How much does it cost to get a car out of impound in Phoenix?
A plain-English guide to impound and storage costs in Phoenix: the state administrative fee, daily storage, the paperwork you need, and how to get your car back for less.
Why impound & storage fees costs what it does in Phoenix
If Phoenix police impounded the car, the fees are set by law. A $150 state administrative fee (ARS 28-3513(B)) is paid to Phoenix PD, and storage runs at the state cap of $25 a day on an ARS 28-3511 impound, or $15 a day on a City Code 23-55 impound. The mandatory hold is 20 days, not 30. Phoenix runs no single city lot; the car sits at an assigned zone-contract tow yard. Pay the $150 fee at 100 W. Washington St. to get a release form, then pay tow and storage at the yard.
A Phoenix impound is the case most callers here are in, and the first thing to know is that the regime decides everything. Phoenix runs no single city impound lot, so a police-ordered hold under the state 20-day law (ARS 28-3511) sends the car to the assigned zone-contract yard rather than a municipal pound, and release paperwork starts at the Phoenix Police Vehicle Impound Unit, 100 W. Washington St., Phoenix, AZ 85003, (602) 495-2096, open business hours Monday through Friday. The state administrative fee is 150 dollars, paid to Phoenix PD by cash, cashier's check or money order, and storage on that hold runs at the state cap of 25 dollars a day. Pay the fee, collect the release form, then take it to the assigned yard and pay the tow and storage there, because the yard cannot release the car without the police form. You can request a post-storage hearing within 10 days of the notice, held within 5 business days. A private-property tow off an apartment, HOA or shopping-center lot is a separate track: Phoenix City Code 36-6 caps the total tow charge at 105 dollars once the car reaches storage and storage at 12 dollars a day, and the lot must be posted with a sign giving the restriction, the maximum cost and a phone number and address where the car can be found.
How we work Phoenix
Phoenix is the fifth-largest city in the country, with 1,608,139 residents in the 2020 census, and it generates the highest total tow-call volume in the metro simply by size. The freeway grid is the backbone of the work: I-10, the Papago and Maricopa, and I-17, the Black Canyon, carry the crash and breakdown load, joined by Loop 202, Loop 101, SR 51 and SR 143. Maricopa County recorded 88,094 crashes in 2024, 72.7 percent of every crash in Arizona, and the I-10 Broadway Curve alone carries more than 300,000 vehicles on an average weekday. Heat is the other engine. In 2023 Phoenix saw 55 days at or above 110 degrees and 133 days at or above 100, and that kind of sustained heat kills batteries and cooling systems in older cars all summer. Monsoon storms flood the underpasses, and under Arizona's Stupid Motorist Law a driver who goes around a flood barricade can be billed up to 2,000 dollars for the rescue. About 42 percent of the city is Hispanic, and the west and south sides are Spanish-first, so the Spanish version of this site is not a courtesy, it is how a large share of callers reach a dispatcher. On the impound side, one thing to know up front: Phoenix runs no single city impound lot, and a police-ordered hold under the state's 20-day law is a separate matter from a private-property tow off an apartment lot. The pros we send cover the whole freeway grid and every urban village in between.
Cost details for Phoenix
These details cover applicable pound or municipal fees in Phoenix. If the vehicle needs a tow after release, the operator quotes that separate job before dispatch based on the vehicle, access, distance, and requested service.
For applicable pound or municipal fees, use the details above. If you need a tow after release, call (480) 526-9384 for the operator's separate quote before dispatch.
Common Phoenix cost questions
How much does it cost to get my car out of impound in Phoenix?
If Phoenix police impounded it, the fees are set by law. A $150 state administrative fee (ARS 28-3513(B)) is paid to Phoenix PD by cash, cashier's check or money order, and storage runs at the state cap of $25 a day on an ARS 28-3511 impound, or $15 a day on a City Code 23-55 impound. The mandatory hold is 20 days, not 30. Phoenix runs no single city lot, so the car sits at an assigned zone-contract tow yard. Pay the $150 fee at 100 W. Washington St. to get a release form, then pay the tow and storage at the yard.
What do I need to get my impounded car back in Phoenix?
Bring a valid driver license, current proof of insurance (financial responsibility), current vehicle registration, and the impound notice. If an ignition interlock is required, bring proof it is installed. Pay the $150 state administrative fee to the police to get the release form, and if you are acting for the owner, bring proof of your authority. The department that ordered the tow sets the exact list, so ask when you call.
How long can they hold my car, and what if I wait in Phoenix?
A police impound in Arizona runs a mandatory 20-day hold under ARS 28-3511, 7 days for the human-smuggling subsection. To contest it or seek early release, request a post-storage hearing within 10 days of the notice; it is held within 5 business days of the agency receiving the request (ARS 28-3514). Storage accrues at $25 a day the whole time, so calling early costs less than calling late. If the car is never claimed, it can be sold and you still owe the fees.
Can Quick Tow Phoenix get my car out of impound in Phoenix?
No, and it's worth being straight about that. We connect drivers with private tow and roadside operators; we aren't the police department or the yard holding your car, so we can't waive anyone's fees or release it faster. What we can do is help you work out who has it and what the process is, and line up an operator to move it once it's released. Call (480) 526-9384.
Related towing info for Phoenix
Impound & storage fees in the rest of the Central Phoenix & Sky Harbor area
Need a tow after release in Phoenix?
Call the line for the operator's separate onward-tow quote before dispatch.