Warren, MI Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

Article III of Chapter 37 (Sections 37-551 through 37-583) regulates wreckers, defined as trucks with a hoist, towing apparatus, or self-loading flatbed used to transport vehicles. Section 37-571 requires any wrecker vehicle or wrecker owner to obtain a city clerk license under this article and Chapter 18 before performing any towing service in the city. The application under Section 37-572 must list the owner's name and addresses, the storage lot location and security features, the wrecker vehicle's location and hourly availability, insurance carriers and policies, a full roster of CDL-holding drivers, and acceptance of responsibility for personal property left in towed vehicles.

Section 37-552 sets operating conditions for every licensee: wrecker vehicles must display the owner's name and address in letters at least three inches high on each side, a licensed wrecker plate must be shown on the rear at all times, and vehicles cannot display 'police towing' or similar language suggesting police ownership. Towing or storage fees charged on police-directed tows cannot exceed the rate schedule set by city council resolution, which must be published in a newspaper, posted at the police department and clerk's office, and reviewed at least every two years.

16. 00 covering fire, theft, windstorm, vandalism and explosion, plus a garage liability policy, before any license issues; carriers must give the city 90 days' notice of cancellation. Section 37-556 bars wreckers from responding to an accident or emergency scene unless specifically called by police or the person involved, prohibiting solicitation at crash sites. Licenses expire March 31 each year under Section 37-576.