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

Article V of the Towing chapter, adopted in 2016 by Ord. No. MC 3591, governs nonconsensual towing from private property in Irvington. Section 604-18 limits who may set a tow in motion: the property owner, or a Township official acting under § 604-19, are the only parties who can authorize removal of an unauthorized vehicle, and a tenant or a guest of the property has no authority to call for one. The owner must contact the Irvington Department of Public Safety directly, and the officer who responds will not release the vehicle for towing until the caller produces photo identification and states a full name, home address, telephone number and email address.

Section 604-19 then limits authorization to two circumstances: the property owner stating the vehicle is parked without permission, or a Township official determining the vehicle is a public-safety hazard, such as one infested with rodents or vermin or emitting toxic fumes. Once towing is authorized, § 604-20 requires the officer to give the vehicle owner the towing company's name, address and telephone number and the storage lot's street address and redemption hours; the owner bears all towing and storage charges. Every company doing nonconsensual work must also keep invoices, job orders, logs and insurance-reimbursement claims for three years and produce them for inspection under § 604-21.

Separately, Article IV requires every towing company operating in Irvington to hold a Township-issued license and registration decal on each tow vehicle before it may touch a private-property job, and towing lots must sit within a four-mile radius of the Township, be record-owned or leased by the tow company, and provide 24-hour vehicle retrieval.