Towing OK'D for Uninsured Vehicles in Accidents: Dallas: Despite Concerns, Council Unanimously Backs Impounding Plan
Posted on: Thursday, 26 January 2006, 15:00 CST
By Dave Levinthal, The Dallas Morning News
Jan. 26--Uninsured drivers in Dallas, beware.
The City Council on Wednesday approved an ordinance mandating the impounding of uninsured vehicles involved in accidents to which police respond.
"They'll think twice before they get into their car," Mayor Laura Miller said of uninsured drivers.
Although the council voted unanimously in favor of the ordinance, several members questioned whether it would prove effective.
"I have heartburn about how this is going to operate," Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia said, adding that the city's auto pound needs more staff, greater capacity and better security to handle the potential influx of vehicles.
Council member Leo Chaney doubted whether the ordinance would prompt poor, uninsured motorists to purchase policies.
And council member Mitchell Rasansky argued that the ordinance didn't go far enough.
"We're waiting for an accident -- smack! -- to happen," he said, slapping his hands together. "I'd confiscate the car when they're stopped for a traffic violation."
Under the ordinance, police are directed to ask drivers involved in accidents to provide proof of insurance. Police would order uninsured drivers' cars towed -- at the drivers' expense -- to the city's auto pound in West Dallas.
If a driver claims to have insurance but can't provide proof, officers are expected to make reasonable efforts to validate drivers' assertions, the ordinance says. Council member Pauline Medrano suggested that insurance companies create a toll-free number so drivers can verify their insurance coverage.
The ordinance will undergo a formal review in two years, officials said. Some council members said they'd like to conduct an interim review after one year to check for racial, ethnic and geographic profiling.
E-mail dlevinthal@dallasnews.com
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Source: The Dallas Morning News
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