How much does it cost to get a car out of impound in The Loop & Near North?
A plain-English guide to impound and storage costs in The Loop & Near North: release fees, daily storage, the paperwork you need, and how to get your car back for less.
Why impound & storage fees costs what it does in The Loop & Near North
Inside the city the numbers are published and they are not ours. Under Municipal Code 9-92-080 the City of Chicago charges $250 to tow a vehicle under 8,000 pounds and $350 at or above it, with storage at $50 or $100 per day on the same weight split. Payment is cash, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express or Diners Club only, with no checks and no money orders. The four pounds, Central at 500 E Wacker Dr, O'Hare on Bessie Coleman Drive, Pound 2 at 103rd and Doty and Pound 6 at 701 N Sacramento, all run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Note that the city's winter parking-ban page publishes a different set of figures for ban tows, a minimum $150 towing fee, a $60 ticket and $25 a day storage, so check which one applies to you.
The Central Auto Pound is physically here, at 500 E Wacker Dr on the lower level, open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Before you go anywhere, call 311, because a missing downtown car is as likely to have been relocated to clear a street as impounded, and the city says plainly this can happen in an emergency with no signs posted. A City of Chicago tow has published fees: $250 to tow a vehicle under 8,000 pounds and $350 at 8,000 pounds or more, with storage at $50 or $100 per day on the same weight split, under Municipal Code 9-92-080. Payment is cash, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express or Diners Club only, with no checks and no money orders. To release a vehicle you need photo identification, proof of ownership as a title, a current registration card or a bill of sale under 30 days old, current state plates and a Chicago Vehicle Sticker where required, and all charges and fines paid in full. Vehicles are normally stored no less than 21 days from the date the city mails notice, with a right to one 15-day extension under 9-92-100(a); request it from the Auto Pound Office at 312.746.4954.
How we work The Loop & Near North
The Loop, the Near North Side and the Near West Side make up the densest towing and relocation zone in the metro. The Near North Side is now the largest community area in Chicago at roughly 107,000 residents, with the Loop at about 42,500 and the Near West Side at 68,000. Wacker Drive runs the river's edge through the whole district, Michigan Avenue and Lake Shore Drive carry the lakefront traffic, and the Kennedy and the Dan Ryan meet at the Jane Byrne Interchange on the west edge. What makes downtown different is not volume, it is uncertainty. The city relocates vehicles to clear streets for agency work, and it says plainly that this can happen in an emergency with no opportunity to post signs. That means a downtown driver who walks back to an empty space genuinely does not know whether the car is at a pound or two blocks away, and the city's own advice is to call 311 before reporting it stolen. The Central Auto Pound is at 500 E Wacker Dr on the lower level and runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so for a lot of Loop calls the vehicle has not gone far. Street festivals, film shoots and utility work all add their own posted and unposted restrictions on top of ordinary enforcement. Operators cover Grant Park, the New Eastside, River North and the river corridor, running wheel-lift for the ordinary call and flatbed for anything coming off Lake Shore Drive.
The Loop & Near North impound & storage fees at a glance
Ranges reflect Chicago City Sides conditions. Every job is quoted before dispatch, with the number stated on the call, with the mileage that goes into it.
Want the exact number for your car? Call (773) 830-6930 and we'll quote the job in under 60 seconds.
Common The Loop & Near North cost questions
How much does it cost to get my car out of impound in The Loop & Near North?
If the City of Chicago towed it, the fees are published. Under Municipal Code 9-92-080 the tow is $250 for a vehicle under 8,000 pounds and $350 at 8,000 pounds or more, and storage is $50 or $100 per day on the same split. Payment is cash, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express or Diners Club only; checks and money orders are not accepted. Call 311 first to find out which pound has it, because the city also relocates vehicles rather than impounding them, and a relocated car has not gone to a pound at all. Note that the city's winter parking-ban page publishes different figures for ban tows: a minimum $150 towing fee, a $60 ticket and $25 per day storage.
What do I need to get my impounded car back in The Loop & Near North?
For a City of Chicago pound you need valid photo identification for everyone claiming the vehicle, proof of ownership as a valid title, a current registration card or a bill of sale not more than 30 days old, a lease agreement if you are the lessee, and an original notarized letter from the owner if you are acting for them. The vehicle also needs current state plates and a Chicago Vehicle Sticker where required, and a valid driver's licence if you are driving it out. All charges and fines have to be paid in full. A suburban impound sets its own list, so ask the department that ordered the tow what it needs.
What happens if I don't pick up my car in The Loop & Near North?
A vehicle at a City of Chicago pound is normally stored for no less than 21 days from the date the city mails notice to the registered owner, and under 9-92-100(a) the registered owner has the right to one extension of 15 days before it is sold or otherwise disposed of. Request that extension from the Auto Pound Office at 312.746.4954. If the vehicle is never claimed it can be disposed of or sold at auction, and the owner still owes the fines and fees. Storage accrues the whole time, so calling early costs less than calling late.
Can Quick Tow Chicago get my car out of impound in The Loop & Near North?
No, and it is worth being straight about that. We connect drivers with private tow and roadside operators; we are not the pound, the village or the police department holding your car, so we cannot waive anyone's fees or release it faster. What we can do is help you work out who has it and what the process is, and line up an operator to move it once it is released. Call (773) 830-6930.
Related towing info for The Loop & Near North
Impound & storage fees in the rest of the Chicago City Sides area
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