Horry County council asks staff to rewrite tow-truck ordinance to separate consensual and nonconsensual towing

County staff told council the tow ordinance has not been substantially updated in about a decade and raises two central problems: it bars out-of-county tow companies that lack a storage yard inside Horry County from operating and it requires higher insurance (county-required $300,000 with Horry County named as coinsurer) than many out-of-county companies carry.

"Horry County's law says if you are a tow company, then you have to have $300,000 of liability and Horry County must be named as a coinsurer," a staff presenter said, explaining that requirement has generated pushback from tow operators across neighboring counties.

Council members proposed separating consensual towing (when a vehicle owner calls a provider) from nonconsensual or rotation towing (police-directed to address illegal parking or predatory practices). Several members said vehicle owners should be able to call out-of-county tow companies for consensual tows while preserving a rotation list and stricter requirements for nonconsensual tows to prevent predatory practices.

Staff noted practical complications: inspections of trucks, how to treat motor-club responses (AAA or similar), and how to structure a limited-rotation application with preset slots for providers. Council asked staff and legal to draft ordinance language that distinguishes consensual and nonconsensual towing, considers lowering insurance requirements for consensual to align with state minimums, and preserves county protections for rotation and nonconsensual towing.