                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

REGISTRATION WITH DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES REQUIRED FOR TOW TRUCK
DRIVERS; PENALTY (§ 46.2-116)

A. As used in this section and &#xA7;&#xA7; 46.2-117, 46.2-118, and 46.2-119:
			&#8220;Consumer&#8221; means a person who (i) has vested ownership, dominion,
or title to the vehicle; (ii) is the authorized agent of the owner as defined in
clause (i); or (iii) is an employee, agent, or representative of an insurance
company representing any party involved in a collision that resulted in a
police-requested tow who represents in writing that the insurance company had
obtained the oral or written consent of the title owner or his agent or the
lessee of the vehicle to obtain possession of the vehicle.
			&#8220;Department&#8221; means the Department of Criminal Justice Services.
			&#8220;Tow truck driver&#8221; means an individual who drives a tow truck as
defined in &#xA7; 46.2-100.
			&#8220;Towing and recovery operator&#8221; means any person engaging in the
business of providing or offering to provide services involving the use of a tow
truck and services incidental to use of a tow truck. &#8220;Towing and recovery
operator&#8221; shall not include a franchised motor vehicle dealer as defined
in &#xA7; 46.2-1500 using a tow truck owned by a dealer when transporting a
vehicle to or from a repair facility owned by the dealer when the dealer does
not receive compensation from the vehicle owner for towing of the vehicle or
when transporting a vehicle in which the dealer has an ownership or security
interest.

B. On and after January 1, 2013, no tow truck driver shall drive any tow truck
without being registered with the Department, except that this requirement shall
not apply to any holder of a tow truck driver authorization document issued
pursuant to former &#xA7; 46.2-2814 until the expiration date of such document.
The Department may offer a temporary registration or driver authorization
document that is effective upon the submission of an application and that
expires upon the issuance or denial of a permanent registration. Every applicant
for an initial registration or renewal of registration pursuant to this section
shall submit his registration application, fingerprints, and personal
descriptive information to the Department and a nonrefundable application fee of
$100. The Department shall forward the personal descriptive information along
with the applicant&#8217;s fingerprints through the Central Criminal Records
Exchange to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the purpose of obtaining a
national criminal history record check regarding such applicant. The cost of the
fingerprinting and criminal history record check shall be paid by the applicant.
			The Central Criminal Records Exchange, upon receipt of an applicant&#8217;s
record or notification that no record exists, shall make a report to the
Department. If an applicant is denied registration as a tow truck driver because
of the information appearing in his criminal history record, the Department
shall notify the applicant that information obtained from the Central Criminal
Records Exchange contributed to such denial. The information shall not be
disseminated except as provided in this section.

C. 1. No registration shall be issued to any person who (i) is required to
register with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry pursuant to
Chapter 9 (§ 9.1-900 et seq.) of Title 9.1 or in a substantially similar law of
any other state, the United States, or any foreign jurisdiction; (ii) has been
convicted within the 15 years prior to the date of the application of a violent
crime as defined in subsection C of § 17.1-805 unless such person held a valid
tow truck driver authorization document on January 1, 2013, issued by the Board
of Towing and Recovery Operators pursuant to former Chapter 28 (§ 46.2-2800 et
seq.), and has not been convicted of a violent crime as defined in subsection C
of § 17.1-805 subsequent to the abolition of the Board; or (iii) has been
convicted within the 15 years prior to the date of the application of any crime
involving the driving of a tow truck, including drug or alcohol offenses, but
not traffic infraction convictions.

   2. The Department may deny a registration to any person who (i) has been
   convicted more than 15 years prior to the date of the application of a violent
   crime as defined in subsection C of &#xA7; 17.1-805 or (ii) has been convicted
   more than 15 years prior to the date of the application of any crime involving
   the driving of a tow truck, including drug or alcohol offenses. The Department
   shall deny a registration to a person described in clause (i) or (ii) if the
   person has not completed all terms of probation or parole related to such
   conviction.

   3. Any person registered pursuant to this section shall report to the
   Department within 10 days of conviction any convictions for felonies or
   misdemeanors that occur while he is registered with the Department.

D. Any tow truck driver failing to register with the Department as required by
this section is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor. A tow truck driver registered
with the Department shall have such registration in his possession whenever
driving a tow truck on the highways.

E. Registrations issued by the Department pursuant to this section shall be
valid for a period not to exceed 24 months, unless revoked or suspended by the
Department in accordance with &#xA7; 46.2-117.

HISTORY: 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2014, cc. 59, 441; 2017, c. 503; 2020, cc. 829,
1237.