ODPS - Policy and Procedure Management (OSP-200.

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Ohio State Highway Patrol Policy Number : OSP-200.17 TOWING SERVICES Date of Revision : 10/27/2011 Priority Review : All MCE Inspectors ; All Sworn Officers ; Dispatch Personnel Distribution : All OSP Offices and Facilities Summary of Revisions Revisions are in bold, italicized text. CAD Tow Rotation guidelines revised to add Owner's Request Wrecker Rotation. All changes to a tow company or to the Tow Rotation must be submitted to CICC-Dispatcher Management. Purpose To provide a documented call system for towing services to ensure a fair distribution of calls and to provide a reliable and efficient service to the motoring public. To address safety apparel wear for work environment with low worker visibility during the day, in low-light conditions and at night. Policy A. TOWING SERVICE MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITY - The towing service call system, along with the maintenance and retention of records of service calls, is the responsibility of the post commander. 1. A written request must be submitted to the facility commander/manager before any wrecker company is placed on the facility wrecker list. An updated request will only be required when changes are made to policy for a towing company to remain on the list. Each tow company will be provided a copy of this policy. 2. Written correspondence to a company will be required to approve or disapprove their placement on the facility's wrecker call list. 3. Towing services may be removed from the post wrecker list for any legitimate reason by the post commander in written correspondence to the towing service. Reasons for removal include: Violation of law. Refusing calls. Failing to respond after accepting a call. Delayed response to service calls. Failure to properly clean crash scenes of any glass or other injurious substances as directed by Ohio Revised Code Section 4511.74. Failure to maintain adequate impound areas. Failure to provide annual proof of liability insurance. Releasing vehicles without proper authorization from the patrol post. Failure to charge reasonable or prevailing rates for towing or roadside services. Jumping wrecker calls. Towing a vehicle from a crash scene without contacting an officer to respond. Making consistent unfounded complaints to the post commander or designee. Failure to maintain Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) For-Hire Authority.

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Failure to comply with PUCO rules or Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Failure to require employees to wear High Visibility Apparel while outside vehicle when responding to a call for service for the Division. 4. Motor Carrier Enforcement inspections of a towing service may be performed at any time. These inspections shall be performed by a MCE-certified inspector. Following an inspection, serious or significant violations of PUCO rules or FMCSR regulations shall be reported to the post commander of the post area where the towing service is located. 5. Each district dispatcher supervisor will assure the use of the CAD wrecker rotation system to rotate wrecker calls and record associated documentation to include but not be limited to wrecker arrival times and reasons for declining calls. Support Update (SU) comments should be included in the CAD for all wrecker calls. 6. Towing services on the approved call list shall be notified when material revisions to this policy occur. B. TOWING SERVICE REQUIREMENTS - The following requirements shall be met before any towing service is placed on a post's towing service call list. 1. Towing companies shall be required to provide a Certificate of Insurance, which includes a "Garage Keepers" clause (includes care and custody) and an "On Hook" clause (liability while in tow). A copy of the towing companys current insurance policy, with specified dates of coverage, shall be provided to the post commander or designee annually. It is the towing companys responsibility to provide a copy of the current policy to the post commander or designee in a timely manner. 2. Each towing company shall maintain a secure impound area. 3. Twenty-four hour wrecker service will be a pre-requisite and twenty-four hour phone numbers must be provided to ensure prompt response. 4. Towing companies shall be able to respond in a reasonable amount of time. Each post commander must decide what is reasonable for that post area. Many issues must be taken into consideration such as distance, congestion, number of towing companies, towing company capabilities, etc. Companies outside a post area may be placed on the towing service call list based on need and the ability to provide reasonable service. 5. Towing companies shall provide a list of the type of equipment and services they have available. The list shall be updated as necessary. 6. All workers within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway who are exposed either to traffic (vehicle using the highway for purposes of travel) or to construction equipment within the work area shall wear high-visibility safety apparel. a. High Visibility Apparel (personal protective safety clothing) is intended to provide conspicuity during both daytime and nighttime usage, and that meets the Performance Class 2 or 3 requirements of the ANSI/ISEA 1072004 publication entitled, "American National Standard for High-Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear." b. Safety apparel use is intended to create greater visibility in environments that divert a worker's attention from approaching traffic or put the worker

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in close proximity to passing vehicles. Worker means people on foot whose duties place the worker within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway, such as highway construction and maintenance forces, survey crews, utility crews, or responders to incidents within the highway right-of-way. 7. The intent of this policy is not to enforce the Federal Standard but to require tow companies to comply with the rule. Wrecker operators and other company personnel will be expected to wear the required clothing when called for service by the Division. Failure to do so will be cause for removal from the tow list. C. CAD TOW ROTATION AND USAGE 1. The MARCS CAD Tow Rotation should be used by all posts, except Statehouse Post 97 and Turnpike Posts which are dispatched from Post 92 Berea (DHQ 10). The current CAD Tow Rotation Contractor Information document may be requested from CICCDispatch Management at any time. Dispatch personnel are instructed on the use of the CAD Tow Rotation during Computer Aided Dispatch training and are provided a copy of the training document. Only personnel who have attended the MARCS CAD Training may utilize CAD to document tow company calls. 2. The CAD Tow Rotation is composed of four separate rotations: Regular Wrecker Rotation (T) Large Wrecker Rotation (L) AAA Wrecker Rotation (A) Owner's Request Wrecker Rotation (O) 3. The first three rotations require a Support Update comment of the type of wrecker requested [Ex: Large Wrecker, AAA Rollback or AAA Regular Wrecker, Regular Wrecker, Rollback, etc.], Arrival Time, Plate Number, and Plate State, to be entered using the SU function. 4. The Owner's Request rotation requires a Support Update comment of the name of the company requested to be entered [Ex: R&K Towing for a Regular Wrecker], Arrival Time (if available), Plate Number, and Plate State, to be entered using the SU function. 5. Any changes to a tow company, e.g., adding new companies, changing phone numbers, addresses, capabilities, or removal of a tow company, affecting the CAD Tow Rotation must be submitted by a supervisor using the supervisor's Outlook email account. 6. All requested changes to a tow company or the Tow Rotation must be submitted to CICC-Dispatcher Management. Disposition The original agreement shall be approved by a post supervisor and retained in File 1-AGR for two years plus the current year. Current Form and Supplemental References Written Request to be Placed on Wrecker List OHP1156 Form available by accessing CRS :

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http://odpsweb.ps.dps.state.oh.us/crs OSP Standard References None Policy References OSP-200.09 OSP-203.47 RECOVERED / SEIZED / IMMOBILIZED / STOLEN MOTOR VEHICLES STATE AND FEDERAL SEIZURE PROCESSES

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