Vehicle impoundment

Vehicles may be impounded:

• by government agencies (usually municipalities) when
  • there are unresolved parking violation(s) of a certain age, and possibly above a total fine threshold
  • in certain instances, during the violation of a parking ordinance (in zones marked "tow away zone" or similar)
  • the registrant of the vehicle has certain unresolved moving violations
  • the vehicle is collected as evidence of the commission of a potential crime (e.g. homicide or drug smuggling).
  • there are no qualified drivers to operate the vehicle
• in some jurisdictions, as part of repossession of a vehicle by a lessor or lender

The process for impoundment is as follows:

• Owner or operator creates the legal basis for impoundment as above (failure to make payments, illegal vehicle usage, etc.)
• A grant of authority to impound is made either implicitly or explicitly (see below)
• An agency that has the legal authority to execute impoundment locates the vehicle (see below)
• The agency takes possession of the vehicle and tows it to the impoundment lot
• If the owner or operator does not clear the issue (payment, etc.), after a certain defined period, the vehicle is sold at auction
• After deducting the costs of the auction, the impoundment process, and any other fees from the sale price, the remainder is returned to the owner

An impounded vehicle auction is a type of auction that specializes in selling abandoned and disabled vehicles. Once a car is towed by municipalities or private companies and the requisite time has passed, the cars are auctioned to recover the cost of towing and storage.

These auctions are typically held by an auctioneer on the grounds of the tow lot, but Internet-based auctions are becoming more common.

Most states require a rigorous process to determine the owner of the vehicle and the disposition of the title before allowing a vehicle to be auctioned. This includes a title search, publication of an impending sale and certified letters in an attempt to give the vehicle's owner an opportunity to pay towing and storage costs and recover the vehicle. In the case of serviceable vehicles, the towing company may offer this documentation in a packet known as the possessory lien papers, which can be used to obtain a new title. Given the expense of the process, many lots will charge a significant fee for the papers.

States and municipalities vary widely in their treatment of impound auctions. In some states, bidders must register as salvage dealers or restoration companies in order to bid. In Missouri, impounded vehicles may only be offered to the general public with a salvage title, while other states have no restrictions on who may purchase a vehicle.

Impounded vehicles are offered as-is, where-is with no warranty. Those auctioning the vehicles likely have no knowledge of its mechanical condition beyond the obvious (such as rust), and are generally exempt from providing warranties. As a winning bidder, one must purchase and take possession of the vehicle, even if it is not capable of leaving the lot under its own power. Keys are not always available, and in cars with a digital dash, the mileage may not be known.

The word impound means to place into a pound, a secured area to hold things. An impoundment lot can thus be simply called a "pound", but the use of "impoundment lot" in current usage typically means a vehicle impoundment lot, as opposed to, say, a dog pound. An equivalent unambiguous phrasing is "vehicle pound", which is still a term in current widespread use.

• Tow truck
• Impoundment
• Towing racket