Cheyenne, WY Parking Rules: Towing & Impound Rights (2026)

Chapter 5.78 was re-enacted in full by Ordinance No. 4574 on June 10, 2024, and it governs every business offering motor vehicle towing or wrecker recovery to the public inside the city. Cheyenne's leverage over price runs through the tow rotation list, the roster of licensed operators the police department calls on a rotating basis to accidents, incidents and emergencies. Section 5.78.040(F) says the fee for any service a rotation participant provides in response to a department request may not exceed the amounts in the fee schedule, which the governing body sets by resolution, and it requires the governing body to review and reevaluate that schedule during calendar year 2028 and every four years after. Section 5.78.040(G) closes the obvious loophole: an operator who wants to bill above the schedule needs the police department's written approval before doing the work that creates the excess charge, plus supporting documentation filed with the department within 15 calendar days of the service. Wyoming sets no statewide ceiling on non-consent tow rates, so that council resolution is the only rate cap a Cheyenne driver has. For abandoned vehicles the chapter defers instead to Wyo. Stat. Section 31-13-111(g)(ii), under Section 5.78.040(E)(4).

Release is written as a duty rather than a courtesy. A licensee must post its current tow, recovery and storage rates conspicuously in its office, and must keep staff available to release property or vehicles Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., excepting approved city holidays. Payment must be accepted immediately during those weekday hours and on weekends as well, either in person if the operator keeps weekend hours or by telephone at the 24-hour number the operator files with the police department. Cash and at least two major credit cards must be taken. Once the authorized amount is paid, the operator must release the vehicle to the owner, an authorized operator or agent, a lienholder or lienholder's agent, or the insurer covering the vehicle. Personal property from inside the car is released free of charge when the police department authorizes it, though items considered part of the vehicle are not covered. A gate fee, defined at Section 5.78.020(A)(1), is what an operator may charge for access to a stored vehicle outside normal business hours or on a city holiday. Two holds override the release duty: a vehicle flagged as a police hold cannot be released until the department clears it, and the invoice must carry the name and badge number of each officer placing and releasing the hold; and a vehicle towed in connection with a DUI incident cannot be returned to the person who was driving for ten hours from the time of the tow.

When the tow is the city's own, Chapter 10.12 applies. Section 10.12.160 lets the police department tow and impound a vehicle on the scofflaw list, a vehicle parked in an unauthorized place or in violation of any city ordinance, and a vehicle that has stayed immobilized for more than two business days. The department must immediately give the registered owner written notice of the removal, the reasons for it, and the place the vehicle was taken. If the owner cannot be identified and the vehicle is not returned within three days, the department must report the removal by mail to the Wyoming Department of Transportation and file notice with the garage holding the car. The scofflaw list itself is built from three or more unpaid parking citations, carries a $5 administrative fee, and gives the owner not less than 15 days from mailing to pay before immobilization or summary tow. Section 10.12.170(H) lets the registered owner of a towed vehicle request a post-deprivation review in writing from the police department parking administration manager within ten days of the tow, and the manager may order the vehicle released and waive applicable fines or fees.