For purposes of this part:

1. (1) “Abandoned vehicle” means a vehicle deemed to be an unattended vehicle:

   1. (A) As to which the owner has overtly manifested some intention not to retake possession; or
   2. (B) That remains unattended, whether in its first-found location or in another location to which it has been removed under Arkansas Code § 27-50-1201 et seq., for a period of thirty (30) days during which period the owner gives no evidence of an intent to retake possession;

2. (2)

   1. (A) “Administrative fee” means a fee charged for the time, clerical services, and use of an office for the itemized invoicing of a recovery, tow, or storage bill and related processing.
   2. (B) An administrative fee should reflect the effort needed to process a vehicle as required by law;
3. (3) “After-hours release” means a fee charged by a towing/storage firm to arrange for the release of a vehicle or personal property after normal/reasonable business hours at the request of the owner or other person authorized to retrieve the vehicle;
4. (4) “Board” means the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board;

5. (5) “Business license number” means a five-digit number assigned to each tow business, which shall be permanently affixed to any permitted tow vehicle in the following manner:

   1. (A) The business license number shall be preceded by the letters ATRB;

   2. (B) The following letter or letters shall follow the five-digit number:

      1. (i) “NC” if the tow vehicle is permitted for nonconsent towing;
      2. (ii) “C” if the tow vehicle is permitted only for consent towing; or
      3. (iii) “R” if the tow vehicle is permitted only for repossession and consent towing;
   3. (C) The business license number along with the letters shall be placed in a conspicuous place near the business name on each side of the tow vehicle; and
   4. (D) The numbers and letters shall be at least two inches (2”) in height and easily visible from a distance of fifty feet (50’);
6. (6) “Commercial purposes” includes any towing, storing, recovery, or transporting of a vehicle that is associated with a business regardless of the current vehicle’s ownership status or whether charges were paid by a third party for services;

7. (7)

   1. (A) “Consent” means towing, storage, or recovery of a vehicle, which towing, storage, or recovery is done with the permission of the owner or other person in charge of the vehicle.
   2. (B) “Consent” does not include the repossession of a vehicle by the vehicle lienholder, agent, or other person working on behalf of the lienholder;

8. (8) “Consumer complaint” means a complaint filed by a person with a vested interest as determined by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board in the towed property, including without limitation and in accordance with the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, Arkansas Code § 25-15-201 et seq., the:

   1. (A) Owner of the towed vehicle or his or her agent;
   2. (B) Lienholder of the vehicle;
   3. (C) Company that insured the towed vehicle or is liable for the damages; or
   4. (D) Law enforcement agency;
9. (9) “Director” means the Director of the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board;

10. (10) “Electric vehicle” or “EV” means any motorized vehicle that can be powered by one (1) or more electric motors drawing its source of power from a battery and is capable of being charged from an external source or an onboarded system, including a hybrid electric vehicle but not including:

    1. (A) A golf cart;
    2. (B) A low-speed vehicle as defined by Arkansas Code § 27-14-614; or
    3. (C) An electric or hybrid motorcycle;

11. (11) “Equipment” means:

    1. (A) Any vehicle or related equipment used by a tow business or tow vehicle to perform towing or storage services; or
    2. (B) Personal property commonly used to facilitate a business or farming operation for which a possessory lien is granted to a tow business under Arkansas Code §§ 27-50-1208 – 27-50-1210;
12. (12) “EV assessment” means an analysis by a third-party EV resource or, if similarly qualified, a tow company of the extent of damage, if any, to an electric vehicle and the steps to be taken to safely perform EV towing services and EV storage services;
13. (13) “EV storage services” means to properly store an electric vehicle in accordance with all state and federal laws, rules, and regulations, and includes all steps taken in connection therewith and the solicitation of EV storage services;
14. (14) “EV towing services” means to tow, recover, upright, transport, repossess, immobilize, or otherwise facilitate the movement or storage of electric vehicles on or off Arkansas’s roadways and includes the solicitation of EV towing services;

15. (15)

    1. (A) “Fuel surcharge” means a surcharge determined by calculating a cents per mile rate utilizing the current weekly average for fuel as determined by the United States Department of Energy for the Gulf Coast Region PADD 3 that rises above the prior year’s annual average to offset the fluctuating cost of fuel.
    2. (B) Beginning and ending mileage shall be documented on tow receipt;
16. (16) “Impounded or seized vehicle” means a vehicle subject to impounding or seizure by law enforcement under Arkansas law, the Arkansas Rules of Criminal Procedure, a court order, or an ordinance;

17. (17) “Labor” means additional manpower or time required to prepare a vehicle beyond the normal scope of a standard tow, including without limitation:

    1. (A) Site clean-up;
    2. (B) Unloading of freight;
    3. (C) Tarping;
    4. (D) Securing vehicle parts and contents; and
    5. (E) Other recovery-related services;
18. (18) “Licensee” means any person holding a valid license, registration, permit, endorsement, or enhancement issued by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board;
19. (19) “Nonconsent” means the towing, storage, or recovery of any unattended or abandoned vehicle, any disabled or inoperative vehicle, or a vehicle subject to impound or removal by law enforcement without the expressed or implied permission of the vehicle owner, operator, agent, or person in charge of the vehicle;
20. (20) “Notification fee” means a fee charged by a towing or storage firm for the actual expenses incurred to satisfy the notification requirements set forth in Arkansas Code § 27-50-1208(c)(1) that is not to be charged prior to two (2) business days after the date the towing/storage firm receives the vehicle and not to exceed the amount set forth in 27 CAR § 170-110(c);
21. (21) “Owner” means, in the absence of conclusive evidence to the contrary, the person in whose name the vehicle is registered with the Office of Motor Vehicle or in whose name the vehicle is registered in another state;
22. (22) “Owner preference” means the right of the owner, the owner’s agent, or a competent occupant of a disabled or inoperable vehicle subject to nonconsent towing, storage, or recovery to request some responsible and reasonable person, gratuitous bailee, bailee for hire, or properly licensed or permitted tow facility chosen by the owner, the owner’s agent, or a competent occupant of the vehicle, to take charge and care of the vehicle;

23. (23) “Owner preference complaint” means a complaint concerning a violation of Arkansas Code § 27-50-1201 et seq., and the circumstances associated with owner preference and consent towing or nonconsent towing, which may be filed with and reviewed by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board under Arkansas Code § 27-50-1221 by:

    1. (A) A vehicle owner;
    2. (B) A lienholder;
    3. (C) An insurance provider; or
    4. (D) A law enforcement officer;
24. (24) “Person” means an individual or entity;
25. (25) “Personal use” means for a person’s own, noncommercial purposes that is not associated with a business or commercial purpose;
26. (26) “Public way” means a road, highway, or street over which the public may travel, including the traveled surface and a berm or shoulder of a road, highway, or street;
27. (27) “Recover” or “recovery” means a service outside of the normal scope of a standard tow, including without limitation winching and corresponding labor for which a separate charge may be imposed if separately itemized on an invoice;

28. (28) “Removal” means that a law enforcement officer may request a towing and storage firm that is licensed by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board to engage in nonconsent towing of vehicles to remove and store:

    1. (A) An unattended vehicle or abandoned vehicle;
    2. (B) A disabled or inoperative vehicle for which the owner or person in charge of the vehicle has waived his or her right to owner preference;
    3. (C) A vehicle in which the operator was apprehended by law enforcement officers; or
    4. (D) An impounded or seized vehicle;
29. (29) “Repossession” means towing, storage, or recovery of a vehicle by the vehicle lienholder or an agent or other person working on behalf of the lienholder;
30. (30) “Set out fee” means a fee charged by a towing/storage firm related to extraordinary or extenuating circumstances above and beyond the standard practice of releasing a vehicle, including without limitation using a forklift or tow truck because a vehicle is inoperable;
31. (31) “Standard tow” means any tow of a vehicle subject to registration that is removed from private property, a public way, an accident scene, or the side of the roadway and towed in a fashion regularly accepted as routine, to include a tow vehicle operator, preparation for the tow, response time, hook-up, loading, unloading, and transportation back to facility within a reasonable operating perimeter;
32. (32) “Storage” means a daily fee charged by a towing business to secure and safely store a vehicle and includes the release of a vehicle during normal or reasonable business hours;

33. (33) “Third-party EV resource” means a person with demonstrated expertise, training, and experience to properly:

    1. (A) Assess the towing and storage of an electric vehicle;
    2. (B) Train tow industry personnel to tow, recover, and store electric vehicles; or
    3. (C) Provide additional services to protect the public health, welfare, and safety in the performance of EV towing services and EV storage services;

34. (34) “Tow business” or “towing business” means:

    1. (A) A person with an alternate business name under which the person is required by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board to operate towing, recovery, or storage services, which name shall be properly filed with the Secretary of State or the county clerk under Arkansas Code § 4-70-203 and regulated by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board to be used exclusively for the operation of a tow facility, vehicle immobilization company, or a storage facility, including without limitation a person that:

       1. (i) Dispatches tow vehicles for nonconsent or consent towing or repossession;
       2. (ii) Stores vehicles; and
       3. (iii) Conducts towing, recovery, or vehicle immobilization business with the general public; or
    2. (B) A licensed or an unlicensed person that engages in towing services;
35. (35) “Tow business license” means a certificate issued annually by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board entitling any person to engage in the towing business;
36. (36) “Tow vehicle” means a motor vehicle or related equipment subject to registration in the State of Arkansas that is used to tow, recover, upright, transport, or otherwise facilitate the movement of vehicles on public highways;
37. (37) “Tow vehicle safety permit” means a decal issued annually by the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board to be affixed to the windshield of any tow vehicle operated by a licensed tow business displaying the annual period by year and month for which the permit is valid;
38. (38) “Towing industry” includes all persons that engage in the conduct or solicitation of towing, recovery, or related storage services;
39. (39) “Towing services” means to tow, recover, upright, transport, repossess, immobilize, store, or otherwise facilitate the movement or storage of vehicles on or off Arkansas’s roadways and includes the solicitation of towing services;
40. (40) “Unattended” or “unattended vehicle” has the meaning stated in Arkansas Code § 27-50-1202;
41. (41) “Vehicle” means a device by which persons or things may be transported upon a public highway and that is of the type subject to registration in Arkansas;

42. (42)

    1. (A) “Vehicle immobilization” or “vehicle immobilization service” means operating or directing others to attach a wheel clamp or other Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board-approved, industry-recognized device used to temporarily render a vehicle immobile.
    2. (B) A gladhand lock is not a Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board-approved vehicle immobilization device;

43. (43) “Vehicle isolation bay” means one (1) or more self-contained EV storage areas with sufficient drainage capacity to contain hazardous waste constructed with fire resistant components in accordance with the standards and specifications:

    1. (A) Required by state and federal law; and
    2. (B) Promulgated by a third-party EV resource;
44. (44) "Wheel clamp" means a device attached to a wheel of a vehicle that renders or is intended to render the vehicle immobile; and

45. (45)

    1. (A) “Winching” means the additional use of cable and apparatus commonly known as a winch needed to recover or reposition a vehicle.
    2. (B) “Winching” does not include a cable or winch used to pull a vehicle onto a rollback or trailer in connection with a standard tow.

Codification Notes: “PADD” means Petroleum Administration for Defense District.