Published: Wednesday, July 16, 2025
By Brian J. Riker
Towers often are quick to react to natural disasters and other calls for help. This is a noble response from the towing community. But with that in mind, please be sure you are not unintentionally violating any regulations or placing your team in jeopardy in your effort to assist.
Unfortunately, responding to out-of-state storm cleanup can come with serious financial, legal, and safety risks. Here are some key points to consider before heading into disaster zones:
Preparation Is Key
Please don’t rush, ill-prepared or uninformed, into these response situations. The time to prepare for this type of work is well before the disaster hits. An emotional response, because you feel like you “have to” do something, or because you just see the opportunity to profit, is not likely to end well.
When travelling away from home, you will not have your usual support network to rely upon. There will likely be fuel supply, food, housing and other issues to deal with. Clean water may be scarce, and theft/crime will be higher than usual due to all the confusion and chaos that accompanies natural disasters.
Even with the immediate dangers of the storm passing, we can often fall into a false sense of security. Always have a plan, and a backup to that plan, so you don’t have to react emotionally when something goes wrong, and it will.
You are a Trucking Company, not an Emergency Service Provider
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulates all Interstate motor carrier operations, including tow trucks, public utility trucks and other for-hire responders. Although the FMCSA typically provides some relief from regulation during these types of natural disasters, not all responding companies are exempt from hours of service, operating authority and other rules.
Generally, if you are not directly engaged in life safety operations or providing transportation of life critical equipment and/or supplies, you are still subject to all Federal and State regulations, just as all other trucking companies are.
Just because a salvage auction requested you to deploy all available assets does not make you an emergency responder or service provider, nor does it mean you are covered under any exemption declarations that may be issued. Always read the fine print in these declarations to make sure you are in compliance.
Are You Properly Insured?
Most towers have adequate insurance coverage for their normal day to day operations around town, but what if you send your trucks and staff into another state to provide services?
It is a common practice for insurance companies to limit coverages to a specific geographic area, often no more than a 500-mile radius and sometimes as low as 50 miles. This is how they control costs and effectively rate your policy for risk. Typically, a towing company will declare their normal operating area when obtaining or renewing insurance coverage, and although you are covered to occasionally exceed this declared area, sending trucks and manpower into another state long term may not be covered.
Does your insurance policy provide public liability and cargo coverage for motor carrier transportation activities or just on-hook liability coverage? If you usually only engage in towing disabled and wrecked motor vehicles around town you may not have high enough, or even the appropriate coverages, on your policy to work outside your home state. Interstate operations have very specific, often higher, coverage requirements than intrastate operations.
Will your workers’ compensation policy cover injury to remote workers? Workers’ compensation is a state level insurance plan, and the regulations, as well as coverages and requirements, vary between states. You may need to declare the out of state operations or face denial of claims and a penalty during your end of term premium audit.
Always consult your insurance agent before accepting storm work outside your regular area.
Towing or Transporting? Know the Difference
During storm cleanup, you’ll likely be transporting, not towing. That distinction affects your insurance, licensing, and tax obligations—and the rules differ from state to state.
Some states require DOT medical cards, specific training (like WreckMaster or ERSCA), or local authority numbers (PUC/PRC). Others have strict plate laws—even for short-term operations.
For example, after 14 days of work in a state, you may need to register your trucks there. States like Nevada, Pennsylvania, and New York are known to enforce this.
And don’t assume your local plate practices apply elsewhere—some states require special plates just to transport vehicles with wheels on the ground.
The Bottom Line
Again, while it is noble to want to help, and towers are the most generous and helpful group of professionals I know, please make sure that you are not putting yourself or your team in harms way by rushing off to provide relief.
Published: Tuesday, July 08, 2025
By Randall C. Resch
We’ve seen our lion’s share of tow operator fatalities. Yet after crash investigations are completed, why are key safety recommendations so often ignored—especially those that could help reduce future losses? One such recommendation, frequently cited, involves the use of roof-mounted sign boards, commonly known as Variable Message Systems (VMS).
Over the past two decades, states have implemented various Slow Down, Move Over laws aimed at reducing highway fatalities among first responders, highway workers, and tow operators. Yet since 1934, an estimated 671 tow operators have been killed in roadway incidents across the United States—a sobering reminder that more must be done
Grinds My Gears
California leads the nation in on-duty, on-highway tow operator deaths. Thirty-five years of collecting data has recorded 86-on-highway incidents dating back to the 1930’s. The data suggests that California tow operators have worked on-highway incidents under vulnerable conditions for better than 95-years only to overlook lessons learned.
Fifty-five years ago, California tow trucks were equipped with traffic flares and large orange incident signs, which tow operators would deploy at the scene. Over time, that requirement gradually faded, and today many tow operators are neither required nor inclined to use cones, flares, or warning signs—despite strong recommendations from FACE, NIOSH, CDC, OSHA, and select industry instructors.
Exploring Lessons Learned
On May 31, 2023, a tow truck operator with just six months of experience responded to a highway call involving a disabled vehicle stranded atop a gore point on California’s Golden State Freeway (I-5). At around 11 p.m., the vehicle was positioned so deep into the gore point that it was described as 'a sitting duck' at the apex of a southbound onramp.
In an area where six lanes of traffic sped past the vehicle’s location, attempting to load it onto a carrier without assistance proved fatal. While working alone to recover the vehicle, the tow operator was struck and killed—allegedly while standing in lane six. One must ask: could this tragedy have been prevented by requesting a highway patrol presence at the scene?
Obvious Recommendations
As a result of the tower’s fatality, beyond the initial fatality investigation by California’s Highway Patrol, came an additional, in-depth investigation by California Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program.
According to its website, California FACE is a NIOSH-funded occupational fatality surveillance program aimed at preventing fatal workplace injuries by examining the worker, the work environment, and the roles of management, engineering, and behavior in future injury prevention.
When fatalities like this occur in California, fatality investigators dig deep to uncover what actions led to the towers demise and what recommendations can be passed forward to the workforce. According to Hank Cierpich, Fatality Investigator/Consultant, for California’s, FACE, in part, he wrote the following recommendation:
Recommendation #4: Promote use of variable messaging signs (VMS) to help direct traffic away from roadside responders. Roadside service and incident response personnel, including law enforcement officers, emergency responders, and towing and service operators, have a high incidence of severe occupational injury while responding to traffic incidents and providing roadside services. Research was conducted in 2023 on the efficacy of variable messaging signs (VMS) when aiding motorists during breakdowns. This study found that when the VMS was active, drivers were more likely to move over (change lanes) and slow down than when the VMS was not active. The odds of a vehicle moving over were 95% higher when the VMS was used. Had a VMS sign been used in this incident, the driver may have moved over to avoid the tow truck.”
Heed the Message
FACE Investigator Cierpich recommended that equipping on-highway tow trucks with Variable Message Sign (VMS) systems would be a 'solid and prudent' measure to provide 'advance emergency warning' to approaching traffic.
Day or night, a clear and visible VMS message acts as a visual alert—warning approaching motorists to stay alert and watch for tow operators at work. If the benefit is so evident, why aren’t on-highway tow trucks federally required by highway or law enforcement agencies to be equipped with VMS systems?
As suggested by FACE Investigator Cierpich, “Wouldn’t it be nice that 95-percent of on-highway traffic would move over because there were obvious and visual warnings ahead?” His message makes perfect sense. Why not adhere to his recommendation?
Operations Editor Randall C. Resch is a retired, veteran, California police officer, former tow business owner and industry advocate. As consultant and trainer, he authored and teaches tow truck operator safety courses approved by the California Highway Patrol. For 55-years, he has been involved in the towing and recovery industry. In 29-years, he has contributed more than 760-safety focused articles for American Towman Magazine, TowIndustryWeek.com and is a frequent seminar presenter and beauty pageant judge at tow shows. In 2014, he was inducted to the International Towing and Recovery Industry Hall of Fame, was the 3rd recipient of the industry's "Dave Jones Leadership Award," and is a member of American Towman’s Safety Committee.
Email Randy at rreschran@gmail.com.
Published: Wednesday, July 02, 2025
By Brian J Riker
Animal companions, especially dogs, have been drawing a lot of attention lately. It seems everywhere you turn, someone has a dog in a shopping basket, in the restaurant or eagerly awaiting a ride in your tow truck along with their broken-down vehicle. This unexpected four-legged furball can cause tempers to flare and may even expose you and your company to legal liability if you don’t understand the rules surrounding passenger transport and service animals.
What Is a Service Animal?
Service animals, typically dogs, are trained to perform specific tasks for individuals with disabilities. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), service animals are granted certain protections and rights, including the right to accompany their handlers in public places and transportation vehicles. This includes tow trucks, which are considered public accommodations under the ADA.
Note: Emotional support, comfort, or therapy animals are not covered under this definition.
This distinction matters. Denying access to a true service animal is an ADA violation.
What You Can (and Can’t) Ask
Tow operators may ask only two questions:
1. Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?
2. What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?
You cannot:
1. Ask for documentation.
2. Request a demonstration.
3. Inquire about the person’s disability.
When You Must Allow a Ride-Along
If your company routinely transports passengers:
1. You must allow passengers with service animals.
2. You must accommodate both passenger and dog safely.
If you do not routinely transport passengers:
You can decline ride-alongs—but the policy must be applied equally in every case to avoid discrimination.
Safety and Insurance Considerations
Tow truck operators should ensure that the service animal is safely accommodated in the vehicle. This may involve making adjustments to the seating arrangement or providing a secure space for the animal. It's also important to communicate with the passenger to understand any specific needs or preferences they may have regarding their service animal.
In addition to the ADA, tow truck operators should be aware of any state or local laws that may apply. Some states have additional protections for service animals, and it's essential to be familiar with these regulations to ensure full compliance.
Tow bosses, it is important that you develop clear written policies on the courtesy transportation of all passengers, including those with service animals and physical disabilities that are in full compliance with the ADA, state and local laws, US DOT regulations on transportation of passengers and any requirements imposed by your insurance carrier.
Keep in mind, most commercial auto policies do not cover non-business passengers such as employee’s family, friends or even their spouse, meaning your passenger policy must not only cover customers, it must also cover other riders. Further, the US DOT has a prohibition on unauthorized non-business passengers and requires written authorization for passengers to be produced on demand by the driver.
Training and Education
Companies should provide regular training on the legal requirements and best practices for transporting service animals. This training should include information on the ADA, state and local laws, and practical tips for accommodating service animals in tow trucks.
Follow this Quick Checklist: Towing with Service Animals
-- Do we normally allow passengers in the cab?
-- Has the passenger confirmed this is a service animal?
-- Have I asked the two ADA-approved questions (if uncertain)?
-- Is the animal safe and secured?
-- Are we compliant with insurance and DOT regulations?
-- Has the driver received ADA training?
