Portsmouth, VA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

City Code § 22-786 defines an 'abandoned motor vehicle' as one that is inoperable and left unattended on public property for more than 48 hours, has remained illegally on public property for more than 48 hours, or has remained on private property, including a commercial parking lot or vehicle storage or repair facility, for more than 48 hours regardless of whether it was left there with the property owner's consent. Under § 22-787, the chief of police may take any abandoned vehicle into custody, using city personnel and equipment or an independent contractor, for removal, preservation, and storage.

Once in custody, § 22-788 requires the chief to notify the owner of record and any lienholder by certified mail within 15 days, describing the vehicle's year, make, model, and serial number, and giving them three weeks from the notice date to reclaim it by paying all towing, preservation, and storage charges; if the DMV has no usable address, publication once in a local newspaper substitutes for mailed notice. Failure to reclaim within that window waives all right, title, and interest in the vehicle and consents to its sale at public auction under § 22-789, with sale proceeds first covering the auction, towing, and storage costs and any notice expenses, and any remainder held for the owner for 90 days before it goes to the city treasury.

A vehicle found inoperable beyond feasible repair can instead go straight to a demolisher without title or notice, under § 22-791. A separate garage-based rule, § 22-790, deems a vehicle abandoned after ten days left in a commercial garage past the agreed pickup date.