Question: I have a question regarding the towing laws of Honolulu. Yesterday I was parked on Cooke Street and put money in the parking meter. However, I did not get to my car before the 3:30 p.m. no-parking/tow-away zone began. A police officer followed by a tow truck came up to my car, and as the police officer ticketed my car, the towing company hitched my car up and in a matter of seconds my car was gone. I called the tow company and was told that it would cost me $145 cash in order to get my car back, which happened to be sitting just around the corner, not even a block away. What is the fee for a car towing when it does not even leave the area? Are their impound fees if the car does not even leave the city block the infraction occurred on? Also, is it true that the tow companies only accept cash and do not give out receipts?

Answer: The Police Department has the authority to tow and store automobiles from a street to a storage area if the vehicle is left unattended or parked in a tow zone during the time of restricted parking during the afternoon peak traffic hours designated by official signs specifying the hours of restricted parking every day. Furthermore, the registered owner of a vehicle removed and stored “;shall be liable for all reasonable expenses incurred by the city for such removal and storage.”; State law sets maximum towing and storage fees for these types of tows (i.e., involuntary removal of one's car from public streets). Towing companies may not charge more than $65 for a tow, or $75 for a tow using a dolly. The tow itself, whether it is 100 feet or 100 miles, is the same rate. How the distance matters is the mileage charge of $7.50 per mile towed. Storage rates are also capped at $25 per day, or fraction thereof, for storage for the first seven days and $20 per day thereafter.

If you reached your car while the tower was still hooking up the vehicle, you could have asked the driver to unhook the car, and he must do it, without charge.

State law also mandates that towing companies in this situation must provide, when a vehicle is recovered by the owner before written notice is sent by registered or certified mail, the owner with a receipt stating (A) the maximum towing charges and fees allowed by law, and (B) the telephone number of the consumer information service of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. Lastly, state law requires that towing companies must accommodate payment by the owner for tow charges by cash and by either credit card or automated teller machine located on the premises. Therefore, requiring only cash payments is against the law.