§1741. Immobilization of motor vehicles by booting; private property; legislative findings
A.
(1)The legislature finds and declares that the immobilization of motor vehicles
by booting in the state of Louisiana vitally affects the public interest and the public welfare,
and that in order to promote the public interest and the public welfare, and in the exercise of
its police power, it is necessary to regulate those who operate motor vehicle booting
businesses in Louisiana, in order to prevent frauds, impositions, and other abuses upon its
citizens.
(2)The legislature also finds that as the practice of immobilizing motor vehicles by
booting on private property has become more common, complaints have surfaced regarding
the conduct of some of the persons engaged in this business, including
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§1741. Immobilization of motor vehicles by booting; private property; legislative findings
A.(1) The legislature finds and declares that the immobilization of motor vehicles
by booting in the state of Louisiana vitally affects the public interest and the public welfare,
and that in order to promote the public interest and the public welfare, and in the exercise of
its police power, it is necessary to regulate those who operate motor vehicle booting
businesses in Louisiana, in order to prevent frauds, impositions, and other abuses upon its
citizens.
(2) The legislature also finds that as the practice of immobilizing motor vehicles by
booting on private property has become more common, complaints have surfaced regarding
the conduct of some of the persons engaged in this business, including complaints of
employees engaging in strong-arm tactics to intimidate motorists. The legislature finds it
necessary to establish minimum consumer protection standards as well as remedies for
motorists who suffer property damage as a result of having their motor vehicles booted or
claim to have been wrongfully booted.
B. As used in this Chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meaning
ascribed to them in this Section, except as otherwise may be provided or unless a different
meaning is plainly required by the context:
(1) "Boot" or "booting" means the act of placing on a parked motor vehicle a
mechanical device that is designed to be attached to the wheel or tire or other part of such
vehicle so as to prohibit its usual manner of movement.
(2) "Persons" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, firm, or
other business entity.
(3) "Private property" means any privately owned parking facility at any location or
any parking lot or street which is privately owned and is located near or contiguous to
premises having one or more stores or business establishments which is used for the parking
of motor vehicles or for vehicular travel by the owner or customers of such establishments
and those having express or implied permission of the owner. Private property does not
mean any parking facility, parking lot, or street which is owned by the state or any of its
political subdivisions or by any postsecondary education institution.
C.(1) Any person engaged in the business of booting motor vehicles parked on
private property in any parish or municipality in the state of Louisiana shall comply with all
the requirements of this Chapter and all the licensing and other requirements of any
ordinance regulating such business of the parish or municipality in which the person engages
in such business.
(2) Any parish or municipality may levy an annual fee for licensing persons to
engage in the business of booting motor vehicles parked on private property in the parish or
municipality.
(3) No person shall engage in the business of booting motor vehicles unless such
person shall do both of the following:
(a) Maintain minimum insurance coverage in the amount of one million dollars in
general liability, one million dollars in commercial auto, one million dollars in garage
liability, fifty thousand dollars in garage keepers, one million dollars in errors and omissions,
one million dollars in umbrella coverage, and shall have workers' compensation coverage on
all employees.
(b) Show proof of financial responsibility by depositing with the parish or
municipality a continuing bond with a commercial surety authorized to do business in the
state and approved by the parish or municipality in the amount of ten thousand dollars
payable to the parish or municipality, which bond shall be conditioned upon faithful
observance of all the provisions of this Chapter and any ordinances of the parish or
municipality with respect to the business of booting motor vehicles on private property, and
shall also indemnify any person who suffers any loss by reason of a failure to observe such
provisions of this Chapter or such parish or municipal ordinance, or any person who suffers
any loss, damages, and expenses by reason of a failure to properly boot a vehicle.
D.(1) No person shall boot a motor vehicle parked on private property unless such
person has a written contract with the owner of the private property, or his authorized
representative, to boot motor vehicles parked on any such property.
(2) No person shall boot a motor vehicle parked on private property unless a sign is
posted at each lot entrance. In addition, each sign shall contain the information which may
be prescribed by the parish or municipality and shall include all of the following:
(a) The signs shall be at least eighteen inches wide and twenty-four inches tall and
shall be made of weather resistant material.
(b) In lettering at least two inches tall in height and in a solid color that contrasts
with the background the sign shall read "Towing and Booting Enforced" or "Booting
Enforced" as is applicable to the property.
(c) In lettering at least one inch in height and in a solid color that contrasts with the
background the sign shall clearly state the following:
(i) The name and phone number of the booting company including the area code and
the amount of the boot removal fee and, in the case of a pay-to-park lot, a statement that
unpaid parking fees will also be collected.
(ii) Statement that "Unauthorized vehicles will be towed or booted at owner's or
operator's expense."
(iii) A statement describing who may park in the parking facility or the private
property, such as "Paid Customer Parking Only", "Permit Parking Only", "Resident Parking
Only", or similar statement.
(iv) In the case of pay-to-park lots, the sign shall state how to pay.
(3) No charge in excess of the amount contained on the signs required by this
Subsection shall be imposed to release a booted motor vehicle. In addition, no boot removal
fee or any other amount shall be charged therefor if personnel responsible for removing the
boot do not arrive within ninety minutes of the call or other notification that the owner or
operator of the vehicle requests removal of the boot.
(4) The phone number required to be stated on the signs required by Paragraph
(2)(c)(i) of this Subsection shall be in operation twenty-four hours a day and shall be manned
by a live operator.
(5) No person shall boot a motor vehicle parked on private property or a pay-to-park
lot because the motor vehicle is improperly parked in a marked space on such private
property or a pay-to-park lot unless the person booting the vehicle obtains photographic proof
sufficient to clearly show the improper parking, whether by cell phone photograph or
otherwise.
E.(1) It shall be unlawful for any person, either as principal, agent, or employee, to
operate any vehicle to engage in or operate, or assist in the engagement or operation of, a
business engaged in booting motor vehicles on private property unless the vehicle shall have
displayed on each side in plain view the name of the business, the address from which the
business is operating, and a phone number with area code of the business. The lettering shall
be at least two inches in height and shall be in a contrasting color to the vehicle. Information
may be on a removable magnet, so it can be removed when the vehicle is not in service.
(2) Business identification shall be visibly worn by vehicle booting agents at all
times while booting and accepting payment.
F.(1) Any person who has booted a vehicle shall immediately affix at the rear-most
portion of the window adjacent to the driver's seat of such vehicle a sticker containing a
warning that any attempt to move the vehicle may result in damage to the vehicle, the fee to
remove the boot, and the time the vehicle was booted.
(2) The sticker shall also contain the name, address, and Parish or Municipal
Occupational License Number of the motor vehicle booting business as well as the same
twenty-four hour business telephone number required by Paragraph (D)(2)(c)(i) and (4)
which shall facilitate the dispatch of personnel responsible for removing the boot and a
statement that no fee shall be due if personnel responsible for removing the boot do not
arrive within ninety minutes of the call or other notification that the driver requests removal
of the boot.
G.(1) Upon payment of all fees to remove a boot, the person who booted the motor
vehicle, or his authorized representative, shall remove the boot and the window sticker
immediately at no additional charge. The personnel responsible for removing the boot shall
be capable of accepting payment by credit or debit card as well as cash. However, no boot
removal fee or other charge therefor shall be due if personnel responsible for removing the
boot do not arrive within ninety minutes of the call or other notification that the driver
requests removal of the boot. No release or waiver of any kind purporting to limit or avoid
liability for damages to a motor vehicle that has been booted shall be valid.
(2) Any person who boots a motor vehicle, or any other person authorized to accept
payment of any booting fees, shall provide a signed receipt to the person paying the booting
fees at the time such fees are paid. The receipt shall contain the name, business address,
Parish or Municipal Occupational License Number, and business telephone number of the
person who booted the motor vehicle, as such information appears on the Parish or
Municipal Occupational License granted to the person by the parish or municipality.
(3) The receipt shall also include any telephone number which has been designated
by the parish or municipality as the office within the parish or municipality responsible for
receiving complaints with respect to booting, if any.
H. The owner of a motor vehicle that has been booted shall have such right to an
administrative hearing in the parish or municipality in which the motor vehicle was booted
as may be granted by ordinance of the parish or municipality. The purpose of the hearing is
to determine the validity of the booting and the fees imposed. The owner shall make a
written request for a hearing within ten calendar days from the date the motor vehicle was
booted. The receipt provided for in Paragraphs (2) and (3) of Subsection G shall advise the
owner or operator of a booted vehicle of his right under parish or municipal ordinance to ask
for and receive such hearing.
I. The ownership entity of the parking facility shall not receive any compensation,
including any rebate or other valuable consideration, in connection with the immobilization
of motor vehicles by booting on private property, other than unpaid parking fees. Any
unpaid parking fees assessed pursuant to this Section shall not be in any amount greater than
the amount actually incurred for parking in the parking facility.
J. A first violation of this Chapter by a person engaged in the business of booting
motor vehicles parked on private property shall subject such person to a warning, a
subsequent violation shall subject such person to a suspension of the violator's right to
engage in the business of booting motor vehicles on private property.
K. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prohibit any parish or municipality
from enacting ordinances that impose more restrictive requirements or regulations than those
provided in this Chapter.