Tow trucks and wrecker services; bring forward provisions regularly.

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To: Judiciary A
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representatives Hood, Scott

HOUSE BILL NO. 1225
(As Passed the House)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 85-7-251, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO REQUIRE TOWING COMPANIES TO RECORD CERTAIN INFORMATION FROM ANY 2
PERSON WHO REQUESTS THE COMPANY'S SERVICES; TO AMEND SECTION 3
63-23-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE NOTIFICATION REQUIRED 4
BY TOWING COMPANIES BEFORE PROPERTY IS SOLD; TO AUTHORIZE 5
THIRD-PARTY VENDORS TO ASSIST IN NOTIFICATION WHEN NO CLAIMS HAVE 6
BEEN MADE TO VEHICLES; TO AMEND SECTION 63-23-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE 7
OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; AND FOR RELATED 8
PURPOSES. 9
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 10
SECTION 1. Section 85-7-251, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 11
amended as follows: 12
85-7-251. (1) (a) No motor vehicle may be towed except by 13
request of the owner of the motor vehicle, at the direction of a 14
law enforcement officer, by request of a real property owner upon 15
whose property the motor vehicle has been left. 16
(b) All towing companies shall record, upon receipt of 17
any request to tow a motor vehicle, the name, phone number and/or 18
email address of the person who made the request, and whether the 19
such request was made by the owner of the motor vehicle, a law 20
enforcement officer or the owner of the property from which the 21
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motor vehicle is being towed. Failure of a tow company to record 22
the information required by this paragraph shall result in a 23
waiver of all storage and towing fees described in this section, 24
unless the company can prove that the request for towing was made 25
by the owner of the motor vehicle. 26
(c) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (1)(b) of 27
this section, the owner of a motor vehicle that has been towed at 28
his or her request * * *, at the direction of a law enforcement 29
officer, or * * * upon request of a real property owner upon whose 30
property a vehicle has been left * * *, shall be liable for the 31
reasonable price of towing and storage of such vehicle; and the 32
towing company to whom the price of such labor and storage costs 33
may be due shall have the right to retain possession of such motor 34
vehicle until the price is paid. 35
(2) Within twenty-four (24) hours, the towing company shall 36
report to the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction any 37
vehicle that has been towed and shall provide the information 38
required by paragraph (1)(b) of this section, unless the vehicle 39
was towed at the request of the owner of the vehicle. If the 40
owner of a towed vehicle has not contacted the towing company 41
within * * * two (2) business days of the initial tow, the towing 42
company shall obtain from the appropriate authority the names and 43
addresses of any owner and lienholder. If the information from 44
the appropriate authority fails to disclose the owner or 45
lienholder, a good faith effort shall be made by the towing 46
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company to locate ownership, including a check for tag 47
information, inspection sticker, or any papers in the vehicle that 48
may indicate ownership. Upon location of the owner and 49
lienholder, the towing company using a third-party vendor that 50
meets the requirements of the department, shall notify them 51
by * * * certified mail of the amount due for towing, postmarked 52
no later than the * * * seventh day following the initial tow. If 53
such amount shall not be paid within thirty (30) days from the 54
initial tow, the towing company to whom such charges are payable 55
shall using a third-party vendor that meets the requirements of 56
the department, notify by certified mail any legal owner and 57
holder of any lien, as disclosed by the motor vehicle title 58
records or other investigation, of notice of sale of the property. 59
For all notifications required to be sent to owners and 60
lienholders, the third-party vendor must utilize the format and 61
transmit the data required by the department. If such property 62
has not been redeemed within ten (10) days after the mailing of 63
the second certified letter, the towing company may commence sale 64
of the property at public auction. The towing company shall 65
publish for two (2) consecutive weeks a notice of sale in the 66
newspaper having circulation in the county where the vehicle was 67
initially towed. The proceeds of the sale of such property in 68
excess of the amount needed to pay the towing, reasonable storage 69
and necessary expenses of the procedures required by this section 70
shall be held by the towing company for a period of six (6) 71
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months, and, if not reclaimed by the owner thereof within such 72
time, shall become the property of the county and be paid to the 73
chancery clerk of the county in which the sale was held to be 74
deposited into the county general fund, subject, however, to any 75
rights of the recorded lienholder. 76
(3) The failure to make a good faith effort to comply with 77
the requirements of this section shall * * * prohibit the 78
imposition of any storage charges or towing charges against the 79
towed vehicle. 80
(4) Every towing company shall maintain accurate records for 81
a period of three (3) years, which records shall identify the 82
vehicles it has towed and stored the name, phone number and/or 83
email address of the person who made the request, and whether the 84
such request was made by the owner of the motor vehicle, a law 85
enforcement officer or the owner of the property from which the 86
motor vehicle was towed and all procedures that it has taken to 87
comply with the provisions of this chapter. 88
SECTION 2. Section 63-23-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 89
amended as follows: 90
63-23-5. (1) Any automobile dealer, wrecker service, or 91
repair service owner, or any person or party on whose property a 92
motor vehicle is lawfully towed at the written request of a law 93
enforcement officer, who shall have an abandoned motor vehicle on 94
his property, may sell, free and clear of all claims such motor 95
vehicle by public auction, or if the abandoned motor vehicle has 96
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no market value, may dispose of the same after having received at 97
least two (2) written statements from licensed automobile dealers 98
as to the worthlessness of such motor vehicle and after compliance 99
with subsection (2) of this section and Section 63-23-9. An 100
abandoned motor vehicle as defined by Section 63-23-3(b) shall not 101
be sold at auction until thirty (30) days from date of removal 102
from a public street, road or highway. 103
(2) The person authorized to execute the sale or disposal of 104
an abandoned motor vehicle shall notify by certified mail using a 105
third-party vendor that meets the requirements of the department, 106
within * * * seven (7) days of receipt of such vehicle, any 107
Mississippi lienholder on such vehicle that unless a claim on the 108
vehicle is made within thirty (30) days of receipt of such notice, 109
the vehicle will be sold or destroyed. If no claim is made on the 110
vehicle within thirty (30) days following receipt of such required 111
notifications to lienholders under this section, the third-party 112
vendor shall immediately notify the department that no claim has 113
been made and provide the department with electronic copies of all 114
notifications required to be sent to lienholders, and the 115
department shall immediately remove any and all outstanding liens 116
from the motor vehicle in the department's automated statewide 117
motor vehicle registration system, provided the third-party vendor 118
provides adequate evidence that any lienholders were notified in 119
compliance with this section. For all notifications required to 120
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be sent to lienholders, the third-party vendor must utilize the 121
format and transmit the data required by the department. 122
(3) After the sale of any vehicle as set out hereinabove is 123
made, the person or officer designated and making the sale of such 124
property shall promptly upon completion of the sale deliver to the 125
chancery clerk a list or itemization of the property sold, the 126
amount paid for each item, the person to whom each item was sold, 127
and all monies received from such sale, the gross charges levied 128
by the person making the sale against the property sold and the 129
net amount paid over to the chancery clerk. Any sale made by any 130
person, officer, corporation or association, shall have attached 131
to the report of sale a sworn statement certifying as to the date 132
such personal property or items sold first came into his 133
possession or was abandoned on his premises and the date said 134
personal property or item was sold. 135
(4) The proceeds of the sale in excess of repair, towing and 136
storage expenses and all expenses incurred in connection with a 137
sale when a sale is made under the provisions of this chapter, 138
shall escheat to the county and shall be paid over to the chancery 139
clerk to be placed into the general fund of the county in which 140
the vehicle is abandoned. However, in those municipalities 141
availing themselves of the provisions of Section 21-39-21, the 142
proceeds of the sale in excess of the repairs, towing, storage or 143
other necessary expenses incurred shall escheat to the general 144
fund of the municipality. 145
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ST: Tow trucks and wrecker services; bring
forward provisions regularly.
(5) Every towing company shall maintain accurate records for 146
a period of three (3) years, which records shall identify the 147
vehicles it has towed and stored and all procedures that it has 148
taken to comply with the provisions of this chapter. 149
SECTION 3. Section 63-23-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 150
amended as follows: 151
63-23-9. The last-known registered owner of an abandoned 152
motor vehicle and all lienholders of record, when such information 153
is reasonably obtainable, shall be notified by * * * certified 154
mail that such vehicle will be sold pursuant to the provisions of 155
this chapter. Said notice shall give such owner and lienholders 156
the date, time and place of sale and name of the person or party 157
who has custody of such vehicle. 158
If the identity of the last registered owner cannot be 159
determined, or if the registration contains no address for the 160
owner, or if it is impossible to determine with reasonable 161
certainty the identity and addresses of all lienholders, notice by 162
three (3) publications once each week for three (3) consecutive 163
weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where 164
the motor vehicle was abandoned shall be sufficient to meet all 165
requirements of notice pursuant to this chapter. 166
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from 167
and after July 1, 2026, and shall stand repealed on June 30, 2026. 168