released when the storage facility is not staffed, the wrecker operator will be required to do so and allowed to charge a reasonable fee.

Rulemaking Authority 321.051 FS. Law Implemented 321.051, 321.05(1) FS. History–New 10-15-92.