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

Cobb County Code § 126-28 makes it unlawful for any wrecker service, zone holder or not, "to use or operate a wrecker upon any of the streets of the unincorporated area of the county without complying with the provisions of this article" (Art. II, Wreckers, §§ 126-26 to 126-63). Every wrecker operating in the unincorporated county must be clearly identified with the name and domicile of the wrecker service, per § 126-29, in compliance with Georgia Department of Public Safety Rule 1-10. Under § 126-30, a wrecker may go to an accident scene only if responding to a public safety call (police, fire, EMS, or 911), called directly by the vehicle owner, or facing an extreme emergency threatening life or property; § 126-31 separately bars any wrecker service from responding based on information picked up by monitoring DPS radio traffic.

For police-dispatched, non-consent tows, the county's Department of Public Safety divides unincorporated Cobb into standard and heavy-duty towing zones (§ 126-51) and awards each zone to a single wrecker service for a minimum four-year term through a competitive Qualifications Assessment Form process scored by a selection committee (§ 126-53). Zone holders must carry $1,000,000 combined-single-limit commercial general liability and auto liability coverage, $2,000,000 umbrella coverage, and $250,000 garage-keeper's liability with a deductible capped at $2,500 (§ 126-60), and must operate an impound lot, fenced with barbed wire and lit at night, capable of holding towed vehicles for 90 days while reserving five no-charge spaces for police-held vehicles (§ 126-59).

Maximum tow and storage fees are set by the board of commissioners' fee schedule (§ 126-62), which every zone holder must post and hand out on request. Section 126-36 lets a vehicle owner choose their own wrecker service in ordinary, non-emergency situations, and the responding officer must tell them so.