St. Petersburg, FL Parking Rules: Towing & Impound Rights (2026)

Division 2 of Chapter 26 governs city-ordered impounds. Sec. 26-47 lists nine grounds on which designated police personnel may remove a vehicle immediately, without warning and at the owner's expense, including an unattended vehicle that obstructs traffic, a vehicle left unattended on a street for more than 72 hours, a vehicle parked in a tree line or undesignated right-of-way that has been ticketed for at least 24 hours, and a vehicle unlawfully displayed for sale in violation of Fla. Stat. § 316.1951. That last ground carries its own warning step: an officer should affix a notice giving 24 hours to correct the violation unless the same owner already got a warning within the prior 12 months, the vehicle endangers public safety, or it appears stolen.

On money, the code is deliberately silent about amounts. Sec. 26-48 says only that charges must be paid before release and that where the garage operates under contract with the City, the contract establishes the towing and storage charges. There is no published city maximum, no fee ordinance, and no rate resolution cross-referenced anywhere in the chapter, so a St. Petersburg driver checking what a tow should cost is checking a contract document rather than the Code, with the county-established maximums under Fla. Stat. § 715.07 setting the outer limit for consent-free tows. The one dollar figure Chapter 26 does carry is the $25.00 charge in Sec. 26-172(h) to remove a wheel immobilization device.

Sec. 26-49 supplies the release mechanics. The Chief of Police is directed to promulgate administrative rules for the division. Where the registered owner's address is known or ascertainable, the police department must send a notice of opportunity for hearing on a form printed in the Code itself, which names the impounding officer, the storage location, and the contracted wrecker service and its phone number. The notice tells the owner of the right to contest the removal, the impoundment, or the towing and storage charges by filing a complaint in the county court of the county where the vehicle is stored within ten days after learning the vehicle's location, under Fla. Stat. § 713.78. Before releasing anything the department must confirm the vehicle is not needed as evidence and is not subject to forfeiture, verify the claimant reasonably appears to be the registered owner, and issue a written impoundment release. A vehicle towed under § 26-47(9) also needs a Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles release form verifying the fine was paid to the City. An owner who has requested a hearing can still take the car early by presenting the release plus a clerk of court certificate showing a cash or surety bond equal to the towing and storage charges.

Two side tracks matter. Sec. 26-131 lets any City employee initiate a tow from City-operated property posted as a tow-away zone, and requires that employee to notify the police department within 30 minutes with the date and time of removal, the name, location and phone number of the storage site, and the vehicle's make, model, color and plate. Sec. 26-172 lets the POD, defined in the Code as the person officially designated by the Mayor, boot a vehicle with one overdue disabled-parking citation or three or more overdue citations after ten calendar days' mailed notice, then tow it if the fines and the $25.00 removal charge are unpaid 24 hours after the boot went on. A boot hearing must be requested in writing to the City Clerk by 12:00 p.m. the next business day and is held before the end of the following business day. Tows from private property are handled separately under Sec. 20-84.