Private property parking and towing—information for accredited tow truck drivers and assistants

As an accredited tow truck driver or assistant, you must understand your obligations when towing vehicles parked on private property in regulated areas of Queensland. This includes that accredited tow truck operators must only use accredited drivers and assistants and authorised tow trucks. 

Authority to remove vehicles

You can only tow vehicles from private property where the accredited tow truck operator has entered into a contract with a property owner or occupier authorising the removal of vehicles parked on the property. Once a written contract is in place, a Towing consent form must also be completed. This form is proof that the contract exists.

Vehicles cannot be removed if they are observed breaching parking conditions unless there is a contract and Towing consent in place.

You must be accredited with the Department of Transport and Main Roads and must carry a copy of the Towing Consent when towing vehicles from private property. You must also be able to produce the Towing Consent to a vehicle owner or authorised officer on request.

Good conduct

Reasonable steps must be taken to locate the vehicle owner or driver before you load a vehicle onto the tow truck. Reasonable steps include, for example, asking other people (at the carpark or nearby shops) if they know where the driver went; looking around the immediate area to see if the vehicle owner is nearby or approaching the carpark; or looking for contact or business name details on the vehicle.

If the owner returns and you are in the process of loading and securing the vehicle on the tow truck, you must release the vehicle immediately without charge. If the owner returns after the vehicle has been loaded onto the tow truck (including secured in every way necessary) but you have not yet left the property, you must offer the owner the option to pay the on-site release fee and you must release the vehicle immediately if the owner pays. 

Be courteous as the situation will be less stressful for all involved if everyone remains calm.

If, after taking reasonable steps you are not able to locate a vehicle owner or driver, you may tow the vehicle by the most direct route to the tow truck operators nearest authorised holding yard with sufficient capacity.

You must not allow a person to travel in the tow truck from the private property parking area unless the person has a driver or assistant accreditation. You must not tow a vehicle while there is a person inside it.

You must not intimidate, harass, abuse or insult a person or prevent or hinder the delivery of first aid or medical treatment. 

You must take all reasonable precautions to prevent loss or damage to a motor vehicle and any personal items left in the vehicle while it is being towed and while it is in the holding yard.

Maximum towing charges

Maximum charges in relation to private property towing apply under the Tow Truck Regulation 2024. These include:

• a standard tow of a motor vehicle from private property capped at $290.05.
• the on-site release of a motor vehicle from private property capped at $174.05. It is recommended that tow truck drivers have appropriate on-the-spot payment mechanisms available for motorists to pay the on-site release fee (EFTPOS or credit card facilities)
• a daily charge for storing a motor vehicle towed from private property to the nearest holding yard capped at $29.00 per day.

A standard private property tow includes 1 hour of working time at the scene, (including taking reasonable steps to locate the owner), moving the vehicle to the holding yard, and 72 hours of storage in the holding yard. The property owner must not be charged in addition to the vehicle owner.

Call-out fees and other fees such as taking steps to locate the owner, travelling to the place where the vehicle is located, allowing the vehicle owner access to the vehicle at the holding yard (within business hours) and other incidental fees cannot be charged.

Holding yards

Once stored in the holding yard, a vehicle must not be removed without the written authority of the vehicle’s owner or their agent. A vehicle must immediately be released to its owner or their agent on payment of fees payable under the Tow Truck Regulation 2024. 

A sample Towed vehicle register is available.

Notifying the police

The tow truck operator must notify the Queensland Police Service that the vehicle has been towed as soon as practicable but no later than 1 hour after a vehicle removed from private property is stored in the holding yard. To notify the Queensland Police Service, electronic Tow Notification must be used. 

The Queensland Police Service electronic Tow Notification can be accessed via Policelink and the Queensland Police Service Policelink app (you can download the Policelink app for free from the App Store and Google Play) or via the link provided on our website on the Tow truck Operator accreditation page.

Property to be kept in safe custody

If the vehicle is unlocked, the tow truck operator must keep any property found in the vehicle in safe custody at their business address until the property can be returned to the vehicle owner or their agent. A vehicle must not be unlocked without the consent of the vehicle owner or their agent. 

A sample found property register is available to record details of any property found. 

Disclosing personal information

You must not disclose to another person any personal information about the owner of a vehicle that you gained through towing of a motor vehicle unless it is to be disclosed to the vehicle owner, their agent or to an authorised officer.

Fees and terms

The accreditation term allows for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 year terms with an appropriate fee for each term.

Fee increase

On 1 July 2024, most fees were frozen at their current level for 1 year to ease cost-of-living pressures for Queenslanders.

Tow truck scheme maximum regulated fees have increased by 3.4%. The freeze does not apply to these fees as they are collected by private tow truck licence holders.

You can contact [email protected] to find out more about the increases on specific fees.