Jacksonville Beach, FL Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Time limit
- 72 hours on private or public property
- Inoperable test
- No valid and current license tag affixed
- Notice period
- Ten days on abandoned private-property items
- Notice size
- At least 8 inches by 10 inches, weatherproofed
- Exempt locations
- Fully enclosed building, lawful business premises, city storage
- Who can impound
- City manager, police, community service or code enforcement officer
Summary
Jacksonville Beach bars anyone in charge of property from letting an inoperable or wrecked motor vehicle stay on private or public property longer than 72 hours. Section 14-18 declares stored vehicles a nuisance and makes the registered owner and the property holder responsible for removing the vehicle from the city or housing it in a completely enclosed building.
No person in charge or control of any property within the city, whether as owner, tenant, occupant, lessee or otherwise, shall allow any inoperable or wrecked motor vehicle to remain on any private or public property within city longer than seventy-two (72) hours; and no person shall leave any such vehicle on any property within the city for a longer time than seventy-two (72) hours; except that this article shall not apply to a vehicle in a fully enclosed building; a vehicle on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner, when necessary to the operation of such business enterprise; or a vehicle in an appropriate storage place or depository maintained in a lawful place and manner by the city. ... To accumulate or store one (1) or more of such vehicles on public or private property shall constitute a nuisance detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of inhabitants of the city, and it shall be the duty of the registered owner of vehicle, and the property upon which the vehicle is located to remove the vehicle from the city limits, or to have the vehicle housed in a completely enclosed building.
Official source re-checked November 3, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 60).
Full Breakdown
Article II of Chapter 14 sets one clock for both public and private land: seventy-two (72) hours. Section 14-17 puts the duty on any person in charge or control of property, whether owner, tenant, occupant or lessee, and separately forbids anyone to leave such a vehicle on any property in the city past that time.
Section 14-16 defines the terms. An inoperable motor vehicle is one without a valid and current motor vehicle license tag affixed, so an expired tag alone brings a car under the article. Two carve-outs appear in the definition: vehicles on private property owned or leased by a new or used automobile dealer holding a current, valid City of Jacksonville Beach occupational license, and antique or collector vehicles registered with the state under F.S. § 320.086. A wrecked motor vehicle is one that is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, inoperable, incapable of operation by its own power on a public street, or missing its wheels, engines, transmission or any substantial part. The motor vehicle definition is broad: automobiles, buses, mopeds, motorcycles, trucks, tractors, go-carts, golf carts, campers, motorhomes and trailers. Public property includes beaches, streets, sidewalks, parkways, rights-of-way and sovereignty submerged lands next to the city.
Section 14-17 exempts a vehicle in a fully enclosed building, a vehicle on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner when necessary to that business, and a vehicle in an appropriate storage place or depository maintained lawfully by the city. Section 14-18 treats accumulating or storing even one such vehicle as a nuisance detrimental to health, safety and welfare.
Section 14-19 covers abandoned property on private property, including motor vehicles and boats. The enforcement officer posts a notice of at least eight inches by ten inches, weatherproofed for ten days, giving ten (10) days to remove the item; certified mail to the owner is the fallback when posting is difficult or dangerous. After ten days the officer can have the item removed and destroyed, and the salvage value is applied against the cost.
Violations & Fines
Section 14-19 tells the owner of an abandoned motor vehicle or boat that the owner will be liable for the costs of removal and destruction. Section 14-20 lets the city manager, a police officer, a community service officer, a code enforcement officer or another employee the city manager designates remove any vehicle that reasonably appears to violate the article or is lost, stolen or unclaimed. The vehicle stays impounded until lawfully claimed or disposed of according to the law. Sections 14-17 through 14-20 set no fine schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can an inoperable car sit on my property in Jacksonville Beach?
Does an expired tag make a vehicle inoperable?
What notice does the city give before removing abandoned property?
Who is allowed to impound a vehicle in Jacksonville Beach?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Jacksonville Beach
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Abandoned Vehicles in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle abandoned vehicles.