Waco, TX Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 25-216, part of Article IX as rewritten by Ordinance No. 2011-213 in April 2011, lets the police department tow and impound any abandoned motor vehicle to a privately operated garage or other city-designated location without giving the owner advance warning; the article borrows the state's definition of 'abandoned motor vehicle' from Transportation Code Chapter 683. Once a vehicle is impounded, Section 25-219 requires the police department to mail notice by certified mail no later than the tenth day after impoundment to the last-known registered owner and any recorded lienholders, identifying the vehicle's year, make, model and VIN, the storage facility's location, and the owner's right to reclaim the vehicle within 20 days of the notice date by paying all towing, preservation, storage, notice and publication fees.

That notice must also warn that failing to claim the vehicle within the deadline waives all right, title and interest and amounts to consent to a public auction sale. If the owner's identity or address cannot be determined, Section 25-219(c) allows notice by newspaper publication instead. To reclaim a vehicle, Section 25-221 requires proof of ownership and proof of financial responsibility under Transportation Code Chapter 601, though the financial-responsibility requirement can be waived with a sworn affidavit and pickup by a licensed tow operator. Impoundment, towing, preservation, storage, and publication fees are set by the city council through the budget or a minute entry under Section 25-218, and the chief of police has discretion to waive them.

If nobody claims the vehicle, Section 25-222 lets the police department auction it after posting notice at city hall for at least 30 days, with sale proceeds held for the owner or lienholder for 90 days before reverting to a city account.