Loudoun County, VA Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Time limit
- 20 consecutive seconds max
- Tow trigger
- Alarm sounds 15 min after deputy arrives
- Enforcing agency
- Loudoun County Sheriff's Office
- First offense
- Class 3 misdemeanor
- Repeat within 1 year
- Class 1 misdemeanor
- Applies to
- Unincorporated Loudoun County only
Summary
Loudoun County bans sounding a vehicle horn, signaling device, or alarm on any street or public place for more than twenty consecutive seconds, whether continuous or intermittent, unless it's a genuine danger warning or permitted under state law. An alarm that keeps blaring 15 minutes after a deputy arrives and the owner can't be found lets the officer have the vehicle towed.
The sounding of any horn or signaling device/alarm on any motor vehicle, motorcycle, bicycle, or other vehicle on any street or public place of the county, continuously or intermittently for more than twenty consecutive seconds, except as a danger warning or as permitted by state law. If such signaling device/alarm sounds continuously for 15 minutes after the arrival of a law enforcement officer and the owner cannot be located, such officer may arrange for the vehicle to be towed.
Full Breakdown
02(d)(6) of the Loudoun County Code, part of the county's 'Excessive Sound in Residential Areas and Dwellings' ordinance, singles out vehicle horns and alarms for a specific numeric limit: no more than twenty consecutive seconds of sounding, whether continuous or intermittent, on any street or public place in the county. The exceptions are narrow, a horn used as a genuine danger warning, or use permitted elsewhere under Virginia law. If a car alarm keeps sounding for 15 minutes after a Loudoun County Sheriff's Office deputy arrives on scene and the registered owner cannot be located, the deputy is authorized to arrange for the vehicle to be towed, a self-help remedy the ordinance doesn't extend to most of its other noise violations.
m. The car-alarm provision applies to the unincorporated county; Leesburg, Purcellville, Hamilton, Middleburg, Round Hill, Hillsboro and Lovettsville enforce their own town noise codes for alarms sounding inside town limits. Enforcement runs through the Sheriff's Office, and violations are charged as misdemeanors under subsection (f), with escalating classes for repeat offenders within six months or a year of a prior conviction.
Violations & Fines
A first violation of the car-alarm time limit is a Class 3 misdemeanor under §654.02(f). A second violation within six months of a prior conviction becomes a Class 2 misdemeanor, and a third within a year of a prior conviction is a Class 1 misdemeanor. Virginia's most serious misdemeanor class. The Board of Supervisors may also seek a circuit court injunction, and any aggrieved resident can apply directly to a magistrate for a warrant.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can a car alarm legally sound in Loudoun County?
Can the county tow my car over a stuck alarm?
What's the penalty for repeat car-alarm violations?
Does this rule apply inside Leesburg or Purcellville?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Loudoun County
Compare Loudoun County to another location·View the Virginia noise from specific sources overview
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