Audits, reports, rules and contracts about towing in San Diego, each with a short summary in plain words and a link to the agency's own copy.
These are government documents. We link to the official copies. Summaries are ours; read the record itself before you rely on it.
How to find a City-towed car (AutoReturn, 619-527-4392), what to bring, the 10-day post-storage hearing through Tow Administration, refunds through Public Liability when a tow is invalid, and the City Attorney's towing complaint form.
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The Council's policy on the SDPD towing program, first adopted in 1963. The September 29, 2026 version says to cite rather than tow for registration expired more than six months and requires SDPD towing reports at least every three years, including tows and lien sales by reason.
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Reports that three of the four 2022 towing recommendations were past due, that SDPD's November 2024 report to the Public Safety Committee had errors and called the program cost neutral, and that the committee approved Council Policy 500-03 changes on November 11, 2025.
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Lists the Tow Impound Cost Recovery Fee ($115 per impound) that owners pay and the Tow Franchise Fee ($135 per vehicle) that impound companies pay.
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The PDF's table prints columns out of line; read the Police, Managed Tow Program rows carefully.
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Temporary 'No Parking' signs must go up at least 24 hours before cars are removed; a car displayed for sale on a designated street can be removed only after a warning notice at least 24 hours earlier.
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A two-page summary of state private-tow rules: the one-hour rule, the property owner's signed authorization, sign requirements and the papers a tow company must provide.
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Lists the earlier amounts: $63 per impound and an $83 franchise fee per vehicle.
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Finds that tows for long-expired registration, 72-hour parking and unpaid tickets fall hardest on low-income residents and most often end in lien sales, that the program loses about $1.5 million a year, and that SDPD had not given the Council a full update since 2013. Appendix C lists who sets and receives each tow fee.
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Covers when SDPD releases cars (including 30-day impounds and unpaid-ticket tows), when the Department pays for evidence holds, the wording of the wrongful-tow notice private tow companies must give, and how SDPD handles 'predatory' private tows as misdemeanors.
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The posted copy is dated 2019 and partly redacted; it may not be the current version.
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Authorizes SDPD to remove vehicles, requires a notice of stored vehicle and a post-storage hearing within the Vehicle Code's limits, and makes the City pay towing and storage when the hearing finds no reasonable grounds.
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We are reviewing these before we post them: