Under Arkansas abandoned vehicle law, a car, truck, or other vehicle is treated as abandoned once it has sat unattended for 30 days with no sign the owner plans to reclaim it, or as soon as the owner does something showing they’ve given up on it.1Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1202 – Definitions From that point, a strict statutory sequence takes over: tagging, towing, certified-mail notice to the owner, a 45-day window to reclaim, and eventually a public sale. Owners have real rights along the way, but every one of them runs on a deadline.
When a Vehicle Is Considered Abandoned or Unattended
The statute uses two connected terms. “Unattended” is the broader category, and a vehicle only becomes “abandoned” after meeting a further condition.
A vehicle is unattended when it’s left on public property without permission or near a public road with no one in charge of it, once certain location and time thresholds are met:1Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1202 – Definitions
- Within three feet of the road surface: unattended immediately, no waiting period.
- Three feet or more from the road surface but still near a public way: unattended after 24 hours.
- On public property but not near a public way: unattended after 48 hours.
A vehicle also counts as unattended when the operator can’t reasonably make arrangements, such as after a crash that sent the driver to the hospital, or after an arrest in which law enforcement drove the vehicle to the place of apprehension. A disabled or inoperative vehicle on or near a public road can be classified as unattended if an officer decides its location, traffic, or weather creates an immediate safety hazard.
An unattended vehicle becomes abandoned in one of two ways: the owner does something clearly showing they’ve given up on it, or it stays unattended for 30 days with no evidence the owner intends to return. That 30-day clock keeps running whether the vehicle stays where it was found or has already been moved to a towing lot.
Tagging Before Removal
In most cases, law enforcement tags a vehicle before it’s towed. The tag warns the owner that the vehicle will be removed under the abandoned vehicle subchapter unless it’s moved within 24 hours, and it lists the location and phone number of the law enforcement agency.2Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1205 – Tagging If you find a tag on your vehicle, that 24-hour window is the cheapest exit available. Once the vehicle is towed, storage fees start accruing and the process gets much harder to unwind.
Your Right to Choose the Tow Company
Arkansas law gives vehicle owners a right called “owner preference.” When an officer orders a tow, the officer must offer the owner, the owner’s agent, or any competent occupant of a disabled vehicle the chance to pick the towing service.3Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1207 – Removal of Vehicles This right yields only when a vehicle is blocking a road and needs to be cleared right away, or under other exigent circumstances. Even then, the owner’s chosen company still gets the job if it’s in the correct towing zone and can respond promptly.
Officers are prohibited from suggesting or recommending a particular towing company, and they can’t accept gifts or special consideration from towing operators tied to vehicle removals. On request, the officer or the agency must tell you the name, location, and phone number of whichever firm was called.
If an officer fails to offer owner preference, you can file a complaint with the officer’s law enforcement agency, the Arkansas Towing and Recovery Board, or both. Filing a complaint doesn’t block you from pursuing other legal remedies.
The Notice the Towing Company Must Send You
Once a towing company takes possession of a vehicle, it must send written notice to the registered owner and any lienholders by certified mail, return receipt requested. The notice has to go out no sooner than two business days but within eight business days after the towing firm receives the vehicle.4Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1208 – Possessory Lien and Notice to Owners and Lienholders The two-business-day floor is deliberate: it stops companies from starting the clock before you’ve had a real chance to act.
Every notice must include:
- The year, make, model, and VIN of the vehicle.
- The name, address, and phone number of the storage facility.
- A statement that the towing firm claims a first-priority possessory lien for all towing, recovery, and storage charges, and that those costs are the owner’s legal liability.
- A warning that if the vehicle isn’t claimed within 45 days it will be sold at public sale, dismantled, or destroyed.
- Language explaining that failing to reclaim within 45 days waives all rights in the vehicle.
- Instructions for reclaiming the vehicle during business hours by proving ownership, clearing any law enforcement hold, and paying all charges or reaching a written agreement with the towing firm.
- A statement that the owner has 30 days to contest the original tow under the statute’s review procedures.
These requirements aren’t optional. A towing company that skips a step or sends defective notice hasn’t properly perfected its lien, which weakens its ability to sell the vehicle later.
Costs, the Possessory Lien, and Why Waiting Hurts
The towing company holds a first-priority possessory lien on the vehicle and its contents for all reasonable towing, recovery, and storage charges. First priority means the lien takes precedence over other claims, including a lender’s existing lien on the vehicle. The lien is perfected by holding the vehicle and sending the certified-mail notice.
Storage fees accrue daily. The statute caps charges at “reasonable” amounts but sets no specific dollar limits. The owner is personally liable for the full bill, not just the vehicle. Reclaiming early is almost always cheaper than waiting, even if you plan to challenge whether the tow was justified in the first place.
The 45-Day Deadline and the Sale
If the owner and any lienholders don’t reclaim the vehicle within 45 days of receiving the certified-mail notice, they waive all rights in the vehicle and its contents.5Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1209 – Foreclosure of Liens There’s one built-in extension: if a law enforcement hold prevented the owner from reclaiming the vehicle, the owner gets an additional 20 days after that hold is released.
After the 45-day window closes, the towing firm, municipality, or county holding the perfected lien sells the vehicle at a nonjudicial public sale for cash. The sale must happen within 90 days of lien perfection, or within 45 days after any law enforcement hold is released, whichever comes later. Before the sale, the towing company must verify through the Arkansas Crime Information Center that the vehicle isn’t listed as stolen.
How to Contest the Tow
Owners and lienholders who believe a tow was unjustified have 30 days to seek a formal review. The clock starts on the date of removal, or on the date the towing firm notifies you of a law enforcement hold, whichever is later.3Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1207 – Removal of Vehicles Miss it and you lose this route.
Where you file depends on who ordered the tow:
- If a state agency ordered the removal, file a petition with the Arkansas State Claims Commission, naming the state agency as a respondent.
- If a city or county ordered it and has an established administrative review process, follow the local procedures.
- If a city or county ordered it without an established process, or in any other case, file a petition in the circuit court of the county where the vehicle is stored, naming the county, city, or town as a respondent, and also naming the towing company if it still has possession.
The reviewing body looks at whether the vehicle actually met the statutory criteria for removal and whether proper procedures were followed. Naming the right respondents matters. If you leave the towing company out of a circuit court petition and it still has your car, you may not be able to get a court order releasing it.
Penalties Under the Statute
Arkansas doesn’t impose criminal penalties on vehicle owners for abandoning a vehicle. The criminal provisions in this subchapter aim at towing operators. It’s a misdemeanor to operate a tow vehicle in violation of the subchapter, to tow without a Board-issued license or safety permit, to submit forged documents when applying for a license, or to use an expired or revoked permit.6Justia. Arkansas Code 27-50-1212 – Criminal Penalties A conviction carries a fine between $50 and $500, up to 90 days in jail, or both, and each day of an ongoing violation is a separate offense.
For owners, then, the exposure is financial rather than criminal: accruing tow and storage fees, personal liability for those charges, and eventual loss of the vehicle if the 45-day deadline passes. The most valuable moves are the early ones. Move a tagged vehicle within 24 hours if you can. If it’s already been towed, open the certified-mail notice the day it arrives, work out payment or a written agreement, and decide within 30 days whether to contest the tow. The statute gives you specific rights, but each one is on a clock.