North Carolina Dare CountyImpound

Dare County Vehicle Impound Guide

Impound Cost Calculator

$45/day*

Calculate how much it will cost to retrieve your vehicle from the impound lot in Dare County, North Carolina.

*Estimated fees shown for Dare County. Actual fees may vary.

Arrest Date (Vehicle Towed)

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Planned Pickup Date

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The First 48 Hours

After a DWI arrest in Dare County, your vehicle is likely towed to an impound lot. Storage fees accumulate daily, making time your biggest enemy.

Retrieval Timeline

1
Vehicle Towed
Usually within 30 minutes of your arrest.
2
Lot Notification
Fees and admin processing start immediately upon arrival.
3
Daily Accrual
Fees start at state averages in Dare County.
4
Final Notice
After 30 days, the lot may begin the auction process.

Required Documents

Valid Photo ID (License or State ID)
Vehicle Registration or Title
Current Proof of Insurance
Full Payment (Cash/Credit)
Release Authorization (if not owner)

Owner Not Present?

If the registered owner is in custody, you will need a notarized power of attorney or specific written authorization and a copy of their ID to retrieve the vehicle.

Lot Details & Map

Current storage facility information for Dare County. Verify your vehicle's location before traveling.

Lot Information Pending

Contact Dare County local dispatch for specific towing lot assignments.

Frequently Asked Questions

A DWI arrest on a Friday night during a beach vacation can strand a tourist on the Outer Banks for the entire weekend, car and all. Seto's Towing & Service in Kitty Hawk, one of the dominant providers on the law enforcement rotation list, runs release hours strictly Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM, closed Saturday and Sunday. A vehicle towed Friday evening sits locked up until 8 AM Monday, storage fees compounding the entire time, while the owner has to find and pay for lodging on a barrier island they weren't planning to stay on that long.

Because Dare County doesn't run a single centralized impound lot, the rotation list spreads tows across multiple private companies, and a defendant waking up in the detention center often has no idea where their car ended up. The fastest way to find out is calling the Magistrate's Office inside the Dare County Detention Center at (252) 475-9228; the arresting officer's seizure affidavit names the specific towing company dispatched. Expect a base tow fee of $150 to $250 and daily storage of $30 to $50, figures that state regulation requires rotation companies to file in advance with the District First Sergeant, so prices can't be inflated on the spot once a vehicle is already on the hook.

If the driver wasn't the registered owner, a common situation with a borrowed family vehicle on vacation, that owner has to file an AOC-CR-330A form, the Non-Defendant Owner's Petition for Release of Seized Motor Vehicle, which takes real coordination between someone still in custody and whoever actually holds the title.

The consequences escalate fast for repeat offenders. If the driver was already revoked from a prior DWI when this arrest happened, North Carolina law makes the vehicle subject to permanent forfeiture outright. Failing to show up in court for 60 days or more on an impaired driving charge can trigger a forfeiture hearing even without that prior-revocation factor, and if the seized vehicle was totaled in the crash that led to the arrest, any insurance settlement has to be paid directly to the Clerk of Court and is itself subject to forfeiture.