Towed in Minnesota: your rights, the fees, and getting your stuff back
One chapter of Minnesota law, chapter 168B, controls most of what happens after a tow: who may order one, how fast, what notice you get, what the lot must release, and how quickly an unclaimed car can be sold. This guide walks it in the order the morning actually happens. Statute references are pending attorney verification; every section cites its source so you can check the text at revisor.mn.gov.
First hour: find the car, stop the meter
Minneapolis: search by plate or VIN on the city's impound vehicle search or call 612-673-5777. St. Paul: call 651-266-5642. Storage is charged by the calendar day and a new day starts at midnight, so the cheapest time to act is now. See your city's published fees and where the lots are and what to bring.
When a tow is allowed at all
From public property, a tow generally requires an officer's written towing report, and some tows are flatly prohibited: a car cannot be towed from public property just because its registration stickers have been expired for less than 90 days or because a meter ran out (Minn. Stat. 168B.035, subds. 2 and 3). The same statute lists the situations where a tow is proper: snow emergencies, rush-hour zones, blocking a driveway, alley, or hydrant, hazards, stolen vehicles, and others. Timing rules also apply by location: a posted government lot generally requires four hours; an unposted private business lot generally requires 24 hours; posted business lots and residential property allow immediate tows (Minn. Stat. 168B.04, subd. 2). The five-question checker applies these rules to your answers.
The fees, and what caps them
Cities set their own impound fees and publish them (or don't). Minneapolis publishes $222 for a standard tow plus $18 per day of storage; St. Paul publishes $225.24 plus $15 per additional day, with snow emergency tows higher. For private-property tows, Minneapolis caps what licensed towers may charge (a maximum adopted annually under Code ch. 349.270) and requires lots that tow to post the fee at each entrance, with no charging above the posted amount; St. Paul publishes no cap, and we say so rather than invent one. Every figure, with its source and date, lives on the city fee pages. A tower who towed at police request holds a lien on the vehicle for towing and storage (Minn. Stat. 168B.045), which is why the bill must usually be paid before the car is released.
Your belongings come first
The impound lot must let the registered owner retrieve proof of identification, prescription medicine, and durable medical equipment regardless of payment, and must maintain reasonable procedures for retrieving everything else. People receiving need-based benefits, homeless, or eligible for legal aid can retrieve all contents free of charge, with real remedies (including $1,000 statutory damages and attorney fees) if a lot wrongfully refuses (Minn. Stat. 168B.07, subds. 3 to 3d). The full walk-through is the belongings guide.
The clock: notice, and how fast a car can be sold
Written notice of the impound must be sent to the registered owner within five days, excluding weekends and holidays (Minn. Stat. 168B.06). After notice, waiting periods run before the car can be sold: 15 days for abandoned or junk vehicles, 15 days after certified-mail notice for unauthorized vehicles impounded by Minneapolis or St. Paul (45 if you deliver a written intent to reclaim), and 45 days in most other cases (Minn. Stat. 168B.051). Doing nothing waives your rights in the vehicle. If you cannot afford to redeem the car, retrieving the contents and deciding about the title on your own schedule beats letting the deadlines decide for you.
If the tow broke the rules
A tow that violates the street-towing rules entitles the owner or driver to recover the greater of $100 or twice the actual damages, including the costs of recovering the vehicle (Minn. Stat. 168B.035, subd. 6). Disputes over a few hundred dollars are what Minnesota's conciliation court exists for: filing is cheap, lawyers are not required, and the paper trail you built (photos, receipts, the towing report) is the case. Start with a written demand to the city or the tower; many resolve there.
Was this tow after an accident?
If your car was towed from a crash scene, the tow bill is usually the smallest part of the picture. Were you injured, or hit by someone? A crash tow usually means an insurance claim and sometimes a legal claim. You can send the basics to Dan Swenson, the Minnesota attorney who built this site, for a free look.
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