Milpitas, CA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing agency
- Milpitas Chief of Police
- Notice period
- 10-day certified mail notice
- Hearing body
- Milpitas City Council
- Removal timing
- 5 days after abatement order
- DMV notification
- Within 5 days of removal
- Unpaid cost recovery
- Special assessment via Gov. Code § 38773.5
Summary
In the City of Milpitas, an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle on private or public property (other than a highway) is declared a public nuisance under Chapter XI-13. The Chief of Police enforces the Chapter, mails a 10-day notice to the land and vehicle owners, and can have the vehicle towed and scrapped if it is not removed.
The accumulation and storage of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicles or parts thereof on private or public property not including highways is hereby found to create a condition tending to reduce the value of private property, to promote blight and deterioration, to invite plundering, to create fire hazards, to constitute an attractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety of minors, to create a harborage for rodents and insects and to be injurious to the health, safety and general welfare. Therefore, the presence of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle or parts thereof, on private or public property not including highways, except as expressly hereinafter permitted, is hereby declared to constitute a public nuisance which may be abated as such in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter.
Full Breakdown
Milpitas Municipal Code Chapter XI-13, Junk Cars, was enacted under the authority of Vehicle Code section 22660 to let cities remove abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles as public nuisances. Section XI-13-1.01 finds that such vehicles reduce property values, promote blight, invite plundering, create fire hazards, endanger minors as an attractive nuisance, and harbor rodents and insects, and declares their presence on private or public property (not including highways) a public nuisance subject to abatement. Section XI-13-3.01 through 3.02 exempts a vehicle completely enclosed in a building and out of public view, and a vehicle lawfully stored on private property in connection with a licensed dismantler, vehicle dealer, junk dealer, or other lawful business.
Enforcement runs through the Chief of Police, who or whose deputies may enter private or public property to examine a vehicle or determine ownership (section XI-13-5.01). The City must mail a 10-day notice of intention to abate by certified mail to both the landowner and the vehicle's last registered owner, using the addresses on the last equalized assessment roll (section XI-13-5.05). Either owner may request a City Council public hearing within that 10-day window, or submit a sworn written statement denying responsibility, before the vehicle is removed without a hearing (sections XI-13-5.05 through 5.06).
If the landowner shows the vehicle was placed without consent and was not acquiesced to, the City cannot assess abatement or removal costs against that owner (section XI-13-5.09). Five days after the Council's abatement order (or after mailed notice of the decision), the vehicle may be towed to a scrapyard or dismantler's yard and may not be reconstructed or made operable again (section XI-13-5.11), and the City notifies the DMV of the removal within five days (section XI-13-5.12).
Violations & Fines
Unpaid administrative and removal costs charged against a landowner under section XI-13-5.05 that remain unpaid after 30 days of the abatement order are assessed against the parcel under Government Code section 38773.5 and transmitted to the tax collector for collection, carrying the same priority as other City taxes (section XI-13-5.13). The Chapter is enforced by the Chief of Police and supplements, rather than replaces, other City, State or agency regulations governing abandoned vehicles (section XI-13-4.00).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an abandoned vehicle on my Milpitas property automatically a public nuisance?
How much notice does Milpitas give before towing an abandoned vehicle?
Can I keep an inoperative car on my Milpitas property if it's a business need?
Who pays if a squatter dumps a car on my Milpitas land without my knowledge?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Milpitas
California rules heatmap·Compare Milpitas to another location·View the California parking rules overview
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Abandoned Vehicles in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Santa Clara County handle abandoned vehicles.