- Cook Government to introduce next
phase of crash towing reforms for WA
- Towing businesses will be required to be
authorised under Towing Services Act
2024
- Businesses will need to
meet 'fit and proper' persons, public interest, and storage yard
standards
The
Cook Government is preparing to introduce the next phase of
Western Australia's crash towing reforms as part of ongoing work to create
safer and fairer consumer protections for the Western Australian community.
The Towing
Services Act 2024 (the Act) makes provision for the authorisation of
crash towing businesses in Western Australia.
Once the new
requirements are introduced into the regulations, all towing businesses must be
authorised to undertake crash towing.
Failure to do so could incur significant
penalties of fines of $40,000 for an individual or $200,000 for a
business.
To become authorised, regulated towing
businesses will need to meet various requirements, including:
- 'fit and proper' persons considerations;
- public interest considerations; and
- storage yard minimum standards.
To be considered 'fit and proper', a
person must be of good repute regarding their character, honesty, and
integrity. Any close associate of a towing business must also be of good
repute.
Authorisations for
towing businesses are expected to come into effect in mid-2026. Authorisations for individual towing workers will be introduced at a
later stage.
The Department of Transport and Major
Infrastructure (DTMI) will soon engage with WA's towing industry to
provide further education to ensure businesses
understand the upcoming changes and what they will be
required to do to become authorised.
Industry can ensure they are included in DTMI's
engagement activities by signing up for the DTMI industry newsletter emails.
The Towing Services Bill 2024 was
passed in October 2024, immediately introducing a ban on
advertising or payment of spotter fees.
In January 2025,
the Towing Services Regulations 2025 introduced
maximum charges for towing and storage of crashed light vehicles
in the Perth and Peel regions, as well as increased penalties for
authority to tow breaches.
Comments
attributed to Minister Assisting the Transport
Minister Jessica Stojkovski:
"The
authorisation of towing businesses is a crucial element of the Cook Government's
reforms to create a safe, fair, and efficient crash towing
industry for WA and is part of our commitment to building safe and inclusive
communities.
"The
new requirements for WA crash towing businesses to be authorised
and to meet 'fit and proper' persons, public interest, and storage yard
standards will bolster the regulations introduced in 2024 to protect
Western Australians involved in crashes on our roads.
"The reforms are also
being introduced to protect ethical towing operators, and it is
important that all crash towing operators understand what
they will need to do to make sure they are eligible to become
authorised and continue operating.
"I encourage
all members of WA's crash towing industry to register for regular updates from
DTMI on the next phase of reforms."
