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Denver City impounds: fees, the 10-day hearing request, and the 30-day clock
When the City of Denver impounds a car, two clocks start from the City's certified notice: 10 days to ask in writing for a hearing, and 30 days before the car can be auctioned or scrapped.
General information, not legal advice. The papers you got from the police, the tow company, the storage lot or a state agency control your dates. Agencies change phone numbers and steps, so check the agency's own page too.
1. The charges
The City charges $120 to tow a vehicle up to 6,000 lbs. and $20 a day after the first 24 hours ($170 and $30 above 6,000 lbs.). The code lets the City's safety manager waive charges, and it says charges are normally waived when the driver was released without charges, when a car held as evidence leads to no conviction, and for a recovered stolen car licensed in Denver. The City's page says impound staff themselves cannot waive or reduce fees.
A booted car that was towed after 72 hours also owes the parking fines and the $100 boot fee before release.
Sources: D.R.M.C. sec. 54-813 (Municode); Towing and Impound FAQ (Denver); Tickets, Towing & Disputes (Denver)
2. The notice and the hearing
The City sends the owner and any lender a certified notice with the amount due. A hearing request must be made in writing within 10 days of the postmark. City pages say boot and impound hearings are scheduled in person at 1437 Bannock St.
The hearing decides whether there was probable cause for the impound; it does not lower the charges. If the impound was illegal, all charges are forgiven, and a car already released is refunded.
Sources: D.R.M.C. ch. 54, art. XV (Municode); Tickets, Towing & Disputes (Denver)
3. The auction
Unless claimed within 30 days of the notice's postmark, the car can be declared abandoned and sold. Denver sells these cars online every other week; the City posts each sale list ahead of time. The City says a sale or scrapping settles the tow and storage fees, but any tickets stay due.
Sources: Abandoned & Confiscated Vehicle Online Auction (Denver); Towing and Impound FAQ (Denver)
4. Money left after a sale
Any money left after the City's charges and sale costs goes to the City's general fund. A person entitled to it can ask General Services for it within one year of the sale; after that the claim is lost.
See the Denver impound deadlines
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