If my car gets towed and I never pay the fee or claim it can i be penalized or fined?

Question

Basically I don't need my car anymore, it's got expired tags and I need to get it smoged. It's not worth it to me to get all this done, and selling it is such a chore. If I just let the car get towed by the city and I never claim it, will I be held liable for anything, be fined, experience issues with the DOT in the future if I should purchase another car?

Answer 1

Call a wrecking yard, and sell it to them. About 30 years ago I bought a 1963 Oldsmobile for $5. I called the wrecking yard and they came out the next day and paid me $35. for it. And they even towed it away. I knew they would give me something more than I paid for it, that's why I did it. A quick and easy $30. profit and all I had to do was make a phone call.

Answer 2

My brother did the same thing when he lived `in Texas. The city of mesquite sold it to try to reclaim the expense of storing it. He still had the title and the person who bought it gave him 300 dollars 3 months after the fact just to get him to sign the car over to him. The city only ever sent letters to let him know how much he owed. I thought it was funny because the car was only worth 500 dollars, it was wrecked and he owed 100 for the tow charge and ended up with 300 but I would check depending on the state

Answer 3

Check w the state , & get your tags back.

I had a similar experience w a vehicle that was missing over a month & found in impound w a bill of nearly a thousand dollars. I talked to the managerof the lot & explained i had no use for the car & certainly didn't intend to pay that much for a car that wasn't operable

he had me sign a waiver of ownership (so they could sell for salvage, or whatever) give him the keys, & he gave me the plates to return to the state.

Problem solved.

Answer 4

Yes. As others have noted, they can charge you for towing, storage, etc., etc. If you don't respond to any notices, you can have a default judgment entered against you. Once that's done, you can't appeal the ruling, you'll just owe.

You've been given some good advice by others about trying to sell to the salvage yard. If you just let this slide and pretend it will go away, it won't. Instead, it will become a bigger (and more expensive) problem for you.

Answer 5

Last March I wrecked my car and when I got out of the hospital the towing company wanted $400 to get my car back. I told them to keep it and they said that they didn't want it and would sue me for the money. I still haven't been served any court papers yet and they're running out of time.

They can't fine you, all they can do is sue you for towing and storage at the most. And I'm not too sure they can do that either.

Answer 6

You will be charged for every day that car is impounded. I know a man who did the same thing and got a bill from the impound yard for $1,600!!!!

I'd just pay to get the car, then sell it cheap.

Answer 7

in case you go away it there, you'd be to blame for the towing and accessible storage prices. it truly is unlawful to easily abandon a vehicle and stress somebody else to remove it. settle for responsibility. Junk it in case you don't like it. are literally not making somebody else do what you're meant to do.

Answer 8

Yes

Answer 9

You can call a salvage company and they will come and pick it up for free. I had to do this with an old GM that was rusting away in my backyard. They never even asked me to sign it over.

Answer 10

Well, you can amass HUGE fines and eventually lose your license depending upon the RMV in the state that you are in if you just ignore it. I'd check it out with the RMV in your particular state before doing this.