§ 399-V — Parking facilities; towing of vehicles, posting of notices

§ 399-v. Parking facilities; towing of vehicles, posting of notices.\n1. For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the\nfollowing meanings:\n (a) "commercial tower" shall mean any person, firm, partnership,\ncorporation or association that engages in commercial towing, as defined\nin section one hundred seven-b of the vehicle and traffic law, whether\nby contract or other agreement;\n (b) "owner" shall mean the owner or lessee of a parking facility or an\nagent of such owner or lessee, provided that such term shall not include\na commercial tower acting as an agent of such owner or lessee; and\n (c) "parking facility" shall mean parking facilities having a parking\ncapacity of five or more motor vehicles not owned or operated by the\nstate, a municipality or public authority.\n 2. Every parking facility shall display prominently a conspicuous\nnotice stating the name, address and telephone number of the operator of\nthe parking facility together with the name, address and telephone\nnumber of any individual or entity authorized to tow from such parking\nfacility any motor vehicle or the name, address and telephone number of\nany individual or entity authorized to place a device designed to\nimmobilize any motor vehicle in such parking facility. Such notice shall\nalso state that unauthorized vehicles will be towed at the vehicle\nowner's expense.\n 3. No owner or operator of a parking facility shall tow or authorize\nthe towing of any motor vehicle or immobilize or authorize the\nimmobilization of any motor vehicle in such parking facility unless such\nowner or operator displays a notice pursuant to subdivision two of this\nsection.\n 4. No owner or operator of a parking facility shall solicit, receive,\naccept or agree to receive or accept any payment, commission or other\nconsideration from a commercial tower for the towing and storing of\nvehicles removed from such owner's or operator's parking facility.\n 4-a. (a) Whenever there shall be a violation of this section, an\napplication may be made by the attorney general in the name of the\npeople of the state of New York to a court or justice having\njurisdiction to issue an injunction, and upon notice to the defendant of\nnot less than five days, to enjoin and restrain the continuance of such\nviolations; and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or\njustice that the defendant has, in fact, violated this section, an\ninjunction may be issued by such court or justice, enjoining and\nrestraining any further violation, without requiring proof that any\nperson has, in fact, been injured or damaged thereby. In any such\nproceeding the court may make allowances to the attorney general as\nprovided in paragraph six of subdivision (a) of section eighty-three\nhundred three of the civil practice law and rules, and direct\nrestitution. Whenever the court shall determine that a violation of this\nsection has occurred, the court may impose a civil penalty of not less\nthan fifty dollars and not more than one thousand dollars for each such\nviolation. In connection with any such proposed application, the\nattorney general is authorized to take proof and make a determination of\nthe relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in accordance with the civil\npractice law and rules.\n (b) The provisions of this section may be enforced concurrently by the\ntown attorney, city corporation counsel, or other lawful designee of a\nmunicipality or local government, and all moneys collected thereunder\nshall be retained by such municipality or local government.\n 5. The provisions of this section shall not apply to cities having a\npopulation of one million or more.\n 6. Any person who has been injured by reason of any violation of this\nsection may bring an action in his or her own name to enjoin such\nunlawful act or practice, an action to recover his or her actual damages\nor one hundred fifty dollars, whichever is greater, or both such\nactions. The court may, in its discretion, increase the award of damages\nto an amount not to exceed three times the actual damages up to one\nthousand dollars, if the court finds the defendant willfully or\nknowingly violated this section. The court may award reasonable\nattorney's fees to a prevailing plaintiff.\n 7. This section shall not annul, alter, affect or exempt any owner or\noperator subject to the provisions of this section from complying with\nthe laws, ordinances, rules or regulations of any locality relating to\nthe posting of parking facility notices and/or the towing of motor\nvehicles from parking facilities, except to the extent that these laws,\nordinances, rules or regulations are inconsistent with any provision of\nthis section, but no such local law, ordinance, rule or regulation shall\nbe considered inconsistent if it affords greater protection to the\nconsumer including but not limited to local laws, rules or regulations\nthat:\n (i) regulate the reasonable amount that a commercial tower may charge\nfor the towing and storage of a vehicle removed from a parking facility;\n (ii) require written contracts between an owner and a commercial\ntower, which contracts may also be required to be filed with the\npolitical subdivision;\n (iii) require the owner to be physically present when a vehicle is\ntowed from a parking facility; or\n (iv) regulate the hours when a commercial tower must be available to\nrelease a vehicle that is towed from a parking facility.\n