Tow truck licensing in WA: what to check before you operate

Towing in Western Australia is a regulated activity, and the rules cover more ground than people starting out expect. The purpose of this page is to make sure nothing lands as a surprise, and to point you at who to ask.

The areas to have squared away

Operator and vehicle authorisation

Confirm what authorisation is required for the business itself, for each tow truck in the fleet, and for each person driving one. These are frequently separate approvals with separate renewal cycles, and a lapse on any of them can put a truck off the road. The Department of Transport is the authority to confirm this with.

Driver licensing and endorsements

Check the class of driver licence required for each vehicle you run, and whether any additional accreditation applies to the person rather than the vehicle. If you employ drivers, confirm how you are expected to verify and record their status.

Consent and authority to tow

Understand what authorisation you need from a vehicle owner before moving their vehicle, what has to be documented, and what the rules are at a crash scene specifically — including who may direct a tow and in what circumstances. This is the area where getting it wrong is most consequential.

Fees, charges and disclosure

Check whether any of your charges are regulated or capped, and what you are required to disclose to a customer before towing. Consumer protection obligations under Australian Consumer Law apply alongside anything specific to towing.

Storage and release

If you hold vehicles, confirm the requirements around storage, notification, access for owners and insurers, and the process and timeframes for release.

Insurance

Confirm minimum insurance obligations and check that your cover actually matches what you do — particularly if you are carrying vehicles rather than towing them, or working on freeways.

Roadside and work-site safety

Working on a live carriageway carries duties under work health and safety law as well as road rules. Confirm requirements for high-visibility clothing, warning devices, vehicle positioning and any traffic management obligations.

Where to verify

• Department of Transport (WA) — tow truck and operator authorisation, driver requirements.
• WorkSafe WA — roadside and work-site safety obligations.
• Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and Consumer Protection WA — pricing disclosure and consumer obligations.
• Your insurer and broker — cover appropriate to the work you actually perform.
• An accountant or solicitor familiar with the industry — structure, contracts and terms of trade.

A practical habit

Keep one document listing every authorisation the business holds, who it covers, and when it expires, and put the renewal dates in a calendar with a month of warning. Most compliance problems in small operations are not deliberate — they are a renewal nobody was watching.