Chattanooga, TN Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 24-341(d) defines an abandoned vehicle as one left unattended on public or private property for more than 10 days, left illegally on public property for more than 48 hours, or left on private property without the owner's or occupant's consent for more than 48 hours. Section 24-342 makes abandoning a vehicle within the city unlawful outright. Section 24-344 goes further, deeming the location or presence of a discarded or abandoned vehicle on any lot, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, a public nuisance, unlawful to cause or maintain, subject only to exceptions for vehicles fully enclosed in a building, held as part of a licensed dealer's lawful business, kept in an approved governmental storage depository, or unlicensed inoperable vehicles that are screened from public view. Chapter 24, Division 5 sets out the notice, hearing, and removal procedure that follows.