Atlantic County, NJ Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)
Key Facts
- Approving agencies
- County Division of Purchasing and Sheriff's Office
- Application/renewal fee
- $300 (two-year cycle)
- Sheriff investigation window
- 14 days
- Compound requirement
- 6-ft fence, 15-vehicle capacity
- Minimum liability insurance
- $1,000,000 combined single-limit
- Zone response time
- 30 minutes of dispatch
- Base flat tow rate
- $200-$500 by vehicle weight class
Summary
A towing company cannot handle Atlantic County's illegally parked, police-impounded, accident, or abandoned-vehicle tows without first becoming an Atlantic County Sheriff-approved operator. Chapter 126 requires a Division of Purchasing application, a Sheriff's compliance investigation, $1,000,000 liability insurance, a fenced compound, and a $300 two-year application and renewal fee.
All towing operators shall be approved by Atlantic County based upon compliance with this chapter; documentation required to be submitted to Atlantic County Division of Purchasing Office; and the completion of an investigation to be furnished by the Atlantic County Sheriff's Office.
B. The Atlantic County Division of Purchasing shall take an application for the licensing of a towing operator from any towing operator who asserts that it can comply with the terms of this chapter.
C. An initial application fee shall be paid upon the submission of the signed application to the Atlantic County Division of Purchasing. Each approved towing operator shall be charged an annual renewal fee thereafter. Upon payment of the fee and satisfaction of applicable requirements, the applicant shall be eligible to perform light-duty and heavy-duty towing.
D. The application form shall be provided by the Atlantic County Division of Purchasing. It shall include the name, business address and telephone number of the towing operator, the location of the towing compound, the name of its insurance company, the insurance policy number and any other information that is deemed relevant and appropriate.
E. The towing operator's authorized representative must date and sign the application and certify that he/she has read this chapter and agrees to abide by all of the terms, conditions, and specifications of the same.
F.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4863463; v25 updated 2026-04-21; through 04-21-2026).
Full Breakdown
Any towing operator seeking County work files an application with the Atlantic County Division of Purchasing listing its business address, compound location, insurer, and policy number, and pays an initial application fee, with an annual renewal fee thereafter (§ 126-5A-D). The Sheriff's Office then investigates the compound and tow trucks and has 14 days to complete that investigation; a compliant operator is added to the approved list, while a rejected applicant may request a hearing before the Division of Purchasing (§ 126-5F-H). Approved operators must maintain a compound within Atlantic County enclosed by a six-foot-high fence and sized for at least 15 passenger vehicles, staffed during normal business hours, plus at least two tow trucks with two-way communications on 24-hour call (§ 126-3A-B).
Insurance minimums are strict: $1,000,000 combined single-limit garage/general liability, $100,000 garagekeepers legal liability, $1,000,000 auto liability, statutory workers' compensation, and, for heavy-duty work, an added $1,000,000 MSC-90 endorsement, with the County named additional insured and 10 days' notice required before any cancellation (§ 126-4G). The Sheriff maintains a rotating approved-operator list split across four County tow zones, and each zone's operators must be able to respond within 30 minutes of a dispatch call (§ 126-6A-B). Chapter 126 also fixes what an approved operator may charge: as last amended 4-21-2026 by Ordinance No.
2-2026, the two-year application/renewal fee is $300, and flat towing rates run $200 for vehicles under 10,000 pounds, $325 up to 16,000 pounds, and $500 above that, with storage free for the first 12 hours (§ 126-7A-B, G).
Violations & Fines
Operators must post their fees and charges conspicuously and may not deviate from the schedule set in § 126-7L; charging above the posted rates is grounds for a price-gouging complaint the Sheriff must investigate under § 126-7N. If the Sheriff finds an approved operator out of compliance with Chapter 126, the Sheriff reports it to the Division of Purchasing, which removes the operator from the approved list, and no further County towing may be performed until compliance is restored (§ 126-6G-H). A removed or suspended operator may request a hearing before the Division of Purchasing (§ 126-6I). Failure to cooperate with a Sheriff's investigation of a customer complaint is separately grounds for license revocation (§ 126-7N(1)).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can any towing company respond to a county-directed tow in Atlantic County?
What insurance does an approved Atlantic County tow operator need?
How much can an approved operator legally charge to tow my car in Atlantic County?
What happens if an approved tow operator overcharges me?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Atlantic County
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