Car Towed or Impounded in Lancaster? How to Get It Back

First, find out who towed it

If your car is gone and you did not see it towed, start with where it was. The agency for that spot either towed it or can tell you who did.

Where the car was	Who to call first	Where the release starts
A street in Lancaster city limits	LASD Lancaster Station, (661) 948-8466	Lancaster Sheriff’s Station lobby
Quartz Hill, Antelope Acres or Lake Los Angeles	LASD Lancaster Station, (661) 948-8466	Ask the station
A street in Palmdale city limits	LASD Palmdale Station, (661) 272-2400	Palmdale Station or the City’s Public Safety Office
Littlerock, Acton, Leona Valley or another community the Palmdale Station serves	LASD Palmdale Station, (661) 272-2400	Ask the station
CA-14, SR-138 or another state highway in the valley	CHP Antelope Valley Area, (661) 743-6060	CHP office, 2041 W Avenue I
A parking lot, apartment complex or business	The towing company named on the lot’s sign	The towing company’s yard
Rosamond or elsewhere in Kern County	Kern County Sheriff’s Office, (661) 861-3110, or CHP Mojave Area, (661) 823-5500	Ask the agency

Phone numbers are the agencies’ own listings. If no agency and no towing company has a record of your car, report it stolen to the Sheriff’s station that serves the area.

How do you get a car back after a Sheriff tow in Lancaster?

It takes two stops: the Sheriff’s Station for the release, then the yard for the car.

Step 1: Get the release at the Sheriff’s Station

• Where: the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station lobby, 501 W Lancaster Blvd. The City says the lobby is open at all hours, seven days a week.
• Who goes: the registered or legal owner.
• What to bring: valid government-issued ID. If the owner does not have a valid driver’s license, bring someone who does to drive the car away. Proof of current registration may be required.
• What you pay there: the City’s release fee, currently $80 for vehicles towed inside Lancaster city limits.
• Keep the receipt and take it to the yard.

The $80 is the City of Lancaster’s fee. If Lancaster Station deputies towed the car in Quartz Hill, Antelope Acres or Lake Los Angeles, which are outside city limits, ask the station which release fee applies.

Step 2: Pick up the car at the contract yard

The City says Sheriff tows in the Lancaster Station patrol area go to one of three contract yards. You pay the tow and storage to the yard, not to the Sheriff:

• Sheriff-directed tow fee: $122
• Storage: $30 a day, counted from the day of the tow, weekends and holidays included

The City’s own example: a car on a 30-day hold owes $1,022 to the yard ($122 plus 30 days of storage), plus $30 for each extra day. The $80 release fee is on top of that.

The three yards, as listed by the City of Lancaster:

• Clark & Howard (North): 42429 3rd St East, Lancaster 93535. Monday to Friday 8 to 5, Saturday 9 to 11. City-listed phone: (661) 940-8112.
• Sierra Automotive & Towing: 45813 Division St, Lancaster 93535. Monday to Friday 8 to 5. City-listed phone: (661) 945-4521. The company’s own website lists a different number, so check the City page if the call does not go through.
• All Wayz Towing: 42422 8th St East, Lancaster 93535. Monday to Friday 8 to 5. City-listed phone: (661) 948-6200.

How do you get a car back after a Sheriff tow in Palmdale?

The City of Palmdale charges a $93 tow release fee. Pay it at either place:

• City of Palmdale Public Safety Office: 38256 Sierra Hwy, Monday to Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., (661) 267-5234.
• LASD Palmdale Station: 750 E Avenue Q, which the City lists as open at all hours, (661) 272-2400.

The registered owner must come in person with one vehicle document (registration, title, or a deposit-of-fees receipt with a moving permit) and one ID document. When you pay, ask which yard has the car, its hours and what it charges for the tow and storage.

The City’s page lists common reasons for a tow with the Vehicle Code section for each, such as a car left on a street for more than 72 hours or registration expired for more than six months. More on the city itself is on the Palmdale area page.

What if CHP towed it?

CHP patrols CA-14, SR-138 and about 1,400 miles of unincorporated roads in the valley, so a car towed from the freeway after a breakdown or crash is likely a CHP tow. The office can confirm.

• Release: the CHP Antelope Valley Area office, 2041 W Avenue I, Lancaster, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., (661) 743-6060.
• Fee: the City of Lancaster’s page says CHP charges no release fee.
• Ask for the yard’s name and address. CHP uses several tow companies around the valley, so get the exact yard before you leave the office.
• Storage: each yard sets its own rate. Under CHP’s tow service agreement, the first 24 hours count as one day.

The CHP office keeps weekday hours, but storage keeps counting over the weekend. A car towed on a Friday evening cannot be released at the office until it reopens on Monday. If the tow followed a crash, see what to do after a car accident in Lancaster for the fee limits that apply to accident tows.

What if it was towed from a parking lot or apartment complex?

Private-property tows follow Vehicle Code 22658:

• Read the sign. Every entrance must have a sign at least 17 by 22 inches saying vehicles will be removed at the owner’s expense. It must list the towing company’s name and phone number and the local police number.
• The police are told. The property owner must notify the local traffic law enforcement agency no later than one hour after authorizing the tow, and the towing company must notify it once the car leaves. In Lancaster, the City says private-property tows are reported to the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station.
• Caught it in the act? If you get back before the car has left the property, the tow company must release it when you ask. If it was already hooked up, it can charge no more than half its regular towing charge.
• The yard must be close. Storage must be within 10 miles of where the car was towed, unless the local law enforcement agency approved otherwise.
• Storage rules: if you get the car back less than 24 hours after it reached the yard, you pay one day of storage. An after-hours gate fee cannot be more than half the hourly tow rate.
• Paperwork and payment: before you pay, the towing company must give you a copy of the property owner’s written authorization. It must accept cash or a valid bank credit card.

What about Rosamond and Kern County?

Rosamond is in Kern County, so none of the Lancaster or Palmdale steps above apply. No published Kern County release process for Rosamond was found when this guide was checked in October 2026.

• For a tow from a street or parking area, call the Kern County Sheriff’s Office non-emergency line at (661) 861-3110.
• For a tow from CA-14 or another highway, call the CHP Mojave Area office at (661) 823-5500, Monday to Friday 8 to 5.

Ask who has the car, where to get a release if one is needed, and what to bring.

What does it cost to get a towed car back?

Only the official, published amounts are shown here.

Fee	Amount	Paid to	Listed by
Lancaster release fee, Sheriff tows in city limits	$80	Lancaster Sheriff’s Station	City of Lancaster
Sheriff-directed tow, Lancaster Station area	$122	The contract yard	City of Lancaster
Storage, Lancaster Station area	$30 a day, weekends and holidays included	The contract yard	City of Lancaster
Palmdale tow release fee	$93	Public Safety Office or Palmdale Station	City of Palmdale
CHP release	No CHP release fee	None	City of Lancaster

As listed by the City of Lancaster and the City of Palmdale, checked October 2026. Confirm before you go.

A few things raise the total:

• Days. Storage is charged every day, including weekends and holidays.
• After-hours pickup. The City of Lancaster says yards may legally charge an after-hours release fee.
• Waiting too long. The City says unclaimed vehicles generally go to a lien sale after about 45 to 60 days.

Agency release fees like these are allowed by Vehicle Code 22850.5, which lets a city or county charge its administrative cost of removing, storing or releasing a vehicle. The agency may waive it if you can prove the car was reported stolen when it was removed, so ask if that applies to you.

What are your rights at the tow yard?

Vehicle Code 22651.07 applies to any business that charges for towing or storage. Before you pay, you have the right to:

• An itemized invoice of the actual charges. It must list the hourly or per-item rates, the daily storage rate and number of days, any gate fee, and the method of towing.
• Your personal property, at no charge, during normal business hours: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., except state holidays.
• No lien fee if you retrieve the car during the first 72 hours of storage.
• Inspect the car, and have your insurer inspect it.
• Pay by cash, a valid bank credit card, or a check from your insurer. Under Vehicle Code 22651.1, a storage facility must accept a valid bank credit card or cash.

The yard must post a Towing and Storage Fees and Access Notice and give you a copy if you ask. Outside business hours, it must give a phone number where you can leave a message.

If the car was towed after an accident or recovered after a theft, Vehicle Code 22524.5 also applies. Unless a law enforcement towing agreement sets them, these fees are presumed unreasonable: administrative fees (other than DMV and lien-sale fees), security, dolly and pull-out fees, gate fees unless you asked for an after-hours release, and storage above half the daily rate if you pick the car up in the first four hours.

How do you get the car home once it is released?

If it starts and drives, the person with a valid license drives it out. If it does not:

• Dead battery after days in the yard: a jump start may be all it needs.
• Will not start, or no driver available: a local tow to your home or a shop.
• Crash damage, a locked wheel, or an all-wheel-drive or electric car: ask for a flatbed.

Book the pickup inside the yard’s listed hours, and tell the dispatcher the yard’s name and address. Have your release receipt and the yard’s invoice with you.