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Towing records, rates and law changes in Washington
Plain-language facts about towing in Washington. Every fact links to its official source, and we show the date we last checked it.
State program to release towed cars to owners who can't pay now starts July 1, 2027
A 2025 law (Chapter 417, Laws of 2025) created RCW 46.55.700: the Department of Licensing will pay tow companies, from unclaimed auction money, for releasing a car to an owner who is indigent, for private-property tows and police-directed tows not made after an arrest. A 2026 law (Chapter 255) moved the start date from February 1, 2026 to July 1, 2027. Tow companies will then have to tell owners about the program in the impound notice.
Law passed in 2025; start date moved to July 1, 2027.
New state law: cars blocking a big city's streetcar tracks can be towed right away
HB 2495 (Chapter 99, Laws of 2026) was signed March 18, 2026 and took effect that day. A car left in the right-of-way a city of more than 700,000 people uses for streetcars can now be impounded immediately if it blocks the streetcar or puts public safety at risk. An authorized city representative must still sign the impound authorization at the time and place of the tow (RCW 46.55.080(2)).
State Patrol tow rates for October 15, 2025 to October 14, 2026
For tows the Washington State Patrol orders, the most a rotation tow company may charge is $297 an hour for a class A or E truck and $75 for storage, with $149 an hour for labor or an after-hours release. These rates matter for private-lot tows too: state law caps a private-impound company's filed hourly and storage rates at 135% of the Patrol's rates in effect when the company filed its fee schedule (RCW 46.55.118).
In effect October 15, 2025 through October 14, 2026. The Patrol sets new rates before October 15 each year; the 2026-27 table was not yet posted when we checked on October 8, 2026.
We read public records, laws and official reports and explain them in plain words. We do not say that any company broke the law; we report what the records show, with a link so you can check. If you see a mistake, email corrections@towedhelp.org.