Pembroke Pines, FL Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)
Key Facts
- Consent required
- From property owner or lessor before towing
- Signage
- Required at every driveway/curb cut
- Lettering
- 'Tow-away zone' at least 4 inches tall
- Posting period
- Sign up 24 hours before any tow
- Indemnification
- Towing business must indemnify the city
- Penalty
- Up to $500 fine or 60 days jail
Summary
Before a property owner or towing business can non-consent tow a vehicle from quasi-public property in Pembroke Pines, § 90.01(E) requires written consent from the owner or lessor and a permanently mounted, reflective 'tow-away zone' sign at every driveway or curb cut, posted at least 24 hours before any tow.
(E) Whenever a law enforcement officer of the city shall ascertain that an article of abandoned property is present on quasi-public property within the limits of the city, the towing or removal of any abandoned property is subject to strict compliance with the following conditions and restrictions:
(1) Authorization by way of consent from the owner or lessor of real property, or any person authorized in writing by the owner or lessor, which persons may be the designated representative of the condominium association, if the real property is a condominium;
(2) Except for those properties deemed easements, the property must post a notice meeting the following requirements:
(a) The notice must be prominently placed at each driveway access or curb cut allowing vehicular access to the property, within five feet from the public right-of-way line. If there are no curbs or access barriers, the signs must be posted not less than one sign for each 25 feet of lot frontage.
(b) The notice must clearly indicate, in not less than two-inch high, light reflective letters on a contrasting background, that unauthorized vehicles will be towed away at the owner's expense. The words "tow-away zone" must be included on the sign in not less than four-inch high letters.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-61: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through Ord. 2056, passed 12-11-25).
Full Breakdown
Section 90.01(E), carried over from the 1969 Code § 2-73 and last amended by Ordinance 1660 in 2010, puts strict conditions on any towing or removal of a vehicle from quasi-public property within the city. Division (E)(1) requires authorization by consent from the property owner or lessor, or from someone the owner or lessor has authorized in writing, which for a condominium may be the association's designated representative. Division (E)(2) requires a posted notice at each driveway access or curb cut within five feet of the public right-of-way line, or, where there are no curbs, at least one sign for every 25 feet of lot frontage. That notice must use light-reflective letters at least two inches high stating that unauthorized vehicles will be towed at the owner's expense, must display the words 'tow-away zone' in letters at least four inches high, must list the name and current phone number of the towing company under contract, and the sign structure itself must sit at least four feet off the ground and stay up for a minimum of 24 hours before any vehicle is towed.
Divisions (E)(3) and (E)(4) round out the scheme by requiring both the property owner or lessor and the towing business to indemnify and hold the city's law enforcement officers and other agents harmless from civil or criminal liability while carrying out a tow under this section. The chapter separately imposes a $100 fine, under § 90.01(F)(2), on the owner of a vehicle towed as abandoned property who fails to pay removal costs after notice.
Violations & Fines
Towing or removing a vehicle from quasi-public property without the required owner consent, signage, or indemnification violates § 90.01(E). Section 90.99(B) sets the penalty for any § 90.01 violation at a fine of not more than $500, imprisonment for not more than 60 days, or both, separate from the $100 cost-recovery fine division (F)(2) imposes on an abandoned vehicle's owner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Pembroke Pines property tow my car without warning?
Does the towing company have to be named on the sign?
Who is liable if a non-consent tow goes wrong in Pembroke Pines?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pembroke Pines
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