California Vehicle Code 22658: Signage, Notice, and Damages

California Vehicle Code 22658 sets the rules for towing a vehicle from private property, covering signage, written authorization, on-scene release, law enforcement notification, fees, and record-keeping. Break any of them and the property owner, tow company, or storage facility can owe the vehicle owner double, triple, or four times the towing and storage charges, with several violations also classified as misdemeanors.¹

Signage the Lot Must Have Before Any Tow

A tow from private property is lawful only if the lot has proper signs at every entrance. Each sign must be at least 17 by 22 inches with lettering at least one inch tall. It has to state that public parking is prohibited, that vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense, and list the phone number of the local traffic law enforcement agency. It must also give the name and phone number of each towing company that has a written towing agreement with the property owner.¹

Missing any element, or missing a sign at any entrance, makes the property owner liable for double the towing and storage charges. This is one of the most commonly violated pieces of the statute, and it is usually the first thing to photograph if you plan to challenge a tow.

Written Authorization and On-Site Verification

Before a tow truck can touch a vehicle, the tow company must have written authorization from the property owner, lessee, or their agent. That person must be physically present to verify the parking violation at the time the vehicle is removed. The written authorization must include:

Vehicle make, model, VIN, and license plate number
The authorizer’s name, signature, job title, address, and working phone number
The specific grounds for removal
When the vehicle was first observed on the property and when the tow was authorized

There is a narrow exception for residential rental properties of 15 or fewer units with no on-site owner or manager. A tenant who sees a violation in their assigned parking space can request the tow directly, provided a signed request or email goes to the property owner or agent, with a copy to the tow company within 48 hours.¹

A tow company that skips written authorization, or that begins removing a vehicle before the authorizer has verified the violation, has committed a misdemeanor.

Your Right to Get the Vehicle Back at the Scene

If you arrive while your car is being loaded but has not yet left the property, the tow company must release it immediately and unconditionally. No payment is required at that point, and refusing to release the vehicle is a misdemeanor.²

Timing controls the money. Possession legally transfers to the tow company only when the vehicle has been removed from the property and is in transit. Before that moment, release must be unconditional. After the vehicle is hooked up but still on the lot, the tow company can charge a drop fee of up to one-half the regular towing rate. Once the vehicle leaves the property, the full towing charge applies.¹

If a driver refuses to unhook a vehicle that is still on the property, document it. That refusal is both a crime and the basis for a civil damages claim.

Law Enforcement Notification

Section 22658 runs two separate notification clocks, one on the person authorizing the tow and one on the tow company.

The Authorizer’s One-Hour Call

The person who authorized the tow must notify the local traffic law enforcement agency by phone within one hour of giving the authorization. If a phone call is not practical, they must use the fastest alternative available.¹

The Tow Company’s Notification and What Late Costs

After removing the vehicle and beginning transit, the tow company must notify local law enforcement. The consequences for missing the deadline escalate:

More than 30 minutes late: the tow company owes you three times the towing and storage charges.
More than 60 minutes, or 15 minutes after arriving at storage, whichever comes first: the tow company has committed a misdemeanor.

The tow company can raise impracticability as a defense, but the burden falls on the company. If the notification was late or missing, a triple-damages claim exists regardless of whether the tow itself was otherwise valid.

After the Tow: Notice, Fees, Payment, and Belongings

Written Notice to the Registered Owner

Within 48 hours of storing a vehicle, excluding weekends and holidays, the agency or entity that directed the storage must identify the registered and legal owners through DMV records and send written notice by first-class mail. The notice describes the vehicle, states the storage location, and explains the reason and authority for the removal.³

Storage Fees Must Be Reasonable

California does not set a statewide dollar cap on daily storage rates. The standard is reasonableness, meaning fees comparable to what other businesses in the same area charge for similar services. When a tow company both tows and stores the vehicle, its combined charges cannot exceed the rates charged for similar services performed at the request of public agencies such as the CHP or local police.⁴

If a daily rate sits well above what nearby facilities charge, that supports an excessive-fee argument, which triggers the four-times-damages penalty described below.

Payment Methods and Personal Property

You have the right to pay towing and storage fees by cash, insurer’s check, or valid bank credit card. A tow company that accepts only cash or demands a specific method beyond those options is violating the law. Before paying, you are also entitled to a clear, itemized invoice.

You can retrieve your personal belongings from the vehicle at no charge during normal business hours, even if you cannot yet pay the towing and storage fees. The tow company cannot hold personal property to force payment for the vehicle itself.

Record-Keeping That Helps Later Claims

Tow companies must keep the original written tow authorization, any photographs of the violation, and tenant requests where applicable for at least three years. During that period, the company must produce these records within 24 hours of a request from law enforcement, the Attorney General, a district attorney, or a city attorney.²

If a company has destroyed those records early or claims not to have them, that itself is a warning sign about whether the underlying procedures were followed.

Damages and Penalties for an Unlawful Tow

Section 22658’s remedies stack. A single bad tow can trigger more than one damages provision at once.

Double Damages: Signage or Authorization Failures

When a property owner fails to post proper signs, omits required sign elements, or does not state the grounds for removal in the written authorization, the property owner is liable for double the towing and storage charges.¹

Triple Damages: Late Law Enforcement Notification

A tow company that fails to notify local law enforcement within 30 minutes of removing the vehicle owes three times the towing and storage charges.²

Quadruple Damages: Excessive Charges

A tow company or storage facility that charges excessive towing, service, or storage fees is liable for four times the amount charged. Knowingly charging excessive rates is also a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $2,500, up to three months in county jail, or both.²

Criminal Exposure

Several violations under CVC 22658 are misdemeanors, including refusing to release a vehicle at the scene, failing to obtain written authorization, and missing the 60-minute law enforcement notification window.

Civil Actions

Vehicle owners can sue the property owner, tow company, and storage facility. Damages may include the towing and storage fees themselves, the statutory multipliers above, and any damage to the vehicle caused by the tow. Small claims court handles cases up to $12,500, which covers most individual towing disputes without an attorney.¹

If You Do Not Retrieve the Vehicle: Lien Sales

Unpaid fees can eventually cost you the car. For vehicles valued over $4,000, the tow company must apply to the DMV before a lien sale. The DMV sends certified-mail notice to the registered and legal owners, who then have 10 days to file a Declaration of Opposition. If opposition is filed, the tow company must go to court within 30 days or lose the right to sell. Once the DMV authorizes the sale, the company must advertise it in a local newspaper and send another certified notice at least 20 days before the sale date, with the vehicle available for public inspection for at least one hour beforehand. You have 10 days after the sale to redeem the vehicle by paying the sale amount plus costs.

For vehicles valued at $500 or less, the process is shorter, though the 48-hour notice to registered and legal owners still applies.⁵

Storage fees accrue daily. Even a technically lawful tow can cost more in storage than the vehicle is worth if action is delayed.

Active-Duty Servicemembers

Section 22658 governs California towing, but a federal layer applies on top for active-duty military. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, a tow company cannot sell or auction a servicemember’s vehicle to satisfy a storage lien without a court order, and the protection lasts through the period of service plus 90 days.⁶ The Department of Justice has enforced this against California towing companies that auctioned servicemembers’ vehicles without court approval.⁷

How to Challenge a Tow Under Section 22658

Start with signage. Return to the lot and photograph every entrance. Confirm the signs meet the 17-by-22-inch minimum, list the required phone numbers, and appear at every way in. Note anything missing.

Ask the tow company for a copy of the written authorization. Check that it names the authorizer with signature, job title, address, and phone; identifies the vehicle; states the specific violation; and gives timestamps for observation and authorization.

Request the law enforcement notification records. The company must produce its tow authorization documents within 24 hours of a request from certain officials, and you can also request records from the law enforcement agency that received the notification.² A late or missing notification is a triple-damages claim on its own.

Compare storage rates to nearby facilities and save the itemized invoice. Significantly higher fees support an excessive-charges argument and the four-times-damages penalty. Keep every receipt, photograph the storage facility, and document every conversation. For most individual claims, small claims court is the practical route: up to $12,500, no attorney required, and with the statutory multipliers in play, even a routine tow can produce a meaningful judgment.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code 22658
2
California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 22658
3
California Department of State Hospitals. Policy Manual Policy 502 Vehicle Towing and Release
4
Bureau of Automotive Repair. Automotive Repair Dealers and Storage Fees
5
California Department of Motor Vehicles. Disposition of Abandoned Low Value Vehicles (VC 22851.3)
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3958 – Enforcement of Storage Liens
7
United States Department of Justice. DOJ Sues California Towing Company for Illegally Auctioning Servicemembers’ Vehicles