How To Claim an Abandoned Vehicle in Rhode Island

Claiming an abandoned vehicle in Rhode Island is a legal process governed by state statute and administered through municipal police departments. Rhode Island's abandoned motor vehicle law provides a specific framework for removal, notification, auction, and title transfer. Compliance with statutory notice requirements, waiting periods, auction procedures, and title application timelines is essential to ensure that the purchaser acquires a clear title and that the interests of the original owner and any lienholders are protected.

What Qualifies As An Abandoned Vehicle In Rhode Island

Under Rhode Island General Law, an abandoned motor vehicle is defined as a motor vehicle that meets one or more of the following criteria:

• A motor vehicle that is inoperable and over 8 years old and has been left unattended on public property for more than 48 hours.
• A motor vehicle that has remained illegally on public property for more than 3 days.
• A motor vehicle that has remained on private property without the consent of the owner or person in control of the property for more than 3 days.

An "abandoned motor vehicle of no value" is a motor vehicle meeting one of the above three conditions, additionally classified as inoperable and over 10 years old, with no evidence of current registration on or in the vehicle, a fair market value of $500 or less, and an invalid or missing inspection sticker.

A motor vehicle is distinguished from an "unattended vehicle," which may be removed by police if it is left unoccupied in violation of law or municipal ordinance or in a manner causing traffic congestion or hazard or if the operator or owner has been removed by police in the performance of official duties.

Process To Claim An Abandoned Vehicle In Rhode Island

Understanding The Abandoned Vehicle Process

Rhode Island statute designates the municipal police department as the authority responsible for removing, taking custody of, and selling abandoned motor vehicles. Once a vehicle is removed and held in police custody, a mandatory public auction procedure applies. The purchaser at a public auction takes title free and clear of all liens and claims of ownership. Title transfer occurs through the standard Application for Title form (TR-2/TR-9) and requires payment of applicable state fees and sales tax.

Vehicle Survey And Custody

A police department may take into custody an abandoned motor vehicle upon completion of a vehicle survey report. Prior to towing, the police shall post or attach a notification of abandonment to the vehicle indicating that the vehicle will be towed. Under Section 31-42-2(b), this notice must be posted or attached 48 hours before the tow occurs. The police department may employ its own personnel and equipment, or authorize private towing companies and storage facilities to assist with the removal, preservation, and storage of the abandoned vehicle.

Notice To Owner And Lienholders

Under Section 31-42-3(a), within 15 days of taking an abandoned vehicle into custody, the police department must notify the last known registered owner by registered mail, return receipt requested. Within the same 15-day period, the police department must also notify all lienholders of record, likewise by registered mail, return receipt requested. The notice shall describe the year, make, model, and VIN of the vehicle; the location where the vehicle is being held; and the owner and lienholders' right to reclaim the vehicle within 3 weeks of the notice date upon payment of all towing, preservation, and storage charges resulting from the vehicle's custody.

The notice shall inform the owner and lienholders that failure to exercise the right to reclaim the vehicle within the 3-week period constitutes a waiver of all right, title, and interest in the vehicle and consent to its sale at a public auction.

Under Section 31-42-3(b), if the identity of the registered owner cannot be determined from vehicle records, or if the registration contains no address for the owner, or if it is impossible to determine the identity and addresses of all lienholders with reasonable certainty, notice by one publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the area where the vehicle was abandoned shall be sufficient. A single publication notice may contain multiple listings of abandoned vehicles and must comply with the same time and content requirements as a registered mail notice.

Statutory Waiting Period

After proper notice to the owner and lienholders, a 3-week waiting period must elapse before the abandoned vehicle may be sold. If, during this 3-week period, the owner or a lienholder claims the vehicle and pays all accrued towing, preservation, and storage charges, the vehicle shall be released from police custody, and the abandoned vehicle process terminates.

Public Auction

Under Section 31-42-4(a), if the abandoned vehicle remains unclaimed at the end of the 3-week notice period, the police department shall sell the abandoned motor vehicle at a public auction. The auction must be conducted as a public sale, and any member of the public may bid on the vehicle, including the police department acting on behalf of the municipality. The vehicle is sold to the highest bidder.

The purchaser of the vehicle at a public auction takes title to the vehicle free and clear of all liens and claims of ownership. The police department shall provide the successful purchaser with a sales receipt and bill of sale.

Bill Of Sale And Sale Proceeds Distribution

The police department issues a sales receipt and bill of sale to the purchaser. Under Section 31-42-4(b), from the auction proceeds, the police department reimburses itself for the expenses of conducting the auction, all costs of towing, preservation, and storage of the vehicle, and all notice and publication costs incurred.

If the proceeds exceed the police department's expenses, the remainder shall be held for the vehicle's owner or any entitled lienholder for 90 days. After 90 days, any unclaimed remainder shall be deposited into a special abandoned motor vehicle fund maintained by the municipality. This fund is used to cover auction, towing, preservation, storage, notice, and publication expenses for future abandoned vehicles when the sale proceeds from those vehicles are insufficient to meet the costs. Under Section 31-42-4(c), whenever the chief finance officer of the city or town finds that moneys in the abandoned motor vehicle fund are in excess of reserves likely to be needed, excess amounts may be transferred to the general fund.

Title Application

The purchaser of an abandoned vehicle must apply for a Rhode Island certificate of title using the Application for Title form (TR-2/TR-9). The application shall be submitted to the Division of Motor Vehicles along with the sales receipt and bill of sale from the public auction. A title fee of $53.50 must be paid. The applicant must also pay applicable sales tax.

Effective January 1, 2024, all motor vehicles are eligible for titles, including vehicles with model years 2000 and older that may not have been previously titled in Rhode Island. If the vehicle is being imported from another state and that state issued a title for the vehicle, the original titled state's title must be properly assigned to the buyer and presented with the application. Out-of-state used vehicles require a VIN check from a local municipal police department before a title can be issued.

Special Rules For Salvage Vehicles

If the abandoned vehicle carries a "salvage" designation on its title, indicating that it was previously declared a total loss by an insurance company, the purchaser must follow Rhode Island's salvage vehicle procedures. Within 20 days of acquiring a salvage title, the owner must apply for a salvage certificate of title with the Division of Motor Vehicles.

All repairs to a salvage vehicle must be performed by a Rhode Island licensed salvage rebuilder. Upon completion of repairs, the vehicle must be inspected and must bear a new Rhode Island state inspection sticker. The owner must then submit an Application for Salvage Inspection to the Division of Motor Vehicles along with copies of all receipts for replaced parts and labor, a copy of the salvage title, a certificate of salvage repair, photographs of all damage, a copy of the insurance appraisal, and a used parts list. A certified check or money order for $58.50 must accompany the application. Upon successful inspection, the Division shall issue a "rebuilt" certificate of title, allowing the vehicle to be registered and operated on Rhode Island highways.

Garage Keepers And Abandoned Vehicles

If an abandoned motor vehicle has been left in a commercial garage or storage facility for more than 10 days after notice by registered mail to the owner to pick up the vehicle, or for more than 10 days after the period when, under contract, the vehicle was to remain on the premises, the garage keeper shall report the vehicle to the police department as abandoned. Any garage keeper who fails to report the vehicle within 10 days of its abandonment shall forfeit any claim to storage charges accrued after the reporting deadline.

When an abandoned vehicle left in a garage is taken into police custody and sold, the proceeds of the sale shall be applied first to the garage keeper's storage charges. Any surplus proceeds shall be distributed in accordance with the general abandoned vehicle fund procedures described above.

Record Retention

All sale records related to the abandoned vehicle must be maintained by the police department for verification and reference. Records shall include copies of the notice sent to the owner and lienholders, evidence of certified mail delivery and publication, vehicle records, all auction-related documentation, and the bill of sale.

Rhode Island Storage Fees And Financial Considerations

Storage Fee Limits

Storage fees for an abandoned vehicle begin accruing when the vehicle is taken into police custody. A police department may charge reasonable storage fees reflecting the actual costs of preserving and storing the vehicle. When a police department takes custody of an abandoned vehicle under Section 31-42-2, the police department is responsible for providing notice to the owner and lienholders within 15 days as required by Section 31-42-3(a). Failure to provide timely notice may affect the enforceability of charges accruing after the notice deadline, depending on applicable case law and municipal policies.

When a certificated towing company removes an abandoned vehicle (separate from the police-administered process), different notice requirements apply. Under Rhode Island Motor Carrier Regulations (Rule 11), a certificated tower must notify the registered owner within 7 days by registered mail. If the certificated tower fails to provide notice to the owner within 7 days, the tower may not charge storage fees for the period between the required notification date and the date actual notice was provided. Similarly, if the certificated tower fails to notify a lienholder within 14 days, the tower may not charge that specific lienholder for storage fees accruing between the notification deadline and the date actual notice to that lienholder was delivered. These requirements apply specifically to certificated towing companies, not police departments.

Towing And Recovery Charges

Towing and recovery charges are governed by the tariffs filed by certificated towing companies with the Rhode Island Division of Public Utilities and Carriers. All charges for recovery, towing, and storage must comply with the towing company's published tariff filed with the state. The registered and legal owner of the vehicle is liable for these charges, which constitute a legal obligation and a possessory lien on the vehicle and its registration plates until paid in full.

Dispute Resolution

A registered or legal owner who believes that the original towing was improper or not legally justified may file an administrative complaint within 10 days of receiving notice of the tow. The complaint must be filed with the Motor Carrier Section of the Rhode Island Division of Public Utilities and Carriers, 89 Jefferson Boulevard, Warwick, Rhode Island 02888. Security in an amount and form satisfactory to the Division must be posted with the complaint.

If a complaint is filed, towing and storage charges shall cease accruing during the dispute review process. If the Division determines that the towing was not legally justified, liability for the charges shall be borne by the person or entity that ordered the tow. Otherwise, the owner or legal owner shall remain liable for all accrued charges.

Contact Information

Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles
600 New London Avenue, Cranston, RI 02920-3024
Phone: (401) 462-4368
Official Website: Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles