Arrest Reports and Laws

Notice after taking into custody and towing; method; contents.


(1) If an authority takes custody of a vehicle under ORS 819.120, the authority shall provide, by certified mail within 48 hours of the towing, written notice with an explanation of procedures available for obtaining a hearing under ORS 819.190 to the owners of the vehicle and any lessors or security interest holders as shown in the records of the Department of Transportation. The notice shall state that the vehicle has been taken into custody and shall give the location of the vehicle and describe procedures for the release of the vehicle and for obtaining a hearing under ORS 819.190. The 48-hour period under this subsection does not include holidays, Saturdays or Sundays.
(2) Any notice given under this section after a vehicle is taken into custody and towed shall state all of the following:
(a) That the vehicle has been taken into custody and towed, the identity of the appropriate authority that took the vehicle into custody and towed the vehicle and the statute, ordinance or rule under which the vehicle has been taken into custody and towed.
(b) The location of the vehicle or the telephone number and address of the appropriate authority that will provide the information.
(c) That the vehicle is subject to towing and storage charges, the amount of charges that have accrued to the date of the notice and the daily storage charges.
(d) That the vehicle and its contents are subject to a lien for payment of the towing and storage charges and that the vehicle and its contents will be sold to cover the charges if the charges are not paid by a date specified by the appropriate authority.
(e) That the owner, possessor or person having an interest in the vehicle and its contents is entitled to a prompt hearing to contest the validity of taking the vehicle into custody and towing it and to contest the reasonableness of the charges for towing and storage if a hearing is timely requested.
(f) The time within which a hearing must be requested and the method for requesting a hearing.
(g) That the vehicle and its contents may be immediately reclaimed by presentation to the appropriate authority of satisfactory proof of ownership or right to possession and either payment of the towing and storage charges or the deposit of cash security or a bond equal to the charges with the appropriate authority. [1983 c.338 §424; 1985 c.316 §4; 1993 c.385 §8; 1995 c.758 §14; 2009 c.371 §12]