Senate File 230 - Introduced SENATE FILE 230 BY WAHLS A BILL FOR An Act relating to towing or impounding vehicles, and making 1 penalties applicable. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns
S.F. 230 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 321.83 Towing vehicles. 1 1. A person shall not tow or impound a motor vehicle 2 without the owners consent, unless the person does all of the 3 following: 4 a. Posts signs in a manner to provide notice that an 5 unauthorized vehicle parked on private property, as described 6 on the sign, will be towed and the location where a towed 7 vehicle will be impounded. 8 b. Documents the towing, including by taking and keeping 9 photographs of the vehicle prior to initiating the tow, after 10 the vehicle is secured for towing, and after the vehicle is 11 parked following the tow. 12 c. Maintains accurate records of the vehicle towed, 13 including all of the following: 14 (1) The vehicles make, model, and registration plate 15 number. 16 (2) The date and time of the tow. 17 (3) The location from which the vehicle was towed. 18 (4) The contact information for the person who authorized 19 the tow. 20 2. A person who initiates a tow shall cease all towing 21 actions if the vehicle owner arrives at the location of the 22 owners vehicle before the tow is completed, and shall release 23 the vehicle to the owner if the owner pays a fee. A person who 24 initiates and then ceases towing a vehicle shall not charge 25 a fee in excess of fifty percent of the amount that would be 26 charged for a consensual tow. 27 3. A person who has towed or impounded a motor vehicle 28 without the owners consent shall do all of the following: 29 a. Notify the vehicle owner, including a lienholder if 30 applicable, and the local law enforcement agency within 31 twenty-four hours. The notice must include the vehicles 32 description, the location where the vehicle is stored, contact 33 information for the person who towed the vehicle, and the 34 amount of fees that will be charged. 35 -1- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 1/ 8
S.F. 230 b. Display all towing rates at the persons place of 1 business and on the persons internet site, if applicable. 2 c. Provide an itemized account detailing all fees associated 3 with a tow. 4 d. Allow the owner of the vehicle to recover the vehicle at 5 a reasonable time and during at least a ten-hour period on a 6 day other than a Saturday or Sunday. 7 e. Allow the owner of the vehicle to access personal 8 property from within the vehicle without reclaiming the 9 vehicle. 10 f. Accept payment by credit card, in addition to other forms 11 of payment. 12 g. Reimburse the vehicle owner for any damage to the vehicle 13 caused by the person who towed the vehicle. 14 4. A person shall not tow a motor vehicle unless the person 15 is responding to a request to tow a vehicle. 16 5. A fee charged by a person who towed or impounded a motor 17 vehicle shall not exceed the amount the person charges for a 18 consensual tow or the reasonable storage costs, as applicable. 19 6. A person who tows a motor vehicle shall reimburse the 20 vehicle owner for all costs associated with the tow if the 21 person does not comply with this section. In addition to the 22 reimbursement and any criminal penalty, if applicable, the 23 person shall also pay the vehicle owner an amount not less than 24 four times the sum of the towing and storage fees. 25 7. This section does not apply to abandoned vehicles which 26 may be taken into custody as provided in section 321.89 or 27 disposed of as provided in section 321.90. 28 Sec. 2. Section 321.89, subsection 2, Code 2025, is amended 29 to read as follows: 30 2. Authority to take possession of abandoned vehicles. A 31 police authority, upon the authoritys own initiative or 32 upon the request of any other authority having the duties of 33 control of highways or traffic, shall take into custody an 34 abandoned vehicle on public property and may take into custody 35 -2- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 2/ 8
S.F. 230 an abandoned vehicle on private property. The police authority 1 may employ its own personnel, equipment, and facilities or 2 hire a private entity, equipment, and facilities for the 3 purpose of removing, preserving, storing, or disposing of 4 abandoned vehicles. A property owner or other person in 5 control of private property may employ a private entity who 6 is a garagekeeper, as defined in section 321.90 , to dispose 7 of an abandoned vehicle, and the private entity may take into 8 custody the abandoned vehicle without a police authoritys 9 initiative. If a police authority employs a private entity 10 to dispose of abandoned vehicles, the police authority shall 11 provide the private entity with the names and addresses of the 12 registered owners, all lienholders of record, and any other 13 known claimant to the vehicle or the personal property found in 14 the vehicle. The owners, lienholders, or other claimants of 15 the abandoned vehicle shall not have a cause of action against 16 a private entity for action taken under this section if the 17 private entity provides notice , allows inspection, and provides 18 information about the vehicle as required by subsection 3 , 19 paragraphs a through f . 20 Sec. 3. Section 321.89, subsection 3, paragraphs a, e, and 21 f, Code 2025, are amended to read as follows: 22 a. A police authority or private entity that takes into 23 custody an abandoned vehicle shall send notice by certified 24 mail that the vehicle has been taken into custody no more than 25 twenty five days after taking custody of the vehicle. Notice 26 shall be sent to the last known address of record of the last 27 known registered owner of the vehicle, all lienholders of 28 record, and any other known claimant to the vehicle. 29 e. If the persons receiving notice do not ask for a hearing 30 or exercise their right to reclaim the vehicle or personal 31 property within the ten-day twenty-day reclaiming period, the 32 owner, lienholders, or claimants shall no longer have any 33 right, title, claim, or interest in or to the vehicle or the 34 personal property. If proper notice and an opportunity to 35 -3- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 3/ 8
S.F. 230 inspect the vehicle is not provided to the owners, lienholders, 1 and known claimants, there shall be no forfeiture of the 2 persons right, title, claim, or interest in or to the vehicle 3 and personal property, as applicable. 4 f. A court in any case in law or equity shall not recognize 5 any right, title, claim, or interest of the owner, lienholders, 6 or claimants after the expiration of the ten-day twenty-day 7 reclaiming period if proper notice is provided to the owners, 8 lienholders, and known claimants as required in this subsection 9 and such persons were provided timely opportunity to inspect 10 the vehicle and retrieve personal property, as applicable . 11 Sec. 4. Section 321.89, subsection 3, paragraph b, 12 subparagraph (3), Code 2025, is amended to read as follows: 13 (3) Information for the persons receiving the notice of 14 their right to inspect and reclaim the vehicle and personal 15 property contained therein within ten twenty days after the 16 effective date of the notice. Persons may reclaim the vehicle 17 or personal property upon payment of all reasonable towing, 18 preservation, and storage charges resulting from placing the 19 vehicle in custody and upon payment of the costs of notice 20 required pursuant to this subsection . Persons may reclaim any 21 personal property from a vehicle during the normal business 22 hours of the entity with custody of the vehicle at no cost and 23 without reclaiming the vehicle. 24 Sec. 5. Section 321.89, subsection 3, paragraph b, Code 25 2025, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph: 26 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH . (6) An itemized account of all fees to be 27 assessed when the vehicle is reclaimed. 28 Sec. 6. Section 321.89, subsection 3, Code 2025, is amended 29 by adding the following new paragraph: 30 NEW PARAGRAPH . 0c. A person who receives notice under 31 this subsection may request to inspect the vehicle or personal 32 property contained therein, or receive specific information 33 as to the condition of the vehicle or personal property, and 34 if requested, the entity with custody of the vehicle shall 35 -4- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 4/ 8
S.F. 230 provide the requested information or an opportunity to inspect 1 the vehicle, as applicable, prior to the expiration of the 2 twenty-day reclamation period. If the entity with custody of 3 the vehicle fails to timely provide the requested information 4 or an opportunity to inspect the vehicle and personal property 5 therein, the entity shall not sell or dispose of the vehicle or 6 personal property until the requested information is provided 7 or the inspection occurs, at which point the period to reclaim 8 the vehicle is extended for five additional days after the 9 information is provided or the inspection takes place. 10 Sec. 7. Section 321.89, subsection 4, Code 2025, is amended 11 to read as follows: 12 4. Reclamation of abandoned vehicles and personal 13 property . An entity with custody of an abandoned vehicle shall 14 provide an itemized account of all fees assessed when the 15 vehicle is reclaimed. Prior to driving an abandoned vehicle 16 away from the premises, a person who received , or who is 17 reclaiming the vehicle on behalf of a person who received , 18 notice under subsection 3 shall present to the police authority 19 or private entity, as applicable, the persons valid drivers 20 license and proof of financial liability coverage as provided 21 in section 321.20B . During the normal business hours of the 22 entity with custody of the vehicle, a person may retrieve the 23 persons personal property left in the vehicle at no cost and 24 without reclaiming the vehicle. 25 Sec. 8. Section 321.89, subsection 5, Code 2025, is amended 26 by adding the following new paragraph: 27 NEW PARAGRAPH . 0b. If an abandoned vehicle is sold and the 28 entity that took the vehicle into custody failed to provide 29 the required notice and opportunity to inspect and reclaim the 30 vehicle and personal property, as applicable, the entity who 31 sold the vehicle shall pay a lienholder, if applicable, the 32 amount remaining on the vehicle loan. 33 Sec. 9. Section 321.90, subsection 2, paragraph f, Code 34 2025, is amended to read as follows: 35 -5- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 5/ 8
S.F. 230 f. The owner of an abandoned motor vehicle and all 1 lienholders shall no longer have any right, title, claim, or 2 interest in or to the motor vehicle; and no court in any case 3 in law or equity shall recognize any right, title, claim, or 4 interest of any owner or lienholders after the disposal of the 5 motor vehicle to a demolisher , so long as proper notice and an 6 opportunity to inspect the vehicle and personal property in 7 accordance with section 321.89, subsection 3, was provided . 8 EXPLANATION 9 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 10 the explanations substance by the members of the general assembly. 11 This bill regulates towing and impounding motor vehicles. 12 The bill requires a person who tows a vehicle without the 13 owners consent to post certain signs on private property 14 where the person is authorized to tow vehicles, document the 15 towing with photographs, and maintain records relating to 16 each tow. The bill requires a person to cease an incomplete 17 tow if the vehicle owner arrives, and prohibits a person from 18 charging a fee for more than one-half of the amount that would 19 be charged for a consensual tow. A vehicle owner must pay the 20 fee before the person towing the vehicle is required to release 21 the vehicle to the owner. After towing a vehicle without the 22 owners consent, the person who towed the vehicle must notify 23 the owner and the local law enforcement agency, display towing 24 and impound rates, provide an itemized account with fees not 25 exceeding the amount the person charges for a consensual tow 26 or the reasonable storage costs, allow the owner to recover 27 personal property from within the vehicle, accept payment by 28 credit card, and reimburse the vehicle owner for any damage to 29 the vehicle caused during the tow. 30 The bill prohibits a person from towing a vehicle without the 31 owners consent unless the person is responding to a request 32 for a tow. A person who tows a vehicle must reimburse the 33 vehicle owner for all costs associated with the tow if the 34 person does not comply with the bill. In addition to the 35 -6- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 6/ 8
S.F. 230 reimbursement and any criminal penalty, the person must also 1 pay the vehicle owner an amount not less than four times the 2 sum of the towing and storage fees. The bills provisions 3 relating to the towing of a vehicle without the owners consent 4 do not apply to abandoned vehicles. 5 Code sections 321.89 and 321.90 regulate the taking into 6 custody and the disposal of abandoned vehicles, as defined 7 in Code section 321.89. The bill amends certain provisions 8 regarding required notices and information relating to an 9 abandoned vehicle, the timeline to inspect or reclaim a 10 vehicle, the reclamation of personal property from within an 11 abandoned vehicle, and the disposal of an abandoned vehicle, 12 and requires an opportunity for a person to inspect an 13 abandoned vehicle. 14 The bill reduces the period of time within which an entity 15 that takes custody of an abandoned vehicle is required to send 16 notice that the vehicle has been taken into custody from no 17 more than 20 days to no more than 5 days after taking custody 18 of the vehicle. The bill increases the reclaiming period for 19 a person who receives notice from 10 days to 20 days after 20 notice is received. The bill requires an entity with control 21 of an abandoned vehicle to provide an itemized account of all 22 fees assessed when a vehicle is reclaimed, to allow access for 23 persons to inspect the vehicle and share information about the 24 vehicle, if requested, and to provide notice of such. The 25 reclaiming period is extended by 5 days if an entity fails to 26 provide requested information or allow an inspection of the 27 vehicle. 28 Under current law, persons who receive notice regarding an 29 abandoned vehicle lose their right to the vehicle and personal 30 property within the vehicle after the expiration of the 31 reclaiming period. The bill provides that if proper, timely 32 notice is not provided, any known claimant does not forfeit the 33 right to reclaim the vehicle or personal property. 34 Current law requires a person to pay all towing preservation 35 -7- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 7/ 8
S.F. 230 and storage charges resulting from placing an abandoned 1 vehicle in custody prior to reclaiming the vehicle or personal 2 property. The bill requires all such charges to be reasonable, 3 and authorizes a person to reclaim personal property from a 4 vehicle during the normal business hours of the entity with 5 custody of the vehicle at no cost and without reclaiming the 6 vehicle. 7 The bill requires an entity that sells an abandoned vehicle 8 to pay a lienholder, if applicable, the amount remaining on 9 the vehicle loan if the vehicle is sold and the entity that 10 took it into custody failed to provide required notices and an 11 opportunity to inspect and reclaim the vehicle and personal 12 property, as applicable. 13 By operation of law, it is a simple misdemeanor for a person 14 to do an act forbidden or to fail to perform an act required 15 by Code chapter 321, including the provisions of the bill. A 16 simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more 17 than 30 days and a fine of at least $105 but not more than $855. 18 -8- LSB 1246XS (4) 91 th/ns 8/ 8