Last reviewed October 10, 2026 by Jackson McMillan, Florida attorney
Short answer: A Florida tow company must use reasonable care when it enters, moves, and stores your car, and it is liable for damage it causes without that care. If the tow itself was improper, whoever caused it owes you the damage plus towing costs and attorney's fees. Your strongest evidence is created at the lot: inspect, photograph, and write the damage down before you leave.
My office is in Tampa, and I represent people throughout Tampa Bay and the rest of Florida. Polk County's towing ordinance applies countywide unless a city opts out, and Lakeland's city code has its own wrecker rules, so I check both on every Lakeland tow.
The tow truck damaged my car. Is the tow company responsible?
If it didn't use reasonable care, yes. Florida law says a tow operator may enter your car to move it only with reasonable care and is liable for any damage if it falls short. Florida also shields an operator from damage claims when it used reasonable care and followed the private-property towing rules, so care is the question.
Two statutes say this in nearly the same words (Fla. Stat. §§ 715.07(2)(a)8., 713.78(2)(c)). A third sets the flip side: an operator isn't liable for damage or theft if its work was done with reasonable care and, for a private-lot tow, in compliance with the towing statute (§ 713.78(7)(a)). That means two routes to a claim. One is showing careless handling, such as damage from the way the car was hooked, pulled, or unloaded. The other is showing the tow itself broke the rules, which shifts liability for resulting damage onto whoever caused it (§ 715.07(4)).
Theft from a tow lot follows a similar rule. Florida presumes reasonable care against theft if the lot has a fence at least 6 feet high, lighting that reveals people at 150 feet at night, and a night watchman, a guard dog, security cameras, or hourly patrols. A lot without those protections doesn't get that presumption.
What should I do at the tow lot before I drive away?
Inspect before you accept the car. Florida gives you the right to inspect it before taking it back, and the company can't make you sign a release or waiver covering damage you note at that moment. Walk around the car, look underneath the front and rear, photograph everything, and put the damage in writing.
Write the damage directly on the receipt or the release paperwork, or on a separate sheet, and ask an employee to sign or initial it (§ 715.07(2)(a)9.). If they refuse, note the refusal, the time, and the employee's name. Take wide photos that show the lot and your car together, then close-ups of each mark. A short video of the walk-around, with the time showing on your phone, is even better.
If you get the car released by posting a bond with the clerk of court instead of paying, the law is stricter. At release, after a reasonable inspection, you must give the tow company a receipt listing every claim for loss or damage to the car or its contents, or those claims are treated as waived (§ 713.78(5)(b)). Don't skip this step.
The company says the damage was already there. How do I prove it wasn't?
With anything that shows the car's condition before the tow and the tow company's own records of what it did. Photos you took that week, a recent service invoice or inspection report, dashcam footage, and witnesses who saw the car can all help. So can the tow company's time, mileage, and service records, which Polk requires it to keep.
Polk County's ordinance requires every tow operator doing nonconsensual tows to keep records of mileage, services provided, and prices for each tow, along with time records showing when it was called, arrived, left, and dropped the car off (Polk County Code § 10.3-64). State law requires an itemized invoice listing each service and fee, including labor, within one business day (Fla. Stat. § 713.78(20)). A long gap at the scene, or a labor or winching charge on a car that was simply parked, can tell you what happened during the tow.
Get a written estimate from a body shop or mechanic that has no ties to the tow company, and ask the shop to describe what kind of force caused the damage. A good shop may be able to tell a fresh scrape from old wear.
Was my car towed farther than the law allows?
Possibly. Polk County had 725,046 residents in the 2020 census, so Florida's 10-mile limit for counties of 500,000 or more applies. A private-lot tow must go to a storage site within 10 miles of where your car was taken, unless no towing business with storage is that close, in which case the limit is 20 miles.
A longer haul matters for two reasons (Fla. Stat. § 715.07(2)(a)1.). Distance is billed per mile, so extra miles mean extra charges. And every extra mile is more time on the truck for a car that may have been hooked wrong. Map the route from where you parked to the storage lot and compare it with the miles on the invoice.
Does Polk County limit what a tow company can charge?
Yes. Polk County's ordinance sets maximum prices for nonconsensual tows, including tows from private lots, through a schedule adopted by the county commission. Charging a fee that isn't on the list, or more than the maximum, is unlawful. The company must immediately return the illegal charges, and it is liable for that amount, damage to the car, and attorney's fees.
The ordinance applies in every city in the county unless a city opts out by resolution (Polk County Code §§ 10.3-65, 10.3-67). Lakeland's own code separately says the city commission sets maximum wrecker charges by resolution, and its definitions include private-lot tows under the state statute. Which schedule governs a particular Lakeland tow is something I confirm from the current county and city resolutions before giving you a number.
Polk's ordinance also defines storage so that you owe no storage charge if you come for the car within six hours of it being placed in storage and pay the other lawful charges (§ 10.3-63). State law requires the company to accept at least two of three payment types and to release your car within an hour after you ask.
Send me your photos from the lot, the receipt and invoice, and a repair estimate if you have one. I'll tell you whether the tow company's records and Florida's reasonable care rule support a claim.
The tow itself was legal. Can I still claim the damage?
Yes, if the damage came from careless handling. A lawful tow doesn't excuse careless work, because Florida's protection for tow operators applies only when they use reasonable care. The question shifts from whether the car should have been towed to how it was handled, and that depends on evidence of the car's condition before and after.
The claim is generally for the reasonable cost of repair and losses that flow directly from the damage. If the tow was also improper, the towing statute adds your towing and storage costs and attorney's fees (Fla. Stat. § 715.07(4)). Polk's ordinance adds fees when the damage comes with overcharges (Polk County Code § 10.3-65).
Be clear about scale. Tow damage claims are measured mostly by the repair bill, which may run a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, and the attorney's fee provisions are what make them practical. Fee rules differ by statute, and in a court challenge to the tow lien, a tow company that wins can recover its own fees. I explain how that applies before any case is filed.
Who do I report a Lakeland tow to?
Polk's towing ordinance is enforced by the Polk County Sheriff's Office outside city limits and by each city's own police department inside it, which in Lakeland is the Lakeland Police Department. A report creates a record, and a tow company with repeat violations can be removed from the sheriff's call-out list.
The ordinance removes a repeat violator from the sheriff's call-out list for 60 days after two violations in 12 months, and for one year after three in 18 months (Polk County Code §§ 10.3-65, 10.3-66). A report doesn't pay for your repair, though. Your own claim for the damage, the overcharges, and attorney's fees is separate, and it rests on the evidence you gathered at the lot.
What should I save after a tow damaged my car?
Save anything that shows the car before the tow, the car at the lot, and the tow company's account of what it did. Before photos, lot photos, the receipt with your written damage note, the itemized invoice, a request for the company's time and mileage records, and an independent repair estimate are the core of the claim.
- Before photos: anything from your phone, a dashcam, or a recent service visit.
- Lot photos and video, wide and close, taken before you drove away.
- The receipt with your damage note and the name of the employee you showed it to.
- The itemized invoice, plus a written request for the company's time and mileage records.
- An independent repair estimate that describes the damage and its likely cause.
Sources: Fla. Stat. §§ 715.07(2)(a)1., 8., 9., (4), 713.78(2)(c), (5)(b), (7), (19), (20); Polk County Code ch. 10.3, art. III, div. 2 (Nonconsensual Towing Services); City of Lakeland Code §§ 106-113, 106-122; U.S. Census Bureau, QuickFacts, Polk County, Florida (2020 census). Last reviewed October 10, 2026.