Bradenton, FL Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Article III of Chapter 38 governs wrecked, junked or abandoned property. Section 38-62 makes it unlawful to park, store or leave motor or other vehicles, boats, refrigerators, washing machines, hot water heaters or similar household items in a wrecked, junked, partially dismantled or abandoned condition on private property, unless connected with a lawfully situated and licensed business. Section 38-63 declares them public nuisances. Division 2 adds a rule for vehicles: under § 38-81, no person in charge of or in control of property, whether an owner, tenant, occupant or lessee, can allow a derelict, disabled or abandoned vehicle to remain unless it is within a completely enclosed building or on the premises of an automotive repair or storage business holding a current city occupational license and zoning approval.

Section 38-82 sets the test: a state of evident disuse, neglect or abandonment. Evidence includes a wrecked vehicle, vegetation underneath as high as the vehicle body or frame, debris collected underneath, use solely for storage, no engine or transmission, or missing major visible parts. The absence of a valid license plate or sticker for the current year, or of a current registration certificate, is prima facie evidence that the vehicle is abandoned, junked or discarded. Section 38-83 adds that nothing permits scavenging one vehicle for parts for another.

Section 38-84 makes the property owner, agent or tenant and the vehicle owner jointly and individually responsible. Under § 38-85, the code inspector places a written notice on the vehicle giving ten calendar days for removal, and notifies the owners by mail or personal service. Within that period the vehicle or property owner can appeal to the director of planning and development, who can extend time for good cause, and then to the city board of adjustment. If no appeal is made, the inspector has the vehicle removed to a storage facility and disposed of under state law or city ordinance.

The notice track in §§ 38-64 through 38-66 runs separately: ten days to correct after notice, then a written request within ten days for a city council hearing. Vehicles on public property are towed under F.S. ch. 705 (§ 38-86).