Hackensack, NJ Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

On private property, Chapter 168 defines an abandoned vehicle or chattel, which also covers iceboxes, refrigerators, sinks, stoves, tanks, plumbing fixtures, machinery and appliances, as one remaining on unoccupied property for more than 24 hours, unless it sits there in connection with an active business under periodic supervision. Under § 168-3, the Police Department may issue a summons directly, and the Health Officer separately serves a notice of violation under Chapter 23, Article II, giving the owner, occupant or tenant 10 days to remove the item at the owner's expense.

If the deadline passes, the Health Department abates the nuisance itself, hauling the chattel to the city garage or another designated site. Under § 168-3D, if nobody claims it within 30 days it is sold at public auction, and any shortfall between removal costs and sale proceeds becomes a lien on the property, collected the same way as unpaid property taxes. S. 26:3-56 instead. On public streets, Article II lets any peace officer remove an unoccupied vehicle parked in violation as a nuisance and traffic menace: 72 hours of continuous parking is prima facie evidence of abandonment, 48 hours is enough for a presumed-abandoned inoperable vehicle, and a vehicle with no current, valid plates can be removed at any time.

The owner must pay reasonable towing and storage costs, plus any fines, before reclaiming the vehicle from impound, and an unclaimed vehicle is likewise auctioned after 30 days under § 168-8.