Indiana Towing Laws: Your Rights When Your Car Is Towed

Primary law: Ind. Code § 9-22-1-16 · Last verified July 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Indiana has one of the thinnest non-consent towing frameworks in the country. Towing from private property runs through the abandoned-vehicle law, Indiana Code § 9-22-1-16: if a vehicle believed to be abandoned has not been removed after 24 hours, the person who owns or controls the property may have it towed — and may skip the 24-hour wait entirely in an 'emergency,' defined broadly to include a vehicle that interferes with normal business operations or poses a safety or security threat. The statute imposes no statewide signage requirement, no pre-tow notice to police, and few procedural protections; consumer safeguards, where they exist, come mostly from local ordinances.

Indiana sets no statewide caps on private-property towing or storage fees and has no statutory drop-fee, kickback, or credit-card rules for these tows. What you pay is governed mainly by the tow and storage operator's own rates and any limits your city or county imposes. Once a vehicle enters the abandoned-vehicle pipeline, the operator can recover its towing and storage costs before release, and unclaimed vehicles are eventually disposed of through the state's abandoned-vehicle process. Because state law says so little, checking your municipality's towing ordinance is essential to knowing your actual rights.

Start by calling the local police or sheriff's non-emergency line and ask which storage yard has your car — tows are commonly reported locally even though the statute demands little. Get the total charges in writing before you go, pay promptly to stop storage from accruing, and demand an itemized receipt. Photograph the lot you were towed from, including any signage or the lack of it, in case you dispute the tow. If charges seem abusive, complain to the Indiana Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division and raise it with your city, since local ordinances are the main check on towing conduct in Indiana.

Indiana towing rules at a glance

How to get your car back in Indiana

1. Call the local police or sheriff's non-emergency line to find out which tow yard has your car.
2. Ask the yard for its total charges in writing before you travel there.
3. Photograph the lot you were towed from, including any signs or their absence.
4. Pay promptly to stop daily storage charges and insist on an itemized receipt.
5. Report abusive charges to the Indiana Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division and check your city's towing ordinance for local fee limits.

Where to complain about an illegal tow

Indiana Attorney General - Consumer Protection Division handles towing complaints in Indiana. Keep your receipt, photos of any signage (or lack of it), and notes on dates and times — they decide most fee disputes.

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