Repeal and Restatement of Chapter 34 Article V Wreckers

Ty Hadsell, Deputy ChiefJo Ann Pate, Assistant City Attorney

May 1, 2018

Today’s Presentation

• Part I: Improvements Sought in Current Fort Worth Towing Procedures

• Part II: The Current Ordinance Compared to The Proposed Ordinance

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Section I

IMPROVEMENTS SOUGHT IN CURRENT FORT WORTH TOWING

PROCEDURES

NCTCOG Crash Data

Current Towing Life Cycle Scenario• Multiple vehicle injury

accident• Freeway is shutdown.• Drivers are transported to

the hospital.• Current methods utilized

for the tow request.

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Current Sequence of Events1) Officer radios dispatch with relevant information to order tow trucks.

2) Dispatch enters request and forwards to the dispatch center (DC desk).

3) DC desk checks online for next company up on the rotation list in the assigned zone and contacts the company.

4) Tow truck dispatch A is provided with the information and determines if they can arrive within the 30 minute requirement. If not FW dispatcher will call the next company on the rotation list.

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5) Tow truck dispatcher A radios the information to their driver who proceeds to the scene.

6) DC Desk then calls the next company on rotation list to start the second tow truck request.

7) Tow truck dispatch B is provided with the information and determines if they can arrive on scene within the 30 minute requirement.

8) Tow truck dispatcher B radios the information to their driver who proceeds to the scene.

Continued Current Sequence of Events9) Tow truck operators arrive on scene and load the vehicles.

10) The wreckers office records the vehicle information and sends a fax with vehicle and company information to the Fort Worth Auto Pound.

11) When the drivers want to locate their vehicle they call the auto pound who checks the faxes and directs owners accordingly.

12) In the event that fax has not been received yet, Communications can pull the call sheet to identify which tow companies were called.

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Desired Sequence of Events1) Officer types relevant information to order tow trucks on his in car computer-And hits enter

2) The request is immediately received on line and the closest tow trucks to the area are dispatched. Simultaneously the request is tied to the officers call sheet and the tow truck company is notified online as well.

3) If the tow truck drivers accept the calls they drive to the scene and load the vehicles. Optimistically in sub-15 minutes.

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4) The wreckers office enters the data into the inventory platform which automatically loads to the online web platform with all relevant data and costs to pick up the vehicle for the owner.

5) When the drivers want to locate their vehicles they simply look online

Reasons to Improve Dispatch Methods

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• Communications fulfill tow requests on average 20,577 times a year.

• Takes on average 7.88 minutes per tow truck request.• Potentially free up 162,147 minutes for dispatch (2,702.45

hours).• Free up Communications personnel to aid in 911 call taking,

dispatching, and other needed areas. • Roadway opens quicker and involved parties no longer on the

road and in harms way.

Current Towing Life Cycle • Scenario- A beautiful

day at Mayfest.• You find a great

parking spot in the nearby business district.

• You return to go home but your car is now gone.

• The business owner had the vehicle towed but nobody is around.

Current Towing Cycle- Private Property Pull

1) The business owner had a contracted wrecker tow the vehicle.

2) After towing the vehicle and within 45 minutes the towing office has to call Fort Worth Police Records (DRU) and provide the following data.

3) Tow companies information, vehicle owners information, vehicle information (year/make/model/license plate/VIN), lien holder information (if a repo), location vehicle towed / stored, along with a phone number and zip code.

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4) Police Records maintain a daily report started every night at 0001 hours to record these calls.

5) The Records call taker enters all information and checks the vehicle for stolen.

6) After entry 911 call takers and police can search by license plate for a missing vehicle if the owner knows their license plate or VIN.

7) If state mandated signage for who towed the vehicle is not observed at parking lot the citizen calls 911 to report their vehicle as stolen.

Desired Sequence of Events- Private Property Pull1) The business owner had a contracted wrecker tow the vehicle.

2) After towing the vehicle within 45 minutes the towing office enters all required information online. Information is automatically sent to the PD and online web site.

3) Upon notification police records runs the vehicle through TCIC/NCIC for stolen.

4) Citizen can look online or call dispatch vendor to located vehicle. If PD called as stolen, then PD can immediately provide citizen feedback on tow and location. 12

Reasons to Improve Tow Reporting Methods• The Fort Worth Police Data Reporting Unit is responsible for

receiving and entering non-consent/private property and repossessions - 26,000 to 27,000 annually.

• Average 10 minutes per call • System improvement - free up approximately 265,000 minutes

(4416.6 hours)• Efficiencies:

• reduces citizens wait time to be called back • automatic generation of reports - thefts, criminal mischief, or other calls not

requiring a police response. • Citizens have a centralized point to speed the recovery of their

vehicle.13

Areas Improved Efficiencies Will Affect• Police and Fire

• Pound- Operations / Inspections / public inquiries

• Legal- Contracts, complaints, hearings

• Records- DRU

• IT-Technology systems and Integrations

• Administration

• Finance / Budget – Contracts, Audits and Analysis

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Cities Currently Utilizing New Tow Industry Methods

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Why Are These New Standards Being Implemented around the Country?• Safety• Obligation to the public • Increased Transparency, Efficiency, and Accountability for all

aspects of towing and auditing. • Seamless connection • Cities are saving thousands of dollars from improvements,

clearing roadways faster, preventing further accidents/injuries, and providing a level of customer service never seen before in the towing industry. 17

Local Concerns

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• Towing Ordinance Change – The Police Chief retains all rights to designate which tow companies participate in police-initiated tows.

• Desired improvements are anticipated at no costs to the tow operators or the city.

• A percentage of dispatched tows per company may be altered based on the model selected.

• There are current GPS based dispatch algorithms that can prevent smaller tow companies from receiving disproportionate ratios of tows if they can fulfill the established time requirements.

• Current contracted tow fees are established by contract and are not anticipated to be reduced - should only be increased in the future.

Current Wrecker Price Comparison

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City Light Duty Medium HD

Houston$159.00 first 20 miles/ $3.25 ea addtl mile

$241.00/hr, 2-hr min

San Antonio $177.00 $196.00 $602.00

Dallas $121.00 $191.00 $445.00

Austin $150.00 $350.00 $800.00

Arlington $165/$4.20 per mile $425/hr, 2-hr min

Irving $150.00 $175/hr $250/hr

Fort Worth $150.00 $250/hr

Average* $165.00 $206.00 $461.00

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Section II

Comparison of Current and Proposed Ordinances

Comparison

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Current Ordinance Proposed Ordinance

Limited and outdated technology- telephonic reporting only

Updated technology and flexibility- telephonic or electronic- Chief sets and changes electronic option

Dispatch challenges- strict rotation-based dispatch model- lack of clear driver designation process leads to cancellations- double dispatching by City dispatch then towcompany dispatch

Flexibility and clarity- does not require any dispatch model- allows approach to change as practices evolve- clear driver designation process to reduce cancellations

ComparisonCurrent Ordinance Proposed Ordinance

Out of step with state law- Outdated terminology and provisions- Prohibits Drop Fee- Does not address tow hearing issues

Updated to comport with state law- Added definitions- More deference to state law- Specifies address for service for hearings

Restricts contracting options- can only contract directly with towing companies

Provides flexibility in contracting options- allows contracting decisions to be made through a competitive process.

Exceptions made prosecuting violations difficult Exceptions changed into affirmative defenses

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What Ordinance Changes Do Not Do• Do not require the City to contract with any specific vendor or use any

specific service model.• A separate competitive process will be used to select the methodology/ies and

vendor/s for the next contract.

• Do not place additional requirements on towing companies. • Retained key requirements such as reporting, registration, and inspection.

• Do not raise or impose new charges on towing companies.• Proposed ordinance actually reduces a company’s annual fees.

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Thank you