Brookhaven, GA Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

Section 15-536 makes it unlawful to operate or cause to be operated any wrecker or tow truck engaging in nonconsensual towing within the boundaries of the city without first obtaining a nonconsensual towing license from the city. The license is not transferable. Article XIII defines nonconsensual towing as towing without the prior consent or authorization of the owner or operator of the motor vehicle being towed, and a wrecker as an automotive vehicle with hoisting apparatus and equipment for towing or hauling wrecked or disabled vehicles, including any vehicle otherwise equipped and used for that purpose (section 15-535).

Pricing is set by the state, not by the city. Section 15-538 caps what a wrecker service can charge the owner or operator of a towed vehicle at the maximum rates in the Nonconsensual Towing Maximum Rate Tariff prescribed by the state department of public safety. No storage fee can be charged for the first 24-hour period from the time the vehicle is removed from the property. The tariff is all inclusive, so no additional fees can be added for dollies, trailers, lifts, slimjims, or any other equipment or service, and only removal and storage charges approved by the department and contained in the tariff can be billed or collected.

Section 15-537 lists the revocation grounds. The department revokes the license of a wrecker owner or operator found in violation of any term of the article, and also where the registration was procured by fraudulent conduct or a false statement of a material fact as to ownership, use, possession, or operation; where the owner or licensee is found at the scene of an accident in violation of the article; or where the licensee impounds a vehicle without the owner's consent at an impound lot located more than five miles outside the limits of the city. Revocation ends all authority and permission granted by the registration, and the person cannot apply again for one year from the date of issuance of the original license. A person whose license is revoked can appeal in accordance with section 15-48.