# US Tow Truck Operator & Vehicle Storage License Verification (`kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses`) Actor

Verify tow truck operator, towing company and vehicle storage licenses in bulk from official registries in 2 states (TX, WA) plus New York City. {count} active licenses with license class, number, expiration and county. For insurers, roadside networks, equipment dealers and lien-sale services.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses.md
- **Developed by:** [Mark Kemp](https://apify.com/kempdata) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation, Business
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.50 / 1,000 record scrapeds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## US Tow Truck Operator & Vehicle Storage License Verification

Verify tow truck operator, towing company and vehicle storage facility licenses in bulk from official state and city registries.

### Who this is for

Insurers and roadside-assistance networks vetting tow providers. Tow-equipment and truck dealers prospecting licensed operators. Municipal and police rotation programs. Lien-sale and auction services working with storage facilities.

### What you get

One record per license: `full_name` or `business_name`, `license_number`, `credential` (Incident Management / Private Property / Consent tow operator, Vehicle Storage Facility Employee, Registered Tow Truck Operator, NYC Tow Truck Company), `city`, `county`, `expiration_date` in **MM/DD/YYYY**, `expires_in_days`, and `status`. Washington adds phone and bond status; NYC adds DARP and ROTOW program enrollment.

Texas publishes an expiration date but no status word, so `status` for Texas is computed from the expiry and every record says so in `status_basis`. Washington and New York City publish a real status column, kept as the agency's own word.

### One schema across every source

Every roster in this catalogue delivers **the same columns, in the same order, meaning the same thing** — whichever state or file the record came from. Names arrive SHOUTING; they leave in proper case as `full_name`, `first_name`, `last_name`, with `name_raw` holding the source's exact rendering. Dates are **MM/DD/YYYY**, with an `_iso` twin for spreadsheets and imports. The source's own word is never thrown away.

Full column reference: `docs/SCHEMA.md` in the source repository.

### Coverage

| Source | Registry | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| TX | TDLR license listing files (`Lttowopr_*.csv`, `Ltvsfemp.csv`) | Tow operators in all three classes plus vehicle storage facility employees |
| WA | Department of Licensing (`ucdg-xgbj`) | Registered tow truck operators and branch storage locations |
| NY | NYC DCWP (`q5u8-89nv`) | Licensed tow companies with DARP / ROTOW enrollment |

Every profession we cover includes every state we can reach through official published data. States that expose these licenses only through one-name-at-a-time lookup tools are added the moment they publish a real file. If a state you need is missing, ask.

### Input

- `states` — which registries to pull; empty means all available.
- `recordFilter` — `all`, `expiringSoon` (within `expiringWithinMonths`), or `newLicenses` (within `newWithinMonths`).
- `onlyActive` — default true; set false to include lapsed and inactive records.
- `includeBusinesses` / `includeIndividuals` — default both on.
- `maxRecords` — hard cap; the run also honours your Apify maximum-charge setting.

### Data source & fair use

Official state open-data APIs and agency-published download files only. No HTML scraping; paged, rate-limited requests; every record credits its source.

### Pricing

Pay per record delivered: **$2.50 per 1,000 records**, plus a nominal start fee. Filters run before delivery, so you are never charged for a record you did not ask for.

### Support

Answered by a person. Open an issue on this Actor or write to the address on kempdata.com.

# Actor input Schema

## `states` (type: `array`):

Which registries to pull: TX (Texas), WA (Washington), NY (New York City (DCWP)). Leave empty for every source this product covers.

## `recordFilter` (type: `string`):

"Expiring soon" = licenses coming up for renewal (renewal-season leads). "New licenses" = recently issued.

## `expiringWithinMonths` (type: `integer`):

For the expiring-soon filter: include licenses that expire within this many months.

## `newWithinMonths` (type: `integer`):

For the new-licenses filter: include licenses first issued within this many months.

## `includeBusinesses` (type: `boolean`):

Business / establishment licenses.

## `includeIndividuals` (type: `boolean`):

Licenses held by people.

## `onlyActive` (type: `boolean`):

Set false to include lapsed, expired and inactive records (the recall pool).

## `maxRecords` (type: `integer`):

Hard cap on delivered records. Your Apify maximum-charge setting is honoured as well.

## `socrataAppToken` (type: `string`):

Raises the open-data rate limit for very large pulls. Not required.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "states": [],
  "recordFilter": "all",
  "expiringWithinMonths": 6,
  "newWithinMonths": 6,
  "includeBusinesses": true,
  "includeIndividuals": true,
  "onlyActive": true,
  "maxRecords": 1000
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `records` (type: `string`):

Dataset of normalized license records in the KempData canonical schema with expiring-license and new-license lead flags.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{}' |
apify call kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,kempdata/us-tow-truck-licenses"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/J7igfUT2jYBdsVg57/builds/UFO8qvpRNzi2LodNa/openapi.json