4 ms·

Got curious about the "century old statute" and looked it up. Original text [1] > Section 1. Whenever any motor-vehicle is found abandoned upon any public high

Got curious about the "century old statute" and looked it up. Original text [1] > Section 1. Whenever any motor-vehicle is found abandoned upon any public highway… and said vehicle is not of a value exceeding one hundred dollars… said officer may cause such motor-vehicle to be removed > Section 2. If such motor-vehicle is not reclaimed within fifteen days after such removal, said officer shall sell the same at public auction… [1] https://books.google.com/books?id=gktNAQAAMAAJ&hl=en https://books.google.com/books?id=gktNAQAAMAAJ&hl=en

doubled112 1y ago
Do they adjust for inflation? I have a hard time getting a tire for $100 now, never mind a whole car.
- themanmaran 1y ago
  Apparently the new number is $1500. But it's at the tow driver's discretion so they can estimate the value at $1,499.
  - kulahan 1y ago
    I’m not sure this makes a huge difference if the goal is to get obvious pieces of junk off the highway? Does a $1600 car really matter that much more than even a $1500 car?
    - jjk166 1y ago
      I think the point is that somebody can look at a brand new mint condition bugatti and say "that looks like it's worth less than $1500 to me" and then take it. It's not good to rely on people to be honest when it is in their financial best interest not to be.
      - kulahan 1y ago
        But the law doesn’t allow for that, obviously. It’s a nonsensical scenario. Maybe you could argue that a somewhat functional car might be taken on occasion, but it’s… still abandoned… Like, nobody is parking a useful vehicle on the side of the highway and abandoning it. This isn’t a scenario for abuse.
        jjk166 1y ago
        While it's a particularly brazen scenario meant to illustrate the concept, the point is the law does allow that. This doesn't simply apply to cars left on the side of the road, this is any car that's been towed for any reason. A car worth a heck of a lot more than $1500 can have an expired parking permit and no one available to pick it up (or even recognize it has been towed) within 15 days. You go on vacation or you're in the hospital and when you get back home you don't have a car anymore because you were parked only 13 feet away from a fire hydrant. And particularly for low income individuals, coming up with the money to pay the fine to get your vehicle out of impound within 15 days may be a legitimate financial burden, especially if without your vehicle you can no longer commute to work, or you lost your job for whatever reason led to the vehicle being impounded. It's an obvious scenario for abuse.
  - doctorwho42 1y ago
    For reference, I have a used car from 1998. Kind of a junker, but has a fun v6 in it (manual). But the point is, my city values it at $1500 and hasn't let that value go any lower for city vehicle tax purposes. So I'd imagine most cars ever if old junk piles are still worth $1500 to the state.
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]

doubled112 1y ago

Do they adjust for inflation? I have a hard time getting a tire for $100 now, never mind a whole car.

themanmaran 1y ago
Apparently the new number is $1500. But it's at the tow driver's discretion so they can estimate the value at $1,499.
- kulahan 1y ago
  I’m not sure this makes a huge difference if the goal is to get obvious pieces of junk off the highway? Does a $1600 car really matter that much more than even a $1500 car?
  - jjk166 1y ago
    I think the point is that somebody can look at a brand new mint condition bugatti and say "that looks like it's worth less than $1500 to me" and then take it. It's not good to rely on people to be honest when it is in their financial best interest not to be.
    - kulahan 1y ago
      But the law doesn’t allow for that, obviously. It’s a nonsensical scenario. Maybe you could argue that a somewhat functional car might be taken on occasion, but it’s… still abandoned… Like, nobody is parking a useful vehicle on the side of the highway and abandoning it. This isn’t a scenario for abuse.
      - jjk166 1y ago
        While it's a particularly brazen scenario meant to illustrate the concept, the point is the law does allow that. This doesn't simply apply to cars left on the side of the road, this is any car that's been towed for any reason. A car worth a heck of a lot more than $1500 can have an expired parking permit and no one available to pick it up (or even recognize it has been towed) within 15 days. You go on vacation or you're in the hospital and when you get back home you don't have a car anymore because you were parked only 13 feet away from a fire hydrant. And particularly for low income individuals, coming up with the money to pay the fine to get your vehicle out of impound within 15 days may be a legitimate financial burden, especially if without your vehicle you can no longer commute to work, or you lost your job for whatever reason led to the vehicle being impounded. It's an obvious scenario for abuse.
- doctorwho42 1y ago
  For reference, I have a used car from 1998. Kind of a junker, but has a fun v6 in it (manual). But the point is, my city values it at $1500 and hasn't let that value go any lower for city vehicle tax purposes. So I'd imagine most cars ever if old junk piles are still worth $1500 to the state.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]