Towing rules for property managers in Tennessee

Printable checklist

• ☐ Placement: At each designated entrance and visible from every parking space
• ☐ Sign size: at least 36 inches by 24 inches
• ☐ Letters at least 2 inches tall
• ☐ A sign at each entrance
• ☐ A warning that unauthorized vehicles will be towed
• ☐ Tow company reports the tow to police within 15 minutes
• ☐ Release the car if the owner returns before it leaves the property

What the sign law says

Applies to: Only lots licensed under a local ordinance

Where a local licensing ordinance applies, the sign must be at least 36 by 24 inches with letters at least 2 inches tall. It must be at each designated entrance and visible from every parking space. The state act requires tow warning signs only for lots licensed under a local ordinance. Those signs must say the policy is strictly enforced, that violators will be towed at their expense, and give the lot's name, license number and a phone number.

Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-203(b)(9) (opens in a new tab)

No general statewide private-lot sign rule applies outside local licensing. The sign gives the lot's name and phone, not necessarily the towing company's. Dimensions are given as 'X by Y inches' without naming which is width and which is height; they are listed in the stated order. Additional quoted text comes from: Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-203(b)(8) <https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/113/pub/pc1017.pdf>.

Tow-away signs

• The state act requires tow warning signs only for lots licensed under a local ordinance. Those signs must say the policy is strictly enforced, that violators will be towed at their expense, and give the lot's name, license number and a phone number. Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-203(b)(8) (opens in a new tab)
• Where a local licensing ordinance applies, the sign must be at least 36 by 24 inches with letters at least 2 inches tall. It must be at each designated entrance and visible from every parking space. Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-203(b)(9) (opens in a new tab)

If you get back before the tow leaves

• If you arrive after the driver has started to tow but before the car leaves the lot, the operator must release it immediately once you pay a release fee. The release fee cannot be more than $100. Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-307(b), 55-31-404(3) (opens in a new tab)
• A tow company may not charge a gate, access or release fee during normal business hours on any day it is also charging daily storage. Tenn. Code Ann. 55-31-404(2) (opens in a new tab)

Sources

• https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/113/pub/pc1017.pdf (opens in a new tab)