Policy

Legislation restricts towing companies from obtaining a client's personal information. Service Alberta has approved certain registry agents to generate Courtesy Letters on behalf of towing companies to notify the registered owner their vehicle was towed.

Registry agents interested in performing this service must contact Contract Management & Administration.

Requirements

A registry agent must open a billing account with the towing company prior to processing any Courtesy Letter request. The towing company must present their request on company letterhead and a copy of the towing slip for each vehicle they are requesting a courtesy letter for.

Each towing slip must:

• Be submitted to the agent within 15 calendar days from the date on the slip.
  • If an agent receives a request that is more than 15 calendar days from the date of the towing slip, the towing company must also provide a court order. The client must contact the Data Access and Contract Management Unit (DACMU) for guidance on obtaining the court order.
• Indicate the towed vehicle’s VIN.
  • When the VIN is not visible, a licence plate number can be used to complete the vehicle registration search. The towing company must explain in their request letter why the VIN was not used (e.g., VIN not readable on dash, etc.).

Note:
Towing companies from outside of Canada requesting this service must provide a towing slip to the registry agent within 21 calendar days of the date on the slip.

Procedure

Courtesy Letters must be printed on the registry agent’s letterhead. All Courtesy Letter templates can be found in the Courtesy Letter Package.

Within 1 business day of receiving the request, a registry agent must:

• Complete the following searches:
  • Vehicle Registration Search Report.
    • This is completed using the VIN recorded on the towing slip.
      • If the VIN was not visible and does not appear on the towing slip, the search may be completed using the licence plate number recorded on the towing slip.
    • When the VIN/licence plate number cannot be located on MOVES, a Not Found Vehicle Registration Search Report must be printed. The registry agent must send a letter to the towing company, using the template in the Courtesy Letter Package, advising that the VIN/licence plate number was not found and that they must verify the VIN/licence plate number of the vehicle.
  • Limited Demographic Search Report.
    • This is completed using the client MVID of the current registered owner of the vehicle that was obtained from the Vehicle Registration Search.
    • If the Limited Demographic Search Report shows an out of province address for the registered owner, provide the towing company with a letter, using the template in the Courtesy Letter Package, stating no Alberta Address was returned for the registered owner of the vehicle.
• Print a MOVES TX receipt for the requests.
• Complete the Courtesy Letter Request form (pdf) for each vehicle.
• Mail the Courtesy Letter directly to the registered owner of the vehicle.
• If requested, provide the towing company with a letter confirming the Courtesy Letter was mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle (if applicable).
• Provide the towing company with a letter stating the Courtesy Letter was returned by Canada Post, if applicable.

Audit

See 1.00.01 Access to Motor Vehicle Information Regulation (AMVIR) Search Clients and Products for retention requirements. In addition, agents must retain copies of all outgoing letters they send to clients and towing companies.

If any Courtesy Letters are returned by Canada Post, agents must retain the original copy.

Quick Reference

For client types, requirements and audit retention; see QR 1.9 - Courtesy Letters for Towing Companies.

Fees

For search fees, see Registry Agent Product Catalogue (pdf).

Date Originally Issued: Jul 25, 2013
Date Last Revised: Apr 19, 2016