Policy Text
University of California, San Francisco
Police Department General Orders
1
4.18 Traffic Ancillary Services
4.18.3 Tow Service (Issued: 6/25/07)
A. Towing Services
1. Citizens requesting towing assistance for disabled vehicles, vehicles involved in
crashes, etc. shall be asked if they have any personal local towing agency
preference. If the citizen cites a preferred, local towing agency, that agency will
be requested wi thout delay.
a. When an officer makes a request for a non -preference tow, the ECC shall
dispatch the appropriate, non -preference towing agency. If that agency
cannot respond at the time of the call with proper equipment and within 30
minutes, the next towing agency shall be called.
2. Information regarding each towed vehicle will be provided to the dispatcher, who
will log the request in the towed vehicle log maintained by the ECC. This
information will include the license number, license state, VIN and if the owner
reque sted the tow. The officer shall verify that the VIN listed on the registration is
consistent with the VIN on the vehicle.
a. The dispatcher will check the vehicle information to see if the vehicle is
reported stolen.
3. It is the responsibility of the offi cer to complete an Impounded/Towed Vehicle
report and a vehicle inventory, per established policy, when the vehicle towed is
an unoccupied vehicle or seized as evidence. Towing fees for vehicles seized as
evidence shall be the responsibility of the Police Department.
4. When the vehicle is to be processed for evidence it should be processed prior to
towing if at all possible. The vehicle to be held as evidence shall be towed to a
secure storage facility (i.e., a contract towing company, Evidence, Atlas Towi ng,
City Tow, etc.).
5. All other vehicles towed for the Police Department will be taken to the contracted
tow company lot.
6. The officer will remain at the scene until the vehicle has been removed by tow
truck. Only the vehicle keys will be turned over to the tow truck driver. Any other
keys will be returned to the vehicle owner or placed in the Evidence Room for
safe keeping.
7. The ECC dispatcher shall notify SFPD Tow Detail of any holds placed against it.
8. The tow ticket, Impounded/Towed Vehicle re port and inventory report shall be
submitted along with the officer’s report prior to the officer going off duty.
9. It is understood that the citizens requesting tow services will ultimately be paying
for these services and poor quality service will not b e tolerated. Officers shall
notify their supervisors of any service agency that either renders poor service or is
incapable of providing quality service because of inadequate equipment or
personnel. This information will be forwarded through the chain of c ommand to
the FSD Captain.
University of California, San Francisco
Police Department General Orders
2
B. Inventory of Towed Vehicles
It is important to conduct the inventory of a towed vehicle in a consistent and
standardized fashion, according to Department policy. Failure to conduct the inventory
according to a consistent and standard procedure may result in the inadmissibility of any
contraband or evidence of a crime discovered in the process of the inventory. The
Vehicle Inventory Form will be completed and included with the related vehicle tow
and/or incident paperwork.
1. The officer requesting a vehicle tow will be responsible for conducting the
inventory of the towed vehicle. An inventory of a towed vehicle will be conducted
only under the following circumstances:
a. The driver is arrested
b. The vehicle is abandoned
c. The driver (if the only occupant) is removed to the hospital, and/or
d. The vehicle is seized as evidence, impounded or seized for forfeiture.
(1) If the vehicle is seized to obtain evidence and the officer did not
see the vehicle being operated on a roadway prior to making
contact, a search warrant is required.
2. The officer will inventory the vehicle before leaving the scene. If this is not
practical, then an inventory will be conducted as soon as possible. The location,
date and time of the invento ry will be noted on the inventory form. Any vehicle
towed at the owner’s request will not be subject to an inventory.
3. An inventory is conducted for the following reasons:
a. Protection of the owner’s property in the vehicle or
b. Protection of the offi cers against unjustified or theft claims.
The inventory will be as thorough as possible and will include the contents of
locked and closed containers that are designed for or could contain, money and/or
small valuables or that could be carried on or abou t the person. The vehicle trunk
and glove box will also be inventoried. All monies and small valuables located in
the above described areas will be inventoried and submitted to the Evidence
Room for safekeeping.
C. Release of Towed Vehicles is described in Section 4.18.10 (D), “Tow Policy, Releasing
Vehicles.”