Dothan, AL Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

City Code § 18-22 classifies a 'Wrecker Company' under NAICS code 9996 with a $50.00 annual license fee, the same general schedule that covers every other business operating in the city. Like any licensee, a wrecker company is bound by Article I of Chapter 18: § 18-4(a) ties its license to one location, § 18-3(d) sets the January 31 renewal deadline, and § 18-6 makes it unlawful to operate without the license, with a fine up to $500.00 and up to six months' imprisonment for a willful violation, each day a separate offense.

Beyond the license itself, § 98-162 governs when a wrecker actually moves a vehicle for the city: police may order a vehicle towed from a public street when it is abandoned in violation of § 98-161, obstructs traffic and the person in charge won't move it, or is left unattended as a hazard. Under § 98-162(d), whenever an officer removes or orders removal of a vehicle 'whether by hand, wrecker or otherwise,' that action is treated as 'performing a duty of the police department and acting in a governmental capacity,' meaning the wrecker operator is acting under police authority, not simply on its own commercial terms, for that removal.

Section 98-164 adds that redemption of a towed vehicle requires paying removal and storage costs and can only be released on the written order of the chief of police.