Towing Laws in North Dakota: Your Rights, Costs & Impound Rules

If your car was just towed in North Dakota - from a private lot, a crash scene, or anywhere in between - this page explains what state law says about the fees you can be charged, how to get your vehicle back, and where to file a complaint. Every fact below is drawn directly from North Dakota statutes and agency pages, each cited so you can verify it yourself.

Who regulates towing in North Dakota

North Dakota doesn't have a statewide agency that licenses tow operators. Instead, the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division takes consumer complaints about towing and other issues. You can file a complaint online, by mailing in form SFN 7418, or by calling (701) 328-3404 - or 1-800-472-2600 if you're calling from within North Dakota.

What a tow can cost

The Century Code doesn't set a statewide non-consent tow rate schedule; rates are largely left to the market and to local arrangements. There's one specific number worth knowing, though: under the abandoned-vehicle chapter, storage charges for a standard passenger vehicle may not exceed $50 per day.

Because most of the tow charge itself isn't capped statewide, ask for an itemized invoice and compare it to what's typical in your area. Our towing cost calculator can help you check a bill for anything that looks out of line, and you can use the $50-per-day storage cap as one concrete benchmark.

Getting your car back from impound

Under the abandoned-vehicle chapter of the Century Code, a storage facility must provide notice of custody within ten days of taking your vehicle, and you then have thirty days after that notice to reclaim it before it can be sold at public auction or scrapped. Storage charges during that period can't exceed $50 per day. If the vehicle is sold, the proceeds are held for the owner or lienholders for ninety days before they're transferred to the state's abandoned property office - so even after a sale, there's still a window to claim what's owed to you.

If you're towed from private property

North Dakota law allows a commercial towing service to remove an abandoned motor vehicle from private property when requested by an owner, lessee, tenant, or occupant of that property. Separately, abandoning a vehicle on public or private property without consent is treated as a class A misdemeanor. If you believe your vehicle was towed without proper authorization from someone with the right to request it, that's a question worth raising with the property's owner or manager, and with the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division if you suspect a scam or overcharge.

After an accident

North Dakota requires you to immediately report a crash that causes injury or death, or apparent property damage of at least $4,000, to local police if you're in a municipality, or otherwise to the county sheriff or Highway Patrol. If you need an official copy of the report afterward, state-reportable crash reports are available through the state Highway Patrol for $7 - a "reportable" crash is one involving injury, fatality, or at least $4,000 in total damage.

The Move Over law

North Dakota's move-over statute requires a driver approaching a stationary vehicle displaying flashing lights to move into a lane not adjacent to that vehicle, if it can be done safely - otherwise, to reduce speed and maintain a safe speed for road conditions. The state's Department of Transportation notes the law was expanded to cover any stopped motor vehicle with flashing hazard warning signals, which includes tow trucks and Department of Transportation vehicles, not just police and emergency responders.

FAQ

Does North Dakota cap towing rates statewide? Not for the tow itself - the Century Code leaves non-consent tow rates to the market. Storage is the exception: charges for a standard passenger vehicle can't exceed $50 per day.

How long do I have before an impounded vehicle in North Dakota can be sold? The facility must send notice of custody within ten days, and you then have thirty days from that notice to reclaim your vehicle before it can go to public auction or be scrapped.

Do North Dakota's move-over rules apply to tow trucks? Yes. The law was expanded to cover any stopped vehicle with flashing hazard lights, which the state's Department of Transportation says includes tow trucks, not just police and emergency vehicles.

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