Arizona Towing Laws for Private Property: Signage, Fees, and Release

Arizona towing laws for private property allow a company to remove your vehicle without your permission only when a law enforcement agency requests the tow or the property owner gives specific written authorization, and only from a lot posted with signs that meet the state’s requirements. Skip either step and the tow is unauthorized. Miss the one-hour police notification that follows, and the towing company loses the right to charge you for the tow or the storage.

When a Tow From Private Property Is Legal

Under ARS 9-499.05, a private towing carrier can remove a vehicle from private property without the owner’s consent in just two situations: a law enforcement agency asks for the tow, or the property owner (or an authorized agent) gives express written permission for that specific removal.¹ A verbal complaint from a neighbor, a phone call from a property manager, or the tow driver’s own judgment does not count.

The written permission takes one of two forms. The owner or agent can sign a towing order for the individual vehicle, or the owner can sign a written contract with the towing company covering a defined time period. Either way, there has to be a paper trail. The statute also prohibits the towing carrier from acting as the property owner’s agent, which shuts down arrangements where the tow company effectively authorizes its own tows.¹

Signage Requirements That Make a Tow Possible

Signage is the foundation. If a parking area isn’t 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 tow company holds.¹

Signs must be posted at every entrance and be clearly visible and readable from anywhere inside the lot. Each sign has to include:

The parking restrictions that apply, including any conditions or time limits.
A statement that vehicles violating the restrictions will be towed or impounded.
The maximum total cost the vehicle owner could owe, including storage and any related charges.
A phone number and address where the owner can locate a towed vehicle.

The maximum-cost disclosure is where posting most often fails. A generic “vehicles towed at owner’s expense” is not enough. The sign needs an actual dollar figure that covers the tow, daily storage, and any other charges tied to it. If you come back to find your car missing, the signage is the first thing to photograph. Incomplete or missing signs are often the strongest argument that the tow was unlawful.

The One-Hour Police Notification Rule

After a non-consensual tow, the towing company must notify the law enforcement agency for the jurisdiction where the vehicle was located, by telephone, within one hour of moving it. The point is simple: when you call police to report your car stolen, they should be able to tell you it was towed and where to find it.²

Miss that deadline and the consequences fall on the towing company, not you. A company that fails to notify law enforcement within the hour forfeits all claims to towing and storage fees for that vehicle and commits a class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.²³ If the company can’t show it made that call in time, you owe nothing. The only exception is a tow directed by a peace officer, where the notification responsibility shifts to the agency involved.

How Much a Private Property Tow Can Cost

Arizona sets no single statewide cap on private property towing fees. Instead, incorporated cities and towns are authorized to set the maximum amount a towing company may charge for towing, transporting, or impounding a vehicle removed from private property without the owner’s consent, including storage and ancillary charges.¹

In unincorporated areas outside city or town limits, the county board of supervisors holds the same regulatory authority. The county cap applies unless the property sits inside a city or town that already regulates towing under ARS 9-499.05, in which case the local rate controls.⁴

The dollar figure on the parking lot sign has to reflect the maximum allowed under the applicable local rule. A charge above that maximum is an overcharge. Because caps vary by jurisdiction, check your city or county’s ordinance for the specific numbers where the tow happened.

Getting Your Car Back

Arizona law gives vehicle owners concrete protections at the tow yard. Knowing them before you arrive matters, because tow yards sometimes count on you not knowing.

Itemized Bill and Payment Methods

Before you pay, the towing company must give you a detailed written statement of all charges—towing, storage, and related fees—at no cost. If the company doesn’t produce that statement by the close of business on the day you request it, it cannot charge storage fees for any additional days until it does.⁵ That rule blocks a common tactic of stalling on paperwork while daily storage climbs.

The company must accept cash, credit cards, debit cards, insurance company-issued checks, and money orders.⁵ A cash-only demand is illegal. If the company moves your vehicle between its own storage lots, it cannot charge you extra for that transfer.

Inspecting Your Vehicle and Removing Belongings

You have the right to inspect your vehicle at the storage lot during normal business hours. You can remove personal property from inside, and the company cannot charge a fee for that as long as you come during business hours.⁵ Document any damage that may have happened during the tow and note it at the time of inspection.

Same-Day Release

Once you request release and pay the authorized fees, the company must release the vehicle on the same business day.⁵ Holding your car overnight after you’ve paid isn’t a fee dispute, it’s a violation.

Extra Protection if You Rent or Lease

If you park in a space the property owner has authorized for your use as a tenant or lessee, your vehicle gets stronger protection. A towing company or property manager cannot remove it from that authorized space unless there is actual evidence the vehicle has been abandoned. Expired registration alone doesn’t prove abandonment; it can be one factor, but something more is required.⁶

This matters most in apartment complexes, where landlords sometimes lean on towing as a management tool. A property manager’s say-so alone is not enough to move a car out of a spot your lease assigns to you.

If the Tow Was Unlawful

A private towing carrier that removes a vehicle from private property without meeting the authorization and signage rules commits a class 2 misdemeanor.¹³ Skipping the one-hour police notification is a separate class 1 misdemeanor and triggers the automatic fee forfeiture already described.²

Criminal prosecution for unauthorized towing is uncommon in practice. The fee forfeiture is the piece that gives vehicle owners real leverage. If you believe your car was towed illegally, file a police report and ask for the record of when the tow company notified law enforcement. Photograph the signs at the lot, save the itemized bill, and keep any communications with the tow yard and property manager. Arizona does not have a statute specifically providing multiple damages for private property towing disputes, but you may have grounds for a civil claim to recover fees you already paid.

Abandoned Vehicles Are Handled Separately

If the situation involves a vehicle that has actually been left behind, a different set of rules in Title 28 applies rather than the ARS 9-499.05 private-property framework. A vehicle left in a public garage or parking lot for storage or parking for more than ten days without a written storage contract, and not picked up during that period, qualifies as abandoned.⁷ Anyone removing a vehicle from private property, including one that meets the abandonment definition, still needs written authorization from the property owner or lessee on a form prescribed by the Arizona Department of Transportation director.⁶

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 11-251.04 – Authority to Set Rates for Private Towing Carrier; Definition; Violation; Classification
5
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4847 – Owners; Insurance Companies; Release; Fees; Vehicle Repair Facilities; Applicability; Violation; Classification; Business Practices; Unlawful Practices; Definition
6
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4834 – Vehicle Removal
7
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-4839 – Report; Vehicle Abandoned in Storage; Violation