Carroll County, MD Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 7-101 of the Carroll County Code (Title 7, Motor Vehicles) gives any law enforcement officer in the county authority to impound, remove, and sell an abandoned motor vehicle at public sale once the registered owner cannot be located. A vehicle qualifies if it sits abandoned on a public road, highway, alley, parking lot, or public property, or on private property belonging to someone other than its owner, in violation of a parking law, or if it remains long enough to become a traffic hazard or a public nuisance.

The sale cannot happen sooner than thirty days after the vehicle is impounded and removed, and notice of the sale must run for two successive weeks in a newspaper published in the county, describing the vehicle and stating the time, place, and terms of sale. If the owner or a lienholder can be identified, the county must also mail notice by registered or certified mail at least ten days before the sale. A separate track applies to low-value vehicles: once two licensed county automobile dealers certify a vehicle is worth less than $25, an officer may impound, remove, and sell or otherwise dispose of it at public or private sale after affixing notice to the vehicle and mailing notice to any known owner or lienholder ten days ahead.

After deducting impoundment, removal, and sale costs and paying off any liens, the county deposits remaining proceeds into a special fund held by the Board of County Commissioners; an owner who proves ownership within one year of the sale can claim that surplus, after which unclaimed funds move into the county's general fund. The County Commissioners may adopt further regulations by ordinance or resolution to administer the section.