In Los Angeles, a car can be towed under Vehicle Code 22651(o) once its registration has been expired more than six months. Most of these tows land at one of the 17 Official Police Garages the City of LA contracts with, and you find yours at opglaviic.com by plate or VIN. Renew the registration with the DMV first, then bring proof of that plus a valid ID to the OPG between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. and pay what’s owed. Quick Tow LA runs 24/7 live dispatch across LA County, so once the car is released we can help you get it home.
Walking back to a parking spot on Sepulveda or a side street off the 110 and finding nothing there is a bad way to start a day. If the reg tags on your plate were more than six months out of date, that’s almost certainly why. LA enforces this one hard, because an expired-registration stop is one of the easiest things for an officer to catch on a plate scan, whether it’s LAPD on patrol or LADOT working a sweep near a Metro corridor. Here’s what actually happened, how to find the car, and what it costs to get it back.
Why LA towed the car
California Vehicle Code 22651(o) lets a peace officer or an authorized public employee remove a vehicle from a highway or public property once its registration has been expired more than six months. The state gives you a real grace window after the tags lapse. Cross six months and any officer who runs the plate, or spots the old sticker at a glance, has legal grounds to call it in.
This isn’t the same as the 30-day mandatory hold under CVC 14602.6, which is for unlicensed or suspended drivers. An expired-registration tow has no fixed holding period. Fix the registration and pay the bill, and the car can come home the same day, not after a mandatory month on the lot.
Find the car: opglaviic.com
Almost every police tow inside the City of LA goes to one of the 17 Official Police Garages (OPGs) under contract with LAPD and LADOT. The fastest way to find which one has your car is the OPGLA VIIC database at opglaviic.com, search by license plate or VIN and it tells you the lot. LADOT’s own locator page points to the same tool, and you can also call 311 if you’d rather talk to someone.
If the car was towed off a City street for something other than a police hold (a private lot, an HOA, a landlord), it likely isn’t in this database at all, and a different post on private-property towing covers that case.
Get the registration current before you go
Most OPGs won’t release a car towed for expired tags until they see proof it’s current. That means the DMV step comes first, not the yard visit:
- Look the car up at opglaviic.com to confirm which OPG has it.
- Renew the registration with the DMV: the renewal fee, any late penalties (these climb the longer it sat expired), and a smog certificate if the vehicle is due.
- Gather a valid photo ID or US government ID, the registration card or pink slip showing you’re the registered or legal owner (or a licensed agent), and the new proof of current registration.
- If you don’t have a valid license, bring someone who does, since a licensed person has to be the one who drives it off the lot.
- Get the police release: under LAPD’s release process, an Area auto detective signs off with a CHP 180 and an LAPD Form 15.23.07, usually issued at the LAPD Area station that ordered the tow, before the OPG will hand the car over.
- Head to the OPG between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. (release is in-person only, no after-hours option), pay the charges, and take the car.
What it costs at a City of LA OPG
As of January 1, 2026, the City of LA’s Official Police Garage rate schedule (set annually by the Board of Police Commissioners under LAMC 80.77.4) runs:
- Tow, first hour: $220 (or $215 if you’re not paying by credit card)
- Daily storage: $68/day ($66 non-credit-card)
- Vehicle Release Fee: $115, charged on every redemption regardless of how long the car sat
- EV surcharge, if it applies: $77
That’s on top of whatever the DMV charges to bring the registration current. Storage is what runs the total up fastest, since it’s billed by the day starting the moment the tow truck drops the car. The faster you clear the DMV side and get to the OPG during its 7-to-7 window, the fewer storage days you’re paying for.
One thing to know: these rates reset every January 1. If you’re reading this well past September 2026, confirm the current schedule at opgla.com/Rates before you budget for it.
Outside the City of LA proper, the numbers change. Long Beach, Burbank, and Pasadena each run their own impound programs with their own fee schedules, and LA County Sheriff stations handle release differently depending on which contracted yard they use. The $220/$68/$115 figures above are City of LA OPG rates only.
Why this tow shows up so often on LA streets
Expired-registration tows cluster wherever routine plate-reading enforcement happens: street-sweeping routes through the Valley and South Bay, LADOT sweeps near Metro stations and stadium-event corridors around Dodger Stadium, SoFi, and Crypto.com Arena, and ordinary patrol stops on surface streets and the freeway shoulders of the 405, the 101, and the 10. None of it is random. A six-months-expired sticker is one of the easiest violations for an officer to confirm without even stopping the car.
Avoid the repeat
Renewing before the tags lapse, not after, is the whole fix. DMV sends renewal notices well ahead of the expiration date, and renewing online takes a few minutes if nothing else is flagging the record.
If the car genuinely isn’t being driven, a Planned Non-Operation (PNO) filing with the DMV is the right move instead of letting registration quietly expire. A properly filed PNO vehicle kept off public roads can’t be towed under 22651(o), because it’s on record as not operating. What doesn’t work is continuing to drive a car whose tags have been expired more than six months. That’s the exact window the statute targets.
If the car isn’t worth reclaiming
Sometimes the registration lapsed because the car was already on its way out, not because anyone forgot. Renewing tags just to retrieve something headed for the junkyard rarely pencils out. If that’s the situation, the paperwork to junk a car in California is a separate, shorter process worth reading before you pay a dollar at the OPG.
Frequently asked questions
Is an expired-registration tow the same as a 30-day impound?
No. A CVC 22651(o) tow for registration expired more than six months has no fixed hold. You can typically get the car back as soon as you renew and pay the OPG. A CVC 14602.6 impound, for unlicensed or suspended drivers, carries a mandatory 30-day hold no matter when you show up.
Which OPG has my car?
Search opglaviic.com by plate or VIN. LADOT’s site links to the same tool, or call 311. There are 17 Official Police Garages under contract with the City of LA, and it’s almost always one of these for a police-ordered tow.
Do I have to renew the registration before the OPG releases the car?
Yes, in nearly every case. The OPG needs proof the reason for the tow is resolved before it hands the car back, so bring current registration along with your ID and the police release paperwork.
What will I actually owe?
As of January 1, 2026, City of LA OPG rates run $220 for the first hour of tow, $68 a day in storage, and a $115 vehicle release fee, on top of whatever DMV charges for the renewal and any late penalties. Fees reset every January, so confirm current figures before you go if it’s been a while.
Can the OPG sell my car if I don’t pick it up?
Eventually, yes. An unclaimed vehicle can end up in a lien sale under California Civil Code 3068 and related statutes once it’s been on the lot long enough. Clearing the DMV side and getting to the OPG promptly avoids that entirely.
If your car’s been towed for expired tags and you need it moved once it’s released, call Quick Tow LA 24/7 at (213) 410-1414. We’re not the OPG and we can’t renew your registration or waive the release fee, but we connect drivers across Los Angeles County with local licensed operators who can pick it up once you’ve cleared it.