Arizona Towing Laws for Private Property: Signs, Fees, and Your Rights

Under Arizona towing laws for private property, a company can remove your vehicle without your consent only if a law enforcement officer requested the tow or the property owner gave written authorization for that specific vehicle, and only if the lot is posted with signs that disclose the rules, the maximum cost, and where to find your car. The company must also telephone local law enforcement within one hour of the tow. Miss that call, and the company forfeits every dollar of towing and storage fees.¹²

When a Tow From Private Property Is Legal

Two things, and only two things, authorize a non-consensual tow from private property in Arizona. The first is a request from a law enforcement agency. The second is express written permission from the property owner or an authorized agent.¹

That written permission can come in one of two forms. The owner can sign an individual towing order for each vehicle removed, or they can set up a written contract with the towing company covering a defined time period. Either way, there is a paper trail tied to each tow. A verbal complaint from a neighbor or a nod from a property manager is not enough.

The statute also closes an obvious loophole: the towing company itself cannot act as the property owner’s agent. A towing crew cannot patrol a lot and effectively authorize its own tows.¹ A real person connected to the property has to sign off.

What the Signs Have to Say

Signage is the foundation of a lawful tow. If the lot is not posted with compliant signs, the law presumes the property owner has allowed unrestricted public parking, and any tow from that lot is unauthorized regardless of what paperwork the company carries.¹

Signs must be posted at every entrance and must be clearly visible and readable from any point in the lot. Each sign has to spell out four things:

The parking restrictions, including any conditions or time limits.
That violating vehicles will be towed or impounded.
The maximum total cost the vehicle owner could owe, including storage and any other charges tied to the tow.
A phone number and address where the vehicle owner can locate the car.

The maximum-cost line is where many lots fall short. A sign that just says “vehicles will be towed at owner’s expense” without a specific dollar figure does not satisfy the statute. If you come back to find your car gone, read the signs before you pay anything. Missing or incomplete signage is often the strongest argument that the tow was unauthorized.

The One-Hour Call to Police

After a non-consensual tow from private property, the towing company must telephone the local law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction where the vehicle was taken from, within one hour of moving it. The rule exists so that when you call police to report your car missing or stolen, they can tell you where it is.²

A company that misses the deadline forfeits all claims to towing and storage fees on that vehicle and commits a class 1 misdemeanor, carrying up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.²³ The fee forfeiture is the practical consequence. If the company cannot prove it called law enforcement within the hour, you owe nothing. The one exception is a tow directed by a peace officer, where the notification responsibility shifts to the agency.

Your Rights at the Tow Yard

Several protections kick in the moment you show up to get your car back. Know them before you hand over any money.

Itemized Bill Before You Pay

The towing company must give you a detailed written statement of all charges, including towing, storage, and related fees, at no cost. If you ask for that statement and the company doesn’t deliver it by the close of business that day, it cannot charge storage fees for any additional days until it does.⁴ That rule exists because a common tactic is to stall on paperwork while the daily storage meter runs.

Extra Protection for Renters and Lessees

If you rent or lease property and park in a space the owner has authorized for your use, your car has heightened protection. It cannot be towed from that authorized space unless there is actual evidence the vehicle has been abandoned. Expired registration by itself does not prove abandonment; it is one factor, and more is required.⁵ This matters most in apartment complexes, where towing is sometimes used as a management tool. A property manager’s say-so is not enough to take a car from a tenant’s assigned spot.

How Much a Towing Company Can Charge

Arizona does not set a single statewide cap on private property towing fees. Instead, the law hands that authority to local government. Incorporated cities and towns can set the maximum amount a company may charge for towing, transporting, or impounding a vehicle removed from private property without the owner’s consent, including storage and ancillary fees.¹ For private property in unincorporated areas, the county board of supervisors has the same authority, unless the property sits within a city or town that already regulates towing, in which case the city or town rate controls.⁶

The maximum cost posted on the parking lot sign has to match whatever the applicable local cap allows. Check your city, town, or county ordinance to find the specific numbers. A bill above the local cap is an overcharge.

If You Think Your Tow Was Illegal

Start by photographing the signs at the lot, or the absence of them. Then file a police report and ask the responding agency for documentation showing when, or whether, the towing company called in the tow. That record is the hinge. If the one-hour notification call did not happen, the company has forfeited its fees, and you have grounds to demand a refund of anything you already paid.²

Unauthorized towing itself is a class 2 misdemeanor for the towing carrier, and failure to make the one-hour call is a class 1 misdemeanor.¹² Criminal prosecution is rare in practice. The fee forfeiture is what gives vehicle owners real leverage. You may also have grounds for a civil claim to recover fees you already paid, though Arizona does not have a statute specifically providing for multiple damages in private property towing disputes.

A Note on Abandoned Vehicles

Arizona handles abandoned vehicles under a separate track in Title 28, distinct from the private property towing framework in ARS 9-499.05.⁷ If you are a property owner dealing with a car that has been left on your land, the removal and storage rules there, including a 48-hour reporting requirement and limited storage fee recovery, apply instead.⁵ The rules above are the ones that govern the ordinary scenario: your car was parked, and someone had it towed.

1
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 9-499.05 – Authority to Set Rates for Private Towing Carrier; Notice of Parking Violations; Violation; Classification; Definition
2
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4836 – Towed Vehicles; Notification; Arizona Crime Information Center Database; Violation; Classification
3
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 13-707 – Misdemeanors; Sentencing
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4847 – Owners; Insurance Companies; Release; Fees; Vehicle Repair Facilities; Applicability; Violation; Classification; Business Practices; Unlawful Practices; Definition
5
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4834 – Vehicle Removal
6
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 11-251.04 – Authority to Set Rates for Private Towing Carrier; Definition; Violation; Classification
7
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4839 – Report; Vehicle Abandoned in Storage; Violation