Ames, IA Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)
Key Facts
- Signage required
- at every lot entrance, before any tow
- Authorization
- owner or agent must co-sign the tow
- Police notice deadline
- within 2 hours of completing tow
- First-violation penalty
- $50 municipal infraction
- Repeat penalties
- $100 second, $250 third and beyond
Summary
In the City of Ames, Iowa, Ames Municipal Code Sec. 18.19 lets a commercial, institutional or multi-unit lot owner have an unauthorized vehicle towed only after posting entrance signage and co-signing the tow authorization; the towing company must report the tow to the Ames Police Department within two hours. Skipping these steps is a municipal infraction starting at $50.
(3) When towing any vehicle parked in a commercial, institutional or multi-unit residential parking lot, the following requirements apply: (a) The lot shall be posted at each entrance with clearly visible signs indicating the parking restrictions applicable therein, including notice that violators may be towed, and (b) The property owner or owner’s agent or other party initiating a tow shall co-sign the authorization for tow; and (c) The towing company shall notify the Police Department by telephone, fax, or by face-to-face report made at the Police Department that a private property tow was done. This report shall be made within two hours of completion of the tow and shall include sufficient details about the vehicle towed and the location towed from as to allow the Police to respond to inquiries about the towed vehicle’s whereabouts. Violations of this subsection shall be a municipal infraction punishable by a penalty of $50 for a first violation, $100 for a second violation, and $250 for third and subsequent violations. Alternatively, a violation of this subsection may be charged by a peace officer as a simple misdemeanor.
Full Breakdown
Ames Municipal Code Sec. 18.19 sets the conditions a commercial, institutional or multi-unit residential lot owner must meet before towing an unauthorized vehicle. The lot must be posted at every entrance with clearly visible signs stating the parking restrictions and warning that violators may be towed; the property owner or an agent (or other party initiating the tow) must co-sign the tow authorization; and the towing company must notify the Ames Police Department, by phone, fax or in person, within two hours of completing the tow, including enough vehicle and location detail for police to answer inquiries about the vehicle's whereabouts.
Skipping the signage, the co-signature or the police notification turns the tow into a municipal infraction, punishable by a $50 fine for a first violation, $100 for a second and $250 for a third or subsequent violation; a peace officer may instead charge it as a simple misdemeanor. A separate clause, Sec. 18.19(4), lets police impound a vehicle blocking a driveway without the owner's consent, holding it until towing and storage costs are paid in full, and Sec. 18.19(5) routes ordinary parking-without-consent violations through the Sec. 18.7 citation process rather than this penalty schedule.
Violations & Fines
Towing without posted signage, a co-signed authorization or a timely police report is a municipal infraction under Sec. 18.19(3): $50 for a first violation, $100 for a second, and $250 for a third or subsequent violation, or a peace officer may instead charge it as a simple misdemeanor. The Ames Police Department is the required point of contact for every private-property tow report.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a lot owner do before towing a car without the driver's consent?
Does the towing company have to report the tow to police?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ames
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