Commissioners approve county tow-rotation policy after debate over insurance and oversight

Alleghany County commissioners voted 4-1 at the meeting to approve a county-managed tow-rotation application for Alleghany Communications, following questions about insurance requirements and how the county will monitor companies on the rotation.

The application before the board incorporated changes requested at a prior meeting, including a defined standard for what counts as a storage lot and deletion of a local price list requirement in favor of language from the Highway Patrol application, county presenter Daniel said. “We defined what a storage lot is and what it should be,” he told the board, and noted the document now reflected the requested changes.

The vote came after extended public comment from local tow operators who urged the county to require insurance certificates and to follow the inspection and insurance levels used by the North Carolina Highway Patrol. “They come and inspect our trucks... Every rotation, North Carolina Highway Patrol rotation vehicle has a sticker in the windshield,” said a towing industry speaker identified in the meeting as Mr. Poole, who runs the records service. Poole also described the Patrol’s three‑year inspection cycle and said the Patrol keeps a price guideline for tows.

County staff member April read the application requirement on the record: “It says a current copy of the records registration and insurance verification shall be attached to this application,” confirming applicants must provide proof of insurance with their submission. Board members debated whether the county should replicate the Patrol’s full inspection and insurance specifications; the application does not require garage‑keepers liability insurance, a staff member confirmed.

During discussion commissioners asked how the county would know if an applicant’s insurance lapses. Staff answered they would rely on the required certificate, and noted the county is not employing tow firms but only setting standards for who may appear on the county rotation. One commissioner summarized staff counsel that, short of contracting and operating the service, the county cannot eliminate all potential liability by statute.

The motion to approve the amended Alleghany Communications tow-rotation application carried on a 4‑1 vote. The motion mover and seconder were not specified in the meeting record. The record shows four votes in favor and one opposed; no individual vote names were read into the minutes during the roll call.

The approved application will be used to maintain a county call‑rotation list of tow vendors; the county will require documentation of registration and insurance as part of the application but will not operate inspections identical to the Highway Patrol’s process.

Board discussion left several open implementation questions, including whether the county will obtain the Highway Patrol’s rotation list for cross‑checking and whether the county will add a garage‑keepers requirement; staff suggested those items can be addressed in future revisions.