Step 1: Review your state towing regulations
Before installing any signage or contacting a tow company, review your state regulations on private property towing. Every state has specific rules that govern signage requirements, notification obligations, fee limits, and the tow authorization process.\n\nThe relevant regulations are typically found in your state vehicle code or transportation code. Your state towing association website is often the fastest way to find a summary of the rules applicable to property owners. Many tow companies that specialize in property accounts also provide signage compliance guidance as part of their service.\n\nSpecific things to confirm from state law: minimum sign dimensions and content requirements, placement requirements for signs, the grace period before a tow can be authorized, owner notification timeline after a tow, fee maximums if any, and the dispute process for vehicle owners.
Step 2: Install compliant signage before any enforcement
Signage must be in place before any tow is authorized. A tow executed before compliant signage is installed is a wrongful tow regardless of how obvious the parking violation appeared.\n\nTypical signage requirements include: signs at every lot entrance visible to entering vehicles, signs throughout the lot at regular intervals, minimum sign dimensions (often 17x22 inches or larger), specific required text including the tow company name and phone number, and placement at a height visible from the parking area.\n\nHave your tow company partner review the signage installation before it goes up — they know the local requirements and can identify non-compliant placement or content issues before enforcement begins. Document the signage installation with dated photos showing each sign in its installed position.\n\nFor properties with complex parking rules — time-limited zones, reserved areas, permit-only sections — each zone type needs signage appropriate to its specific rules in addition to the general lot entry signs.
Step 3: Execute a towing authorization agreement
A written agreement with your tow company establishes the legal framework for enforcement and protects both parties.\n\nThe agreement should cover: the property address and all areas subject to towing, who on the property staff is authorized to request a tow, hours during which towing is authorized, the fee schedule charged to vehicle owners, documentation requirements for each tow, owner notification procedures, and the complaint handling process.\n\nFor multi-property owners or managers, the agreement should list each property with its specific authorized areas and contacts. A portfolio agreement with property-specific appendices is more manageable than separate agreements for each property.\n\nBoth parties should sign and retain a copy. Review the agreement annually and update when property rules change, staff authorization contacts change, or state requirements change.
Step 4: Train staff and establish authorization procedures
A towing program that depends on consistent enforcement needs staff who know exactly when and how to authorize a tow.\n\nDefine who can authorize a tow. This should be a specific list of named individuals or roles — property manager, assistant manager, on-site maintenance supervisor — not an open-ended anyone on staff. Clear authorization authority prevents unauthorized tows and the liability that comes with them.\n\nCreate a simple authorization procedure: staff member observes a violation, confirms the vehicle has been in violation for the required grace period if any, contacts the tow company with the vehicle description and location, documents the authorization request with a photo or written note, and receives a job confirmation from the tow company.\n\nThe documentation of each authorization is as important as the tow itself. A staff member who authorizes a tow with no record of doing so creates a documentation gap that makes dispute resolution more difficult. A dispatch platform that captures the authorization electronically when the tow is requested creates this record automatically. See how parking lot towing accounts are managed operationally for the operator perspective on this workflow. See the full private property towing law guide. See how HOAs handle towing situations.