Most of the time when the handcuffs are removed at a Georgia DUI stop, the #1 concern is what will happen to my vehicle? The officer won’t let you drive it home and it won’t sit on the shoulder waiting on you. Knowing the sequence of events (tow, impound, potential administrative forfeiture, and, in rare cases, forfeiture) will help you take quick action to minimize the cost and preserve your rights.
The Tow: What Happens at the Scene
Once you are arrested, the officer will typically call a tow truck from the department’s rotation list. Your car goes to a storage lot, and the meter starts running: a tow fee plus daily storage charges that accumulate every day the car sits there. These lots are private businesses and wait times can quickly escalate to several hundred dollars, even after just a week. The most critical action is to get the car out as soon as possible, typically by providing identification and proof of ownership or authorization and paying any fees or costs that have accumulated.
Instead, if someone is sober, or can get there soon, the officer can let that person drive the car away. This isn’t always the case, but it’s a nice question to ask at the scene.
Impound Holds Beyond the Tow
In certain cases, the car is not just towed to the safe place, it’s held there. The state of Georgia can take away a car in some cases of DUI offenses, including if the driver has a license that was suspended because of a previous DUI offense or if the driver is a “habitual violator.” An administrative hold is different from a routine tow: the car may not be releasable until a hearing is held or the underlying issue is resolved, and the storage fees keep running in the meantime.
Many drivers find out that the registered owner is important here too. In cases of seizure, the owner (usually a spouse, a parent or a finance company) has, in general, the right to reclaim the vehicle, but they may have to prove their ownership, and, in seizure situations, that they did not know the vehicle was being used illegally.
Forfeiture: Rare, But Real
Under Georgia law, the ultimate tip of this scale is called vehicle forfeiture, the state permanently taking your car, and it’s reserved for the most serious repeat-offense situations. While it may not be a normal first DUI scenario, all drivers who have more than one prior DUI should be aware of the risk. The notice and deadlines in forfeiture proceedings differ from those in the criminal case and proceed on a different track. Even if the DUI charge is dropped, failing to meet the deadline in the forfeiture process can result in the loss of the car.
Protecting Yourself in the First 48 Hours
The simple rules of the practical playbook are to find out where the car was towed to (the arrest paperwork or Police Department’s non-emergency line will tell you), arrange for it to be released as quickly as possible, keep all receipts and don’t assume that the tow lot will call you before you get a bill for the towing. If you get any notice of seizure or forfeiture, consider the deadline of that notice to be urgent — the deadlines for seizure and forfeiture are usually much shorter than the deadlines for criminal court dates.
An Atlanta DUI Lawyer who handles the full aftermath of an arrest can tell you whether your car is facing a simple tow or something more serious. A seasoned Atlanta DUI Attorney will also review to see if the stop and seizure were conducted properly, as errors can impact the case. When the vehicle is at stake, find a DUI Attorney Atlanta drivers trust to handle both the criminal case and the property issues. A DUI Lawyer Atlanta impound lots see regularly knows how to get cars released without unnecessary delay.
