Clarke County Vehicle Impound Guide

A DUI tow in Clarke County goes to whichever company is next on the rotation list run by the county 911 center, most often Barrett's Towing on Danielsville Road or Shuman Services on South Lumpkin Street, with Classic City Towing also in the rotation. There's an exception worth knowing: if the vehicle owner names a specific towing company before the officer calls the rotation, and that company can get there in 20 to 30 minutes, the officer has to honor the request.

The weekend trap is real. Both Barrett's and Shuman's are closed on Sundays and close by noon or 1 p.m. on Saturdays. A DUI arrest late Friday night, with the defendant bonding out Saturday afternoon, means the lot is already closed and the car can't be retrieved until Monday morning, by which point three days of storage fees have accrued.

The regulated fees are a $175 base tow, $25 a day for storage, a $65 administrative fee for lien processing, and a $26 notification fee once the required letter goes to the registered owner after two or three days. An after-hours release, if the lot agrees to it, adds $50. Payment is cash or certified funds only; personal checks and credit cards are almost always refused on police impounds.

Release takes proof of ownership by title or registration and a valid driver's license. If the title or registration is locked in the towed car, the lot has to let the owner in to get it at no charge. Since the DUI arrest usually means the license was seized, plan to bring the temporary permit plus a second licensed driver to move the car. If the DUI involved a serious injury, a death, or a repeat felony charge, the car can be held as evidence, and the investigating unit at police headquarters has to release that hold before the lot can hand it over.