Tampa Bay towing · Florida lawYour car got towed in Tampa. The tow company has rules to follow too.

Last reviewed October 10, 2026 by Jackson McMillan, Florida attorney

Short answer: A property owner in Florida can have an unauthorized car towed, but only by following state law and the county's towing ordinance: proper signs, a nearby storage lot, a capped fee if you catch the tow in progress, release within an hour, and no charges above the county maximums. When a tow breaks those rules, Florida law lets you recover the towing and storage costs, any damage, and attorney's fees.

Each heading below is a situation drivers describe after a private-lot tow, answered first in plain terms. Police-ordered tows after a crash or arrest follow different rules and aren't covered here.

Where is my towed car in Tampa?

Start at the entrance of the lot where you parked. A tow-away sign there should list the towing company's name and phone number. If you find no sign, call the police non-emergency line. The tow company has to report a private-property tow to the police or sheriff within 30 minutes after finishing it, so the report should exist.

Inside Tampa city limits, call the Tampa Police Department's non-emergency line at (813) 231-6130. In unincorporated Hillsborough County, including Brandon, call the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office at (813) 247-8200. Those are the numbers Hillsborough County lists for finding a towed car.

Hillsborough's ordinance requires the tow company to return your call within an hour and tell you the documents you need, the exact charges so far, and the payment methods it takes. Write down the time of each call and who you spoke with.

My car was towed and there was no sign. Was that legal?

Usually not. Before towing a car from private property without the owner's consent, Florida requires a tow-away sign at every driveway entrance, with reflective lettering, the words "tow-away zone," and the tow company's name and phone number, posted for at least 24 hours. A missing or defective sign is one of the most common problems with a tow.

The details matter (Fla. Stat. § 715.07(2)(a)5.). "Tow-away zone" must be in letters at least 4 inches high, 3 to 6 feet off the ground. Hillsborough County adds more: signs within 5 feet of the public right-of-way, listing every company authorized to tow there, and no towing at all from a property whose sign doesn't comply.

There are real exceptions: a single-family home's driveway, a warning given to you in person, a small business with 20 or fewer spaces and a customers-only sign, a car blocking a business's normal operation, and a car on the street blocking a private driveway.

I got to my car while it was being towed. Do they have to give it back?

Yes. Under Florida law, a driver in the process of towing your car must stop when you ask for it back and must return it for a fee of no more than half the posted towing rate. The driver can finish the tow only if you can't pay after a reasonable chance. Refusing to stop is a felony.

This is often called a drop fee, and you are entitled to a detailed, signed receipt for it. In Pinellas, if you arrive before the car is hooked up, the company can't tow or charge you unless you refuse to move it, and it must give you 20 minutes to get cash. Hillsborough says the car must be released on request even if it is already connected to the truck.

If a driver demanded more or drove off while you stood there, write down the time and the company name painted on the truck's doors.

The tow company won't release my car or will only take cash. Is that allowed?

No. A Florida tow company must accept payment in at least two of three forms: cash or a cashier's check or money order; a bank, debit, or credit card; or an electronic payment such as a mobile wallet. It must release your car within one hour after you ask. Cash-only policies don't comply.

The payment rule (Fla. Stat. § 713.78(19)) overrides conflicting local rules. Hillsborough caps any card fee at 3 percent. The company can't demand more than one government photo ID, and it must accept a title, your loan or lease contract, or a copy of either, without notarization.

The lot must be open for pickups from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on any day the company is towing, and after hours the operator must return within an hour of your call. You may inspect the car first, and no one can make you sign a waiver to get it back.

The tow truck charged too much. What is the legal maximum?

Each county sets maximum rates for private-property tows, and the county must publish them online. A tow company may charge only the fees the county allows and the fees on its own posted rate sheet. Florida law treats any fee above that rate sheet as unreasonable. The itemized invoice shows where the overcharge is.

Current numbers from the county schedules:

• Pinellas County (effective June 16, 2026): $175 to tow most passenger vehicles, so a drop fee of no more than $87.50; $6 per mile; $35 per day of storage after the first six hours.
• Pasco County (effective October 1, 2026): a $173 base rate for the lightest class of tow, $5 per mile, and $38 per 24 hours of storage.
• Hillsborough County: only rates set by county resolution are allowed, and the Tax Collector posts the schedule. The ordinance also requires the rates in large print at the payment window.

Not every extra line is illegal. State law allows a separate administrative fee of up to $250 to release a tow lien, and counties allow add-ons such as a lien notice fee (only if the company followed the notice rules) or an after-hours release fee. Compare each line of the itemized invoice, due within one business day, to the county schedule.

Storage fees keep piling up. Can they charge me every day?

Only within limits. No storage fee is allowed if your car is stored for less than six hours. After that, daily storage is capped by the county. And a tow company that fails to make a good-faith effort to send the required certified mail lien notice can't charge storage at all, which makes the notice worth checking.

The notice must go by certified mail, through a state-approved service, to the registered owner, insurer, and any lender within 5 business days after storage (§ 713.78(4)). It must itemize the charges and explain your right to go to court.

If you think the tow was wrong, you don't have to let storage run while you argue. A bond with the clerk of court gets the car released now and leaves the dispute for later; see the section on a threatened sale.

My car was damaged when it was towed. Who pays?

The towing company may. Florida requires a tow operator to use reasonable care when entering and moving your car, and it is liable for damage caused without that care. If the tow itself was improper, the person who caused it is liable for any damage from the removal, transport, or storage, plus attorney's fees.

Protect the claim at pickup. Walk around the car, photograph every new scratch or dent with the lot in the background, and write the damage on the receipt. The company can't make you waive damage you note then. If you get the car back by posting a bond, you must list the damage on your receipt at release, or the claim is treated as waived.

Hillsborough requires tow companies to carry at least $50,000 of garagekeeper's insurance per occurrence for damage to cars they tow or store. Get a written estimate from a shop with no ties to the tow company.

My stuff is inside the towed car. Can I get it without paying?

Yes. Florida law requires the tow company to release your personal belongings that aren't attached to the car within one hour after you show proof that the car is yours during business hours. In Hillsborough and Pinellas, you can get them out before paying anything, and there is no charge during business hours.

Hillsborough lets you remove your property immediately, at the scene or the lot, "regardless of whether payment" is made, with a fee allowed only after hours. Personal property means things not bolted or wired in: a wallet, medication, a laptop, or work tools. If a company holds your things until you pay, ask in writing and save the reply.

I was towed from my own apartment complex. Can they do that?

Often they can, if you broke a real parking rule and the complex followed the law. An apartment complex isn't a single-family home, so it needs the full tow-away signs at every entrance. In Hillsborough and Pinellas, the tow company also needs a written towing agreement with the property that sets the days and hours towing is allowed.

Most apartment tows involve a missing parking permit, a guest in a resident space, or a car the complex calls abandoned. Your lease and parking addendum set the rules; the statute sets how they can be enforced. In Hillsborough, a tow for an expired tag requires the driver to first confirm the registration really is expired.

Tow companies may not pay a property for the right to tow there. A manager who improperly causes a tow is liable for your costs, damages, and attorney's fees (§ 715.07(4)). The Brandon apartment towing guide walks through a nighttime permit tow.

I got booted in a parking lot. Is that legal in Tampa?

It can be, within tight rules. In the City of Tampa, a booting company needs a city license and a separate sign reading "vehicle immobilization area," may charge no more than $35 to remove the boot, must remove it within 30 minutes of your request and payment, and can't leave a boot on for more than 24 hours.

Tampa's code adds that these rules don't authorize booting on private lots open to the public. If you arrive before the boot goes on, the company can't boot you unless you refuse to move. If it's already attached, the fee is capped at half, and the company must wait 20 minutes while you get payment.

Elsewhere in Hillsborough, signs must add "Unauthorized vehicles are also subject to being booted." Pinellas caps a boot at $35 with release within 30 minutes. And statewide, the towing lien statute gives no lien for boot charges.

The tow company says it will sell my car. How long do I have?

Not long. A towed car more than three model years old can be sold at public sale 35 days after storage; a newer one after 57 days. Certified mail notices and a public sale notice at least 20 days ahead must come first. Any time before the sale, a bond can get your car out.

Most people never hear about the bond (§ 713.78(5)(b)). You post cash or a surety bond with the clerk of court where the car is held, equal to the lien notice charges plus storage, without filing a lawsuit first. The clerk issues a certificate, and the tow company must release the car. You then have 45 days to file a case, or the tow company can collect the bond.

That case is filed in the county where the car is stored, and the court decides whether the car was wrongfully taken or held, or the fees wrongfully charged.

What if my car was repossessed, not towed?

Then different rules apply. A repossession is carried out for your lender or leasing company by a licensed recovery agent, under your loan contract and Florida's repossession laws, not the private-property towing statute. A lender can repossess without a court order only if it does so without a breach of the peace.

If you're behind on payments and the car vanished, call your lender before assuming it was towed.

What can I recover after an illegal tow?

Florida law makes the person who improperly causes a tow liable for the cost of removal, transportation, and storage, any damages from the tow, attorney's fees, and court costs. County ordinances in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Polk add similar remedies against tow companies that break local rules, including attorney's fees for the car owner.

• Improper tows. Towing and storage costs, damages, attorney's fees, and court costs (Fla. Stat. § 715.07(4)).
• County ordinance violations. Recovery costs, damages, fees, and costs against a tow company that violates the ordinance in Hillsborough (Hillsborough County Code § 50-192(f)) and Pinellas (Pinellas County Code § 122-45(b)). Polk requires an overcharging company to repay the illegal charges and makes it liable for that amount, vehicle damage, and fees.
• Lien disputes. In a court challenge to a tow lien, the court may award damages, attorney's fees, and costs to the prevailing party, which means either side (§ 713.78(5)(c)). If the tow company wins, the court's order must provide for immediate payment of the towing and storage charges.
• Deceptive practices. Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) covers unfair or deceptive conduct in trade, such as fees that appear on no schedule. It allows actual damages, and fees may go to whichever side prevails. It doesn't reach conduct the law specifically permits, so a by-the-book tow isn't a FDUTPA case.
• When it happened to many people. If one company or one property used the same illegal fee or signless lot on many drivers, a class action may be possible. Certification isn't automatic.

Be realistic about size. Most tow disputes involve a few hundred dollars, and many belong in small claims court. Fee provisions make these claims practical, but they cut differently: some award fees only to the car owner, while the lien statute and FDUTPA can shift fees to a tow company that wins. I go over that risk before anything is filed.

You don't pay me unless you win. I take these cases on contingency: no attorney's fees and no case costs owed to me unless you recover money. If a case is lost, a court can sometimes order the losing side to pay the other side's court costs, and some Florida laws, including the security deposit and deceptive practices statutes, also let the winner recover attorney's fees from the loser. I explain that risk before anything is filed, and every term is in a written agreement before you sign.

How long do I have to act after a tow?

The practical deadlines are short even though the legal ones are long. Storage charges grow every day, and the car can be sold in 35 or 57 days. Florida's limit for most claims based on a statute or on taking or damaging property is generally four years, but tow companies only have to keep some records for months.

Hillsborough requires time-stamped photos or video of the violation before a tow, kept for six months; without them, the company must refund the towing fee. Move within days, not months.

What should I do right now if my car was towed?

Document the scene before anything changes, then get the car back as fast as you can, because storage runs daily. Photograph the lot entrance and every sign, note the exact time you arrived, keep every receipt, and write down each call. Then compare what happened to the rules on this page.

• Photograph the signs, or their absence, at every entrance, readable and showing where they stand.
• Write down the time you got back, and the truck's company name if it was still there.
• Keep the tow ticket and every receipt, including the itemized invoice, which the company must make available within one business day.
• Photograph the rate sheet and the county rate notice at the payment window before you pay.
• Inspect the car before you accept it, photograph any damage on the lot, and note it in writing. Don't sign a waiver.
• Get your belongings first if you can't pay yet.
• File a complaint with Hillsborough County Code Enforcement or Pinellas County Consumer Protection. A complaint can lead to a citation, but county staff can't act as your lawyer.
• Send it to me. Request a free case review and upload the receipt, the invoice, and your photos.

Tampa Bay towing guides

Each guide below follows one situation drivers in that part of Tampa Bay describe, with the county rules that apply there. I take towing cases from Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Polk counties and anywhere else in Florida.

• Brandon: apartment complex tows at nightWoke up to find your car towed from your own Brandon apartment complex? The Hillsborough County rules on permits, expired tags, signs, and nighttime tows.
• Clearwater: beach-area private lot towsTowed from a private lot near Clearwater Beach while you were on the sand? Pinellas County's tow rules, rental car pickups, and how to dispute the bill.
• Lakeland: towed and damagedYour car came back from a Lakeland tow lot scraped, dented, or not running right? What Florida and Polk County rules say about tow damage and who pays.
• St. Petersburg: downtown and event parking towsParked downtown in St. Petersburg for a game, concert, or night out and got towed? What Pinellas County lets tow companies charge and how to push back.
• Wesley Chapel: HOA and new apartment community towsHOA or new apartment community in Wesley Chapel towed your car? Pasco County's towing rates, sign rules, and what a tow company must hand you first.

Sources: Fla. Stat. §§ 715.07, 713.78(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (9), (10), (15), (17), (18), (19), (20), 125.0103(1), 166.043(1), 501.204(1), 501.211, 501.2105(1), 501.212, 493.6101, 679.609, 95.11(3)(e), (g); Hillsborough County Code of Ordinances Part A, ch. 50, art. VII (§§ 50-177, 50-178, 50-181, 50-183, 50-186, 50-192); Hillsborough County, "Towing Companies" and "What to Do if Your Car is Towed" (county web pages); City of Tampa Code ch. 6, art. III, div. 9 (§§ 6-232 to 6-234); Pinellas County Code ch. 122, art. II.5 (§§ 122-40 to 122-45); Pinellas County, Pinellas County Towing Rates, effective June 16, 2026; Pasco County Code § 106-31.5 and Pasco County Maximum Towing Rates, effective October 1, 2026; Polk County Code §§ 10.3-61 to 10.3-67; National Consumer Law Center, Repossessions, ch. 15 (practice treatise). Last reviewed October 10, 2026.