Arizona Towing Laws: Impounds, Release, and Fees

Arizona towing laws set strict limits on when a vehicle can be removed, what a tow company must do once it has your car, and how quickly it has to give the car back. The main rules live in ARS 28-3511 (law enforcement impounds), ARS 9-499.05 (private property tows), and ARS 28-4847 (release, billing, and penalties). Knowing them can save you hundreds in storage fees and keep a tow company from charging for things it isn’t allowed to charge for.

When Your Vehicle Can Be Towed

Two very different sets of rules apply depending on who ordered the tow.

Law Enforcement Impounds

An Arizona officer is required to impound a vehicle in certain situations. The driver’s license status is the most common trigger: driving on a revoked license for any reason, never having been issued a valid license or permit in any state, or driving without a required ignition interlock device all force an impound. The vehicle must also be impounded when the driver is committing aggressive or reckless driving under ARS 28-693, racing under ARS 28-708, or obstructing a highway, but only when the officer reasonably believes letting the person keep driving would put others at risk of serious injury or death. A vehicle displayed for sale with a destroyed or altered VIN is impounded as well.¹ These are not discretionary calls.

Private Property Tows

A towing company cannot pull your car off a private lot unless it has a request from law enforcement or express written permission from the property owner or the owner’s agent. The property owner must either sign each individual tow order or have a written contract with the tow company covering a defined time period, and the tow company itself is not allowed to act as the property owner’s agent.²

Signage is just as important. The lot has to be posted with signs clearly visible from any point within the lot and at every entrance, and those signs must state the parking restrictions, what happens to violators, the maximum cost (including storage and all other charges), and a phone number and address where the vehicle can be recovered.² A lot without proper signage is legally treated as consenting to unrestricted public parking, which can make the tow itself invalid. A company that tows from private property without meeting these requirements commits a class 2 misdemeanor. Cities and towns can also cap private-property tow rates, so the maximum legal charge varies by location.

Getting Your Car Out of a Law Enforcement Impound

To release a vehicle after a law enforcement impound, you need to bring a valid driver license (Arizona or your home state), current vehicle registration or a valid salvage or dismantle certificate of title, and proof of insurance meeting Arizona’s financial responsibility requirements. If an ignition interlock device is required, you also need proof that a working one is installed.³

The owner or the owner’s spouse is responsible for the towing, storage, and administrative charges. The one exception: if the vehicle was stolen and the theft was reported to law enforcement, you don’t owe those fees.³

Several situations qualify for early release before the standard impoundment period ends. These include a stolen vehicle, a situation where the owner’s driving privilege has since been reinstated and the owner was the driver, and a rental vehicle operated under a valid rental agreement. A spouse or co-owner who was not driving can also obtain early release by signing an agreement not to let the vehicle be driven by anyone without a valid license for the next year.³

Release Rules for Private and Insurance-Related Tows

When your car sits on a tow lot after a crash, breakdown, or private-property tow, ARS 28-4847 governs the release. Once the storage lot receives a valid release request, an itemized bill has been provided, and payment is made, the tow company must release the vehicle the same day during normal business hours.⁴ If an insurance company is handling the release, the written request can come by fax, email, or hand delivery and must identify the insurer, the owner, the claim number, and either carry the owner’s written consent or a statement that the insurer has the owner’s authorization.

Storage lots must be open or available by appointment on weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., excluding holidays, for releases and billing questions. Once the release and payment go through, the company cannot keep tacking on storage fees beyond prorating a partial day, as long as you actually pick up the car during business hours the same day.

Your Right to Inspect the Car and Take Your Belongings

This is one of the most useful protections in Arizona law, and most people never hear about it. The owner, or someone the owner designates in writing with a third-party witness, can go to the storage lot during normal business hours to inspect the vehicle, remove personal property from inside, and report any damage to the tow company at the time of inspection. The company cannot charge you anything to take your personal belongings as long as you do it during business hours.⁴

There’s a limit on what counts as personal property. Vehicle parts, equipment, and accessories don’t qualify, so you can take out a laptop, groceries, or a child’s car seat, but not aftermarket speakers or a roof rack. The tow company may ask you to sign a release-of-liability form when you remove items; that form is prescribed by the Arizona Department of Transportation, so the company isn’t allowed to invent its own version.

The Damage Presumption That Can Hurt You

If you don’t inspect the vehicle before it leaves the lot, or you inspect but don’t report damage then and there, Arizona law creates a rebuttable presumption that any damage or missing property happened while the vehicle was not in the tow company’s custody. You then carry the burden of proving the company caused the damage, by a preponderance of the evidence.⁴ Inspect and document before the car moves. Photos help.

Billing, Payment, and Storage Fees

Arizona has a sharp rule about itemized bills. If you or your insurer requests a detailed statement of charges before noon on a day the tow company is required to be open, the company must deliver the itemized breakdown by close of business the same day. Miss that deadline and the company cannot charge storage fees for the days that follow until it actually produces the statement.⁴ A tow company that stalls on billing eats the delay.

Tow companies must accept payment by cash, credit card, debit card, insurance company checks, or money orders. A “cash only” demand violates state law.

You Pick the Repair Shop and the Onward Tow

Arizona owners have an unrestricted right to choose any repair facility. A tow company or operator that mentions a particular shop must at the same time tell you about your right to choose any shop and disclose any common ownership between the recommended facility and the tow company.⁴ You also get to pick which tow company moves the vehicle from the storage lot to the repair shop.

If You Think the Tow Was Wrong

For a law enforcement impound, the registered owner or lienholder generally has ten days from the impound date to request a post-storage hearing. The hearing is informal and does not require an attorney, and it only looks at whether the officer had legal grounds at the time of the impound. Being found not guilty of the underlying traffic or criminal charge later does not automatically undo the impound.³ If the hearing officer finds the impound lacked grounds, the impounding agency, not the tow company, pays the towing and storage costs.

For misconduct by the tow company itself, the strongest route is a complaint to the Arizona Attorney General. Violations of these rules are classified as unlawful practices under state law, which gives the AG’s office direct authority to investigate and bring civil or criminal action.

Penalties Tow Companies Face

A tow company that refuses to release a vehicle after a proper written release request and payment of authorized fees commits a petty offense. A repeat of the same violation within 36 months escalates to a class 3 misdemeanor.⁴ Any act by an employee or contractor is treated as an act of the company, so a company cannot shift blame onto an individual worker. Towing from private property without the required signage and authorization is a class 2 misdemeanor.²

Don’t Let the Car Sit

Storage fees run every day the vehicle stays on the lot, and at some point the car can be declared abandoned. A vehicle left on property for more than ten days, where it has not been left under a written or verbal storage agreement and has not been moved, meets Arizona’s abandonment criteria. The tow company then files an abandoned vehicle report electronically, and the Motor Vehicle Division sends notice to the registered owner, lienholder, and other interested parties giving them 30 days to reclaim it. If nobody claims it in that window, MVD may transfer ownership to the person in possession or authorize disposal, and outstanding fees can still be owed.⁵ If you can’t afford to retrieve the car immediately, respond to the notices anyway. Silence is how people lose the vehicle outright.

1
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-3511 – Removal and Immobilization or Impoundment of Vehicle
2
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 9-499.05 – Authority to Set Rates for Private Towing Carrier
3
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-3512 – Release of Vehicle Civil Penalties
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4847 – Owners Insurance Companies Release Fees Vehicle Repair Facilities
5
Arizona Department of Transportation. Abandoned Vehicles