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Colorado drop fee: do they have to release your car?

For tows from commercial lots, if you show up before the car leaves the property the driver must stop and let you pay the drop charge instead. Tows from residential property cannot charge a drop fee at all. The most a tow company may charge for a drop fee on a car in Colorado is $97.70.

Checked Nov 15, 2026 against the Colorado statute and regulator pages.

What to do now

  1. Stay calm and tell the operator you want the car released.
  2. Ask what the drop fee is and pay it if it is within your state limit. Some states require them to take a card.
  3. Get a receipt with the company name, truck number and amount.
  4. If they refuse when your state requires release, call police non-emergency and note the time.

Colorado rules that matter here

Drop fee release

For tows from commercial lots, if you show up before the car leaves the property the driver must stop and let you pay the drop charge instead. Tows from residential property cannot charge a drop fee at all.1

Payment

Towers must accept cash and major credit cards such as Visa and MasterCard. A card surcharge may be added.247

Tow-away signs

Signs must be at each entrance and inside the lot, at least two square feet, in English and Spanish, and list the restriction, the hours, and the tow company name and phone.3

Related

Colorado cities: Denver

Think the tow or the bill was wrong?

Ask the lot for an itemized receipt, compare it to the legal limits in Colorado, and request a hearing before the deadline. Our step-by-step guide and calculator are free.

Questions

Do tow trucks have to release your car if you show up?

In many states the operator must release the car for a drop fee if you arrive before it leaves the property. In others it is up to the company or city ordinance. Check your state below.

Sources

Last checked Nov 15, 2026. Fees and rules change: confirm with the lot or agency before you go. Spot an error? Tell us.

  1. PUC Towing Carrier Rules, Rule 6511 Rates and Charges (4 CCR 723-6, Rule 6511), Colorado PUC (via Cornell LII). Checked Nov 14, 2026.
  2. PUC Towing Carrier Rules, Rule 6512 Release of Motor Vehicle and Personal Property (4 CCR 723-6, Rule 6512), Colorado PUC (via Cornell LII). Checked Nov 14, 2026.
  3. PUC Towing Carrier Rules, Rule 6513 Notice (4 CCR 723-6, Rule 6513), Colorado PUC (via Cornell LII). Checked Nov 14, 2026.
  4. Towing Rates (current maximums effective March 15, 2026, with prior rate history) (4 CCR 723-6, Rules 6511 and 6512), Colorado PUC. Checked Nov 15, 2026.
  5. Towing Carrier Fuel Surcharge (monthly maximum mileage charge for private-property tows) (4 CCR 723-6, Rule 6511(b)(IV)), Colorado PUC. Checked Nov 15, 2026.
  6. Abandoned vehicles on private property, notice and report (C.R.S. 42-4-2103), Colorado General Assembly (via colorado.public.law). Checked Nov 14, 2026.
  7. Towing carriers, fees, photos, and private-property authorization (C.R.S. 40-10.1-405), Colorado General Assembly (via colorado.public.law). Checked Nov 14, 2026.