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Senate rejects bill requiring insurers to cover commercial towing cleanup costs; later indefinitely postpones it
Summary
House Bill 223, which would have required motor vehicle insurance to cover reasonable cleanup and recovery costs for commercial tow truck operators, failed on second reading and was later indefinitely postponed following floor debate about insurance mandates and statutory language.
The Senate did not concur in House Bill 223 after an extended floor discussion about insurance mandates and statutory phrasing; senators later voted to indefinitely postpone the measure.
Senator Dunwall introduced the bill as a “cleanup” measure that would require motor vehicle insurance policies to cover reasonable costs for commercial tow operators, including debris cleanup after crashes. He said tow operators sometimes bear large cleanup costs and asked senators to "throw them a few bucks."
Opponents warned the bill would operate as an insurance mandate and could raise premiums. Majority Leader McGillivray argued that adding mandates increases costs for policyholders. Senator Wilson said the bill’s wording could create confusion by adding new statutory liabilities beyond policy coverage and noted that much towing coverage already exists through separate products or policy limits.
On second reading the bill failed to be concurred in on a recorded vote of 15‑33. Later on the floor Senator McGillivray moved to indefinitely postpone the bill; that motion carried on a recorded vote of 43‑6.
Ending: The transcript shows the core dispute centered on whether requiring insurers to pay commercial tow and cleanup costs is a necessary consumer protection for small businesses or an unwanted insurance mandate with potential premium impacts.
