RFP for towing services

The City of Oakland's Office of the City Administrator, on behalf of the Oakland Police Department, is soliciting proposals for 24/7 on-call towing, recovery, and secure storage services, with proposals due August 3, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time and a voluntary pre-proposal meeting on July 10, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time via Microsoft Teams. No set-aside or preference program applies; the local and small local business enterprise participation requirement has been adjusted to 0%.

The scope encompasses towing of abandoned, illegally parked, and impounded vehicles; secure storage with minimum capacity of 3,000 vehicles including 500 indoor spaces; vehicle auction and disposal; and City-owned vehicle towing at no cost to the City. The contractor must maintain a dedicated Police Evidence Hold area accommodating up to 150 vehicles at no cost. The City estimates approximately 13,000 police and City-initiated tows annually based on the previous five-year average.

Compensation is structured through referral fees of $54.00 per towed vehicle (excluding City-owned and Police Evidence Hold vehicles), a gross revenue percentage fee starting at 2.0% in year one and increasing by 0.5% annually to 4.0% by year five, and a fixed annual reimbursement of $172,000 subject to annual CPI adjustment. The contractor must reimburse 100% of contract administration costs: one full-time employee position (not exceeding $292,366 annually) and one full-time Police Records Specialist position ($120,526 annually). An annual audit at contractor expense is required, estimated at approximately 200 hours. Liquidated damages range from $50 to $750 per occurrence for performance failures including response time violations, property release delays, and record-keeping deficiencies. The contractor must comply with Oakland's Living Wage and Minimum Wage Ordinances, and late payment penalties include 10% of the amount due plus 1% monthly interest.

The contract term is five years with potential renewal options. Proposals must be submitted electronically through the iSupplier portal. The City reserves the right to conduct facility inspections prior to contract award.