Macon-Bibb County, GA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Article III of Chapter 15, Nuisances, defines "abandoned vehicle" in Section 15-51(a) as "a discarded, dismantled, wrecked, scrapped, ruined, junked motor vehicle, or the parts thereof," and Section 15-51(b) makes it "unlawful to abandon any vehicle of any type within Macon-Bibb County," including leaving one "for such time and under such circumstances as to cause the vehicle reasonably to appear to have been abandoned." Section 15-52 separately bars "leav[ing] any partially dismantled, nonoperating, wrecked or junked vehicle on any street, lane or highway." Section 15-53 governs private property: anyone in charge, "whether as owner, tenant, occupant, lessee or agent," may not let a partially dismantled, nonoperating, wrecked, junked or discarded vehicle sit longer than fifteen (15) days unless it is inside an enclosed building or on a lawfully operated business premises tied to the business.

Removal proceeds under Section 15-54: once a vehicle sits abandoned more than fifteen days, the Sheriff's Office or a designated official, including the Code Enforcement Department, serves notice giving the owner 10 days to remove, store, or dispose of it, though vehicles left on private property with the owner's permission "shall not be removed except by court order." Section 15-55 authorizes the sheriff or designee to remove, impound, and store vehicles abandoned on public streets immediately, and Section 15-56 lets an owner reclaim an impounded vehicle by proving ownership and paying removal and storage costs before disposal or sale.