Abandoned/broke down car

[Bnathanb1982]

If you come across a car that is broke down on the side of the road or appears to be and nobody around, how long do you give the driver to come and get it before you tow it? Also do you try and notify the registered owner before towing it? I see a lot of cars for days on the side of the road with orange stickers on the back windshield. Are those to let other officers know that someone has already stopped and addressed the problem?

[crass cop]

If its in a lane of traffic, I try to call the registered owner....If no contact or a delayed response time from the owner...its towed.

other than that 48 hrs then its towed

[mdrdep]

A vehicle left on a public roadway over 72 hrs here can get towed. We leave a tag on it first noting the date and time. Come back 72 hrs. later and tow.

[mikeymedic]

Tag it, 24 hours after the time on the tag.

you should note that these cars are usually on mountain highways with very narrow shoulders.

[TexasAggieOfc]

Tag it. If it's still there in 48 hours, it's towed. No attempt to contact registered owner. Whoever they let drive it know where it was. If it's missing when they come back, Dispatch will run the tag and see that it was towed and where to.

[JLee]

Four hours on the interstate / 24 hours on other roads. We will likely attempt to contact the registered owner.

[PhilipCal]

The policy of my Department is: If the vehicle is a traffic hazard, it's towed immediately. A vehicle abandoned/left unattended on the side of the road is given a forty eight hour Removal Notice(orange sticker). If the vehicle hasn't been removed in that period of time, it's towed by the Rotation Wrecker and stored at their lot.

[CruiserClass]

If its a traffic hazard, as soon as the tow truck gets there.

Citizen complaint can have it removed in 24 hours, such as abandoned in front of your house.

Regular on the side of the road, tagged after 72 hours, towed after another 24.

[LT Dangle]

I prefer to rummage through the car to see if there is anything good inside to take and then set a match to it. As soon as the hose draggers are done, I can tow it straight away. I have gotten a lot of cool things from cars this way and the owners never know, they just assume the stuff got burned up.


It is a win win for everyone.

[SgtCHP]

CA law states that a vehicle abonded on the freeway is subject to storage after four hours. If it is on a surface street in an unincorporated area, five days is geneally the rule; however, a County Ordinance may supercede that rule. City codes generally permit 72 hours.

There are a number of situations that permit an officer to immediately remove the vehice - traffic hazard, bridges, tunnels, etc.

Refer to California Vehicle Code section(s) 22651 through 22711 et al.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/vc/tocd11c10a1.htm