Bloomfield, NJ Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

Article VIII of Chapter 254 of the Bloomfield Township Code governs towing. Section 254-89 requires every towing company that wishes to do business in the Township to obtain a license and remit an annual licensing fee, with the license fee amount set in Chapter 88, Fees (see § 254-73). Each vehicle used for towing is also assessed $25 and must display a decal provided by the Township. The code calls these fees mandatory and without exception. A company that tows under an individual agreement with a vehicle owner, such as Triple A, Motor Club of America or AARP, does not need the license for that towing.

Property owners carry their own duty. Before any vehicle is towed from public or private property, the property owner or their agent must notify the Bloomfield Police Department, an agent must supply written documentation that they are the current agent, and the police must be given the opportunity to respond to the scene.

Other sections fill in the program. Section 254-70 caps the number of licenses for municipal police towing at three at any one time. Section 254-90 requires every vehicle towed from the Township to go to a lot or facility inside the Township, requires signs of at least 36 inches by 24 inches with letters at least two inches high at every entrance and exit of the parking lot, and requires the towing lot to be open seven days a week. Section 254-82 sets maximum charges: $125 flat for a passenger automobile, $250 per hour for medium-duty vehicles, $350 per hour for heavy-duty vehicles, and $45 for each twenty-four-hour period of inside storage of a passenger automobile. Under § 254-80 the Police Director supervises the licensees, and no vehicle can be towed for illegal parking before a parking summons is issued.