[Adopted 9-26-2016 by Ord. No. 07-2016; amended in its entirety 2-26-2018 by Ord. No. 01-2018]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
COSTS
All costs incurred by the Borough or Department, including but not limited to the following: actual labor costs of personnel, including workers' compensation benefits, fringe benefits and administrative overhead; cost of equipment operation; cost of materials; and the cost of any outside contract for labor and materials.
DEPARTMENT
The Borough of Hampton Volunteer Fire Department.
MATERIALS
All materials, including but not limited to firefighting foam, chemical extinguishing agents, absorbent material, sand recovery drums, and specialized protective equipment such as acid suits, acid gloves, goggles and protective clothing.
PERSON
Any public or private corporation, company, association, society, firm, partnership, joint stock company, individual, or other entity.
The governing body of the Borough of Hampton authorizes the Department to recover the costs of firefighting materials used and expended; the costs of the use of the fire trucks, fire engines, rescue equipment, and tankers; the costs of personnel hours and hazardous situation abatement materials involved in fighting fires and/or providing emergency services.
The Department is hereby authorized to bill and collect costs due to it under this chapter through a third-party billing agent, provided that any such agreement with any professional agency engaged in the business of emergency response billing shall be subject to the approval of the Borough Council.
Said costs and fees as outlined above shall be recovered directly by the Department, or through a third-party professional agency engaged in the business of emergency response billing under a contract with the Department, by billing to the responsible party.
In addition to the aforementioned fees and costs, the Department is hereby authorized to collect reasonable interest and administration fees for the collection of the fees and costs due and owing from the insurance companies or responsible parties for the services rendered and/or materials provided.
The Department shall provide a monthly report to the Borough Council detailing all billing and receipts under this chapter.
Any person or entity responsible for payment to the Department hereunder shall reimburse the Department, or provide proof that they have submitted a claim to their insurance carrier for payment within 45 days after receipt of a statement from the Department outlining said costs and expenses. These provisions shall be subject to the following:
A. 
Persons receiving services from the Department shall cooperate with the Department or other billing personnel hired by the Department to secure full payment for services rendered from any necessary insurance carrier.
B. 
Due to anticipated time requirements for the preparation and processing of insurance claims, parties that have provided proof of a claim to their insurance carrier shall not be charged interest or be subject to penalties hereunder.
C. 
Responsible parties under this chapter shall ensure that the Department is authorized to receive any payments from an insurance carrier as required by this chapter.
D. 
The Department reserves the right to determine that a bill is uncollectable by reason of unavailability of insurance coverage and be written off.