Senate Bill No. 390
(By Senators Ball, Wooton, Hunter and Love)
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[Introduced February 4, 1998; referred to the Committee
on Transportation.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section eight, article twenty-four,
chapter seventeen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to allowing
towing companies that have towed an abandoned vehicle to
acquire title and registration to that vehicle from the
division of motor vehicles when the vehicle is not claimed
by the owner or the owner cannot otherwise be determined;
and providing that the vehicle may then be sold at private
sale or public auction by the towing company.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section eight, article twenty-four, chapter seventeen
of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty- one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 24. DISPOSAL OF ABANDONED MOTOR VEHICLES, JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLES, OLD VEHICLE TIRES AND ABANDONED
OR INOPERATIVE HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES.
§17-24-8. Abandoned or junked motor vehicles; notification to
motor vehicle owner and lienholder; charges and
fees; exceptions.
(a) The enforcement agency which takes into custody and
possession an abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle
shall, within seven days after taking custody and possession
thereof, notify the last known registered owner of such motor
vehicle and all lienholders of record that such motor vehicle has
been taken into custody and possession, such notification to be
by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested. The
notice shall:
(1) Contain a description of such motor vehicle, including
the year, make, model, manufacturer's serial or identification
number or any other number which may have been assigned to such
motor vehicle by the commissioner of motor vehicles and any
distinguishing marks;
(2) Set forth the location of the facility where such motor
vehicle is being held and the location where such motor vehicle
was taken into custody and possession;
(3) Inform the owner and any lienholders of record of their
right to reclaim such motor vehicle within ten days after the date notice was received by the owner or lienholders, upon
payment of all towing, preservation and storage charges resulting
from taking and placing such motor vehicle into custody and
possession; and
(4) State that the failure of the owner or lienholders of
record to exercise their right to reclaim such motor vehicle
within such ten-day period shall be deemed a waiver by the owner
and all lienholders of record of all right, title and interest in
such motor vehicle and of their consent to the sale or disposal
of the abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle at a
public auction or to a licensed salvage yard or demolisher.
(b) If the identity of the last registered owner of the
abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle cannot be
determined, or if the certificate of registration or certificate
of title contains no address for the owner, or if it is
impossible to determine with reasonable certainty the identity
and addresses of all lienholders, notice shall be published as a
Class I legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of
article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code, and the
publication area for such publication shall be the county wherein
such motor vehicle was located at the time such enforcement
agency took custody and possession thereof, and such notice shall
be sufficient to meet all requirements of notice pursuant to this article. Any notice by publication may contain multiple listings
of abandoned motor vehicles and junked motor vehicles. The
notice shall be published within seven days after such motor
vehicle is taken into custody and possession and shall have the
same contents required for a notice pursuant to subsection (a) of
this section, except that the ten-day period shall run from the
date such notice is published as aforesaid.
(c) An enforcement agency which hires any person or entity
to take into custody and possession an abandoned or junked motor
vehicle pursuant to this section shall notify such person or
entity of the name and address of the registered owner of the
motor vehicle, if known, and all lienholders of record, if any,
within seven days after the vehicle is taken into custody and
possession: Provided, That the requirements of this subsection
shall not apply to motor vehicles for which the registered owner
thereof cannot be ascertained by due diligence or investigation.
(d) The person or entity hired by an enforcement agency to
take into custody or possession an abandoned or junked motor
vehicle shall, within fifteen days after such possession, notify
the registered owner of such vehicle and all lienholders of
record, if any, as identified by the enforcement agency pursuant
to subsection (c) herein, by registered mail, return receipt
requested, of the location of the facility where the motor vehicle is being stored and of such owner's liability for all
towing, preservation and storage charges for such motor vehicle.
Upon the issuance of such notice, the identified owner of the
motor vehicle shall be liable and responsible for all costs for
towing, preservation and storage of the motor vehicle: Provided,
That failure to issue the notice required by this subsection
within fifteen days after possession of the motor vehicle shall
relieve the identified owner of the motor vehicle of any
liability for charges for towing, preservation and storage in
excess of the sum of the first five days of such charges:
Provided, however, That the requirements of this subsection shall
not apply to motor vehicles for which the registered owner
thereof cannot be ascertained by due diligence or investigation.
(e) The person or entity hired by an enforcement agency, may
if such motor vehicle is not claimed by the owner or a lienholder
after notice within the time set forth in subsection (d) of this
section, or if the identity of the last registered owner of the
abandoned motor vehicle or junked motor vehicle cannot be
determined, or if the certificate of registration or certificate
of title contains no address of the owner, or if it is impossible
to determine with reasonable certainty the identity and address
of all lienholders after publication as set forth in subsection
(b) of this section, file an application with the division of motor vehicles for a certificate of title and registration which,
upon payment of the appropriate fees, shall be issued. The
person or entity may then sell the motor vehicle at private sale
or public auction.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow towing companies
that have towed an abandoned vehicle to acquire title and
registration to that vehicle from the Division of Motor Vehicles
when the vehicle is not claimed by the owner or the owner cannot
otherwise be determined, so that the vehicle can be sold at
private sale or public auction by the towing company to recoup
its cost of towing that vehicle.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.