Pasco, WA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Abandonment threshold
- 96 consecutive hours in tow custody
- Junk vehicle age
- 3 years or older, inoperable
- Unposted private lot removal
- after 24 hours
- Owner notice deadline
- first-class mail within 24 hours
- Unclaimed after notice
- 15 days before affidavit of sale
- Enforcing agency
- Pasco Police Dept. / Dept. of Licensing
Summary
Pasco treats a vehicle held by a tow operator for 96 consecutive hours as legally abandoned, and any junk motor vehicle or hulk left on private property is a declared public nuisance under Chapter 9.135 PMC. Removal timelines and owner notice run through the Department of Licensing and the Pasco Police Department.
“Abandoned vehicle” means a vehicle that a registered tow truck operator has impounded and held in his possession for 96 consecutive hours... “Junk vehicle” means a motor vehicle certified under PMC 9.135.040 as meeting all of the following requirements: (a) Is three years old or older; (b) Is extensively damaged, such damage including but not limited to any of the following: A broken window or windshield or missing wheels, tires, motor, or transmission; (c) Is apparently inoperable; (d) Is without a valid, current registration plate; (e) Has a fair market value equal only to the value of the scrap in it.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 4837, passed May 4, 2026).
Full Breakdown
010 defines an 'abandoned vehicle' as one a registered tow truck operator has impounded and held for 96 consecutive hours, and a 'junk vehicle' as one at least three years old, extensively damaged (broken window, windshield, or missing wheels, motor, or transmission), apparently inoperable, unregistered, and worth only its scrap value. An 'unauthorized vehicle' can be towed immediately if it is a traffic hazard, sits in a posted public lot, or is left on residential property; on unposted private nonresidential property it becomes removable after 24 hours.
020 requires the tow operator to notify Pasco Police by phone or radio at the time of impound, follow up in writing within 24 hours, and send an abandoned-vehicle report to the Department of Licensing after the 96-hour mark. Owners get notice by first-class mail within 24 hours listing the impounding firm, location, and time. 040, a Pasco police officer or Director-authorized person certifies a vehicle as junk, and the landowner must then mail notice to the registered and legal owners; if the vehicle stays unclaimed for more than 15 days after that notice (or 20 days after a published legal notice when no owner record exists), the landowner may sign an affidavit of sale as a title document. 130.
Violations & Fines
An owner who requests a hearing on removal must do so in writing; if the impoundment is found proper, towing and storage fees plus court costs fall on the person who requested the hearing, but if the impoundment is invalid the party who authorized it bears the costs instead (PMC 9.135.030). Landowners can recover their removal costs from the vehicle owner under PMC 9.135.040(6), and a registered owner who completed the state seller's report under RCW 46.12.101 is relieved of liability for towing and storage charges.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Pasco consider a towed vehicle legally abandoned?
Can a landowner remove a junk vehicle from private property in Pasco?
Who pays for removing an abandoned vehicle in Pasco?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pasco
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