Fountain Valley, CA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Time limit
- More than five days is a misdemeanor (§ 10.76.150)
- Abatement notice
- Ten days, mailed by registered mail to land and vehicle owners
- Hearing request
- To the City Clerk within ten days of mailing
- Enforcing officer
- Chief of police, with deputies
- Removal after order
- Five days after the council order is adopted
- Unpaid costs
- Assessed against the parcel after thirty days
- Penalty
- Misdemeanor, up to $1,000 fine or six months in County Jail
Summary
In the City of Fountain Valley, California, leaving an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle on private property, or on public property other than a highway, for more than five days is a misdemeanor. The chief of police enforces Chapter 10.76 and can order removal after a ten-day notice sent by registered mail.
It is unlawful and a misdemeanor for any person to abandon, park, store, or leave or permit the abandonment, parking, storing or leaving of any licensed or unlicensed vehicle or parts thereof which is in an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative condition upon any private property or public property not including highways within the city for a period in excess of five days unless such vehicle or parts thereof is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where it is not plainly visible from the street or other public or private property, or unless such vehicle is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with the business of a licensed dismantler, licensed vehicle dealer or a junkyard.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 10.76 of the Fountain Valley Municipal Code declares the presence of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle, or parts of one, on private or public property not including highways to be a public nuisance (§ 10.76.010). Section 10.76.150 makes it unlawful and a misdemeanor to abandon, park, store or leave such a vehicle, licensed or unlicensed, for more than five days. Two exemptions apply under §§ 10.76.030 and 10.76.150: a vehicle completely enclosed in a building in a lawful manner where it is not visible from the street or other property, and a vehicle kept lawfully at a licensed dismantler, licensed vehicle dealer or junk dealer or as necessary to a lawful business.
The chief of police administers the chapter and, with deputies, can enter private or public property to examine a vehicle and remove it (§ 10.76.050). Under § 10.76.090 a ten-day notice of intention to abate is mailed by registered mail to the owner of the land and to the owner of the vehicle, meaning the last registered and legal owner of record, unless identification numbers cannot be found. Either owner can ask the City Clerk for a public hearing within ten days after mailing. A landowner can instead file a sworn written statement denying responsibility, which counts as a hearing request without a personal appearance. Hearings are held before the city council (§ 10.76.110). If the council finds the vehicle was placed on the land without the owner's consent and the owner did not later acquiesce, it cannot assess removal or administrative costs against the property.
Five days after the removal order, the vehicle can be taken to a scrapyard or automobile dismantler's yard, and it cannot afterward be reconstructed or made operable (§ 10.76.120). The city notifies the Department of Motor Vehicles within five days of removal (§ 10.76.130). Costs not paid within thirty days of the order are assessed against the parcel under Government Code § 38773.5, with the same priority as other city taxes (§ 10.76.140). The chapter is not the exclusive regulation of these vehicles and supplements other codes and statutes (§ 10.76.040).
Violations & Fines
Leaving a qualifying vehicle for more than five days is a misdemeanor under § 10.76.150, and refusing to remove one or abate the nuisance after being ordered to is a separate misdemeanor under § 10.76.160. Section 1.16.010 sets misdemeanor punishment at a fine of not more than $1,000, up to six months in County Jail, or both, with each day a new offense. Removal and administrative costs can become an assessment on the parcel.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can an inoperative vehicle sit on private property in Fountain Valley?
What notice does the City of Fountain Valley give before removing a vehicle?
Who pays if someone dumped the vehicle on my land?
Can I keep a project car in my garage in Fountain Valley?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fountain Valley
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