If your vehicle was towed after a crash

If your vehicle could not be driven away, it was almost certainly removed by a rotation tow operator. This is the single most expensive thing that can happen quietly while you are in hospital or at home recovering.

Rotation tows

CHP maintains a rotation list of approved tow companies by area. When a vehicle must be cleared, dispatch calls the next operator on the rotation. You do not choose the company, and you will see the request logged in the dispatch record as "1148" or a rotation request line.

Storage fees accrue daily, starting immediately

This is the important part. Storage is charged per day, and the meter starts the day the vehicle arrives. A vehicle left for several weeks can accrue storage charges exceeding what the vehicle is worth.

Finding your vehicle

The investigating CHP office can tell you which operator took it and where. You will generally need identification and proof of ownership or registration to release it, and the registered owner may need to authorise release in person.

If someone else is paying

An insurer covering the loss will usually arrange to move the vehicle to their own storage or to a salvage yard, which stops the daily charges. That only happens once they know about it, so tell your insurer where the vehicle is as early as you can.

Lien sales

If charges go unpaid long enough, California allows the storage facility to begin a lien sale and sell the vehicle to recover them. Deadlines here are short. If you cannot afford to release a vehicle, say so to your insurer immediately rather than letting it sit.

Do not forget what is inside it

Personal property, child seats, documents and garage remotes are frequently left in a towed vehicle for weeks. You can normally retrieve personal items even if you cannot yet pay to release the vehicle itself.