Am I liable for the costs of removal of an abandoned car registered in my name?
Full Question:
I sold my car to my niece. But she neither gave the money nor changed the ownership to her name. She parked the car in a highway and gone. After a week, I found that the authorities removed the car. The car has also some damages by the removal. Am I liable for the costs of removal? Can I sue the authorities for those damages?
04/13/2017 |
Category: Abandoned Pr... ยป Vehicles |
State: Nebraska |
#35621
Answer:
You can have a look at the relevant law in this regard below.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1901.
Abandoned vehicle, defined.
(1) A motor vehicle is an abandoned vehicle:
(a) If left unattended, with no license plates or valid In Transit stickers issued pursuant to the Motor Vehicle Registration Act affixed thereto, for more than six hours on any public property;
(b) If left unattended for more than twenty-four hours on any public property, except a portion thereof on which parking is legally permitted;
(c) If left unattended for more than forty-eight hours, after the parking of such vehicle has become illegal, if left on a portion of any public property on which parking is legally permitted;
(d) If left unattended for more than seven days on private property if left initially without permission of the owner, or after permission of the owner is terminated;
(e) If left for more than thirty days in the custody of a law enforcement agency after the agency has sent a letter to the last-registered owner under section 60-1903.01; or
(f) If removed from private property by a municipality pursuant to a municipal ordinance.
(2) An all-terrain vehicle, a utility-type vehicle, or a minibike is an abandoned vehicle:
(a) If left unattended for more than twenty-four hours on any public property, except a portion thereof on which parking is legally permitted;
(b) If left unattended for more than forty-eight hours, after the parking of such vehicle has become illegal, if left on a portion of any public property on which parking is legally permitted;
(c) If left unattended for more than seven days on private property if left initially without permission of the owner, or after permission of the owner is terminated;
(d) If left for more than thirty days in the custody of a law enforcement agency after the agency has sent a letter to the last-registered owner under section 60-1903.01; or
(e) If removed from private property by a municipality pursuant to a municipal ordinance.
(3) A mobile home is an abandoned vehicle if left in place on private property for more than thirty days after a local governmental unit, pursuant to an ordinance or resolution, has sent a certified letter to each of the last-registered owners and posted a notice on the mobile home, stating that the mobile home is subject to sale or auction or vesting of title as set forth in section 60-1903.
(4) For purposes of this section:
(a) Mobile home means a movable or portable dwelling constructed to be towed on its own chassis, connected to utilities, and designed with or without a permanent foundation for year-round living. It may consist of one or more units that can be telescoped when towed and expanded later for additional capacity, or of two or more units, separately towable but designed to be joined into one integral unit, and shall include a manufactured home as defined in section 71-4603. Mobile home does not include a mobile home or manufactured home for which an affidavit of affixture has been recorded pursuant to section 60-169;
(b) Public property means any public right-of-way, street, highway, alley, or park or other state, county, or municipally owned property; and
(c) Private property means any privately owned property which is not included within the definition of public property.
(5) No motor vehicle subject to forfeiture under section 28-431 shall be an abandoned vehicle under this section.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1902.
Abandoned vehicle; title; vest in local authority or state agency; when.
If an abandoned vehicle, at the time of abandonment, has no license plates of the current year or valid In Transit stickers issued pursuant to section 60-376 affixed and is of a wholesale value, taking into consideration the condition of the vehicle, of two hundred fifty dollars or less, title shall immediately vest in the local authority or state agency having jurisdiction thereof as provided in section 60-1904. Any certificate of title issued under this section to the local authority or state agency shall be issued at no cost to such authority or agency.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1903.
Local authorities or state agency; powers and duties.
(1) Except for vehicles governed by section 60-1902, the local authority or state agency having custody of an abandoned vehicle shall make an inquiry concerning the last-registered owner of such vehicle as follows:
(a) Abandoned vehicle with license plates affixed, to the jurisdiction which issued such license plates; or
(b) Abandoned vehicle with no license plates affixed, to the Department of Motor Vehicles.
(2) The local authority or state agency shall notify the last-registered owner, if any, that the vehicle in question has been determined to be an abandoned vehicle and that, if unclaimed, either (a) it will be sold or will be offered at public auction after five days from the date such notice was mailed or (b) title will vest in the local authority or state agency thirty days after the date such notice was mailed. If the agency described in subdivision (1)(a) or (b) of this section also notifies the local authority or state agency that a lien or mortgage exists, such notice shall also be sent to the lienholder or mortgagee. Any person claiming such vehicle shall be required to pay the cost of removal and storage of such vehicle.
(3) Title to an abandoned vehicle, if unclaimed, shall vest in the local authority or state agency (a) five days after the date the notice is mailed if the vehicle will be sold or offered at public auction under subdivision (2)(a) of this section, (b) thirty days after the date the notice is mailed if the local authority or state agency will retain the vehicle, or (c) if the last-registered owner cannot be ascertained, when notice of such fact is received.
(4) After title to the abandoned vehicle vests pursuant to subsection (3) of this section, the local authority or state agency may retain for use, sell, or auction the abandoned vehicle. If the local authority or state agency has determined that the vehicle should be retained for use, the local authority or state agency shall, at the same time that the notice, if any, is mailed, publish in a newspaper of general circulation in the jurisdiction an announcement that the local authority or state agency intends to retain the abandoned vehicle for its use and that title will vest in the local authority or state agency thirty days after the publication.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1903.01.
Law enforcement agency; powers and duties.
A state or local law enforcement agency which has custody of a motor vehicle for investigatory purposes and has no further need to keep it in custody shall send a certified letter to each of the last-registered owners stating that the vehicle is in the custody of the law enforcement agency, that the vehicle is no longer needed for law enforcement purposes, and that after thirty days the agency will dispose of the vehicle. This section shall not apply to motor vehicles subject to forfeiture under section 28-431. No storage fees shall be assessed against the registered owner of a motor vehicle held in custody for investigatory purposes under this section unless the registered owner or the person in possession of the vehicle when it is taken into custody is charged with a felony or misdemeanor related to the offense for which the law enforcement agency took the vehicle into custody. If a registered owner or the person in possession of the vehicle when it is taken into custody is charged with a felony or misdemeanor but is not convicted, the registered owner shall be entitled to a refund of the storage fees.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1904.
Custody; who entitled.
If a state agency caused an abandoned vehicle described in subdivision (1)(e) or (2)(d) of section 60-1901 to be removed from public property, the state agency shall be entitled to custody of the vehicle. If a state agency caused an abandoned vehicle described in subdivision (1)(a), (b), (c), or (d) or (2)(a), (b), or (c) of section 60-1901 to be removed from public property, the state agency shall deliver the vehicle to the local authority which shall have custody. The local authority entitled to custody of an abandoned vehicle shall be the county in which the vehicle was abandoned or, if abandoned in a city or village, the city or village in which the vehicle was abandoned.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1905.
Proceeds of sale; disposition.
Any proceeds from the sale of an abandoned vehicle less any expenses incurred by the local authority or state agency shall be held by the local authority or state agency without interest, for the benefit of the owner or lienholders of such vehicle for a period of two years. If not claimed within such two-year period, the proceeds shall be paid into the general fund of the local authority entitled to custody under section 60-1904 or the state General Fund if a state agency is entitled to custody under section 60-1904.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1906.
Liability for removal.
Neither the owner, lessee, nor occupant of the premises from which any abandoned vehicle is removed, nor the state, city, village, or county, shall be liable for any loss or damage to such vehicle which occurs during its removal or while in the possession of the state, city, village, or county or its contractual agent or as a result of any subsequent disposition.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1907.
Person cannot abandon a vehicle.
No person shall cause any vehicle to be an abandoned vehicle as described in subdivision (1)(a), (b), (c), or (d) or (2)(a), (b), or (c) of section 60-1901.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1908.
Destroy, deface, or remove parts; unlawful; exception; violation; penalty.
No person other than one authorized by the appropriate local authority or state agency shall destroy, deface, or remove any part of a vehicle which is left unattended on a highway or other public place without license plates affixed or which is abandoned. Anyone violating this section shall be guilty of a Class V misdemeanor.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1909.
Costs of removal and storage; last-registered owner; liable.
The last-registered owner of an abandoned vehicle shall be liable to the local authority or state agency for the costs of removal and storage of such vehicle.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1910.
Rules and regulations.
The Director of Motor Vehicles shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations providing for such forms and procedures as are necessary or desirable to effectuate the provisions of sections 60-1901 to 60-1911. Such rules and regulations may include procedures for the removal and disposition of vehicle identification numbers of abandoned vehicles, forms for local records for abandoned vehicles, and inquiries relating to ownership of such vehicles.
R.R.S. Neb. § 60-1911.
Violations; penalty.
Except as provided in section 60-1908, any person violating the provisions of sections 60-1901 to 60-1911 shall be guilty of a Class II misdemeanor.
R.R.S. Neb. § 76-14,109.
Removal of abandoned mobile home; conditions.
If a tenant abandons a mobile home on a mobile home space, the mobile home may not be removed from the mobile home space by the tenant or his or her agent without a signed written authorization from the landlord granting clearance for removal, showing all money due and owing paid in full, or an agreement reached with the legal owner and the landlord. A mobile home shall be considered to be abandoned if the tenant has defaulted in rent and has, by absence of at least thirty days or by words or actions, reasonably indicated an intention not to continue the tenancy.
Nothing in this section shall prohibit a landlord from removing an abandoned mobile home from the mobile space and placing it in storage at the owner's expense or from utilizing any other legal remedy.
R.R.S. Neb. § 37-12,103.
Custody; who entitled.
If a state agency caused an abandoned motorboat described in subdivision (1)(d) of section 37-1299 to be removed from public property, the state agency shall be entitled to custody of the motorboat. If a state agency caused an abandoned motorboat described in subdivision (1)(a), (b), or (c) of section 37-1299 to be removed from public property, the state agency shall deliver the motorboat to the local authority which shall have custody. The local authority entitled to custody of an abandoned motorboat shall be the county in which the motorboat was abandoned or, if abandoned in a city or village, the city or village in which the motorboat was abandoned.
