Can a lien holder legally abandoned a car at a tow yard, instead of paying charges to recover the car in Pennsylvania

Hi there! Are you the line older? I may out of office tomorrow, but I’ll be back ASAP!

Ok got it! I'll be back tomorrow, but I can still answer this question. In Pennsylvania, a lienholder (like a bank or finance company) can refuse to pay the towing and storage charges, but that doesn't mean they're legally "abandoning" the vehicle in the way the law defines abandonment. Instead, it usually means they are choosing not to redeem their interest because the vehicle isn't worth it to them. This means that you have a right to seek a recovery of the charges. If no one claims the car and pays the fees, including the registered owner or the lienholder, you can go through the abandoned vehicle process under Pennsylvania law to apply for title or to dispose of the vehicle. You may be familiar, but under 75 Pa. C.S. § 7305 and related DMV regulations, if a vehicle is unclaimed after a certain number of days (15 days for non-accident tows, 48 hours if abandoned on private property), you can report it as abandoned to PennDOT and proceed to dispose of it. You’ll need to send proper notices to the owner and lienholder, follow the timeframes, and file the appropriate paperwork with PennDOT. So the lienholder isn’t technically “abandoning” the vehicle because they’re just not exercising their right to redeem it. But once the timelines run out and you follow the notice requirements, you can legally treat the vehicle as abandoned.

Hi [REDACTED]! So because you're not in CA, I couldn't do that specifically, but please be sure to post a job to the site! You can post jobs for free and lawyers will bid on them. Only choose one from your state because you don't want to get this wrong.