Pismo Beach, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

Chapter 10.28 of the Pismo Beach Municipal Code regulates police towing services. Section 10.28.010 lets the City Council regulate rates and fees for tows requested under California Vehicle Code Section 21100(g), and it directs the chief of police to enter into and regulate contracts with private tow companies. The chapter applies only to towing and storage contracted as a result of police activity or in the performance of duties as a city contracted provider.

Contracts run for one year, effective July 1st through June 30th of the following year, and renew automatically unless either party cancels (Section 10.28.030). An applicant files with the chief of police a copy of its California Highway Patrol rotation tow listing application, current general and automobile liability policies, a workers compensation policy, a City of Pismo Beach business tax certificate, and photographs of its storage areas and of all tow trucks. The initial application carries a nonrefundable fee set by City Council resolution (Section 10.28.040).

Section 10.28.070 caps towing fees at the rates established by the local area California Highway Patrol, requires the rates to be posted in the provider's office where the public can see them, and bars any rate increase until the chief of police authorizes it in writing. If the Police Department accepts responsibility for a tow, no storage fee is charged to the city or anyone else.

Section 10.28.090 sets the operating standards. Providers must be available around the clock, seven days a week, and be able to respond with a minimum of two tow service vehicles within twenty minutes. Police-originated calls cannot be subcontracted. A provider must have operated in San Luis Obispo County for at least six months before requesting a contract, keep a physical location within five miles of the city boundaries, and store towed vehicles behind a six foot high view-obscuring fence. Equipment must include a minimum of two boom tow trucks, each with at least ten thousand pound gross vehicle weight capacity. Section 10.28.130 requires one million dollars of general liability and one million dollars of automobile liability coverage, with the city named as additional insured.