Tennessee Grainger CountyImpound

Grainger County Vehicle Impound Guide

Impound Cost Calculator

$45/day*

Calculate how much it will cost to retrieve your vehicle from the impound lot in Grainger County, Tennessee.

*Estimated fees shown for Grainger 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 DUI arrest in Grainger 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 Grainger 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 Grainger County. Verify your vehicle's location before traveling.

Lot Information Pending

Contact Grainger County local dispatch for specific towing lot assignments.

Frequently Asked Questions

Grainger County has no centralized impound lot, only a private rotation. Phifer's Auto Service & Towing out of Washburn handles a large share of DUI-related tows, servicing Rutledge, Blaine, and Bean Station, with Casper's Wrecker out of Greeneville and Malone's Wrecker Service covering other zones depending on exactly where the arrest happened. Don't assume the geographically nearest lot has the car; request the tow slip or booking intake paperwork at the Detention Facility to confirm which operator actually took possession.

Mileage is the real cost driver here. A standard local tow under 5 miles runs $75 to $140, but mileage charges of $3 to $6 per mile stack fast if the vehicle gets hauled from Rutledge out to a lot near the county's edge, across a roughly 300-square-mile rural jurisdiction. Retrieve the vehicle quickly to limit that exposure. Storage runs $55 a day for standard outdoor spots, up to $80 for indoor or oversized vehicles, and plenty of rural operators start billing a new day the instant midnight passes, regardless of how many actual hours the car's been there. Arriving by 4:30 p.m. rather than 5:15 can save an entire unnecessary day of storage.

These lots run real daytime hours, typically 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a lunch closure around noon to 1 p.m., even though the towing operation itself runs 24/7. An after-hours or weekend release carries a gate fee around $45, and it applies per visit, so showing up without the right documentation and having to return means paying it twice.

Demand a fully itemized receipt before handing over any payment. Rural operators sometimes stack vague "administrative," "lienholder processing," or surcharge fees of $35 to $100 on top of the base tow and storage charges, and refusing to pay a lump sum without a clear breakdown is a reasonable, often effective pushback. Only the registered owner can retrieve the vehicle with valid ID; if that person is incarcerated, the lot may require a notarized authorization letter executed at the jail, or the owner simply has to wait until they're bailed out.

If the tow itself seems improper, a request to contest it generally has to be filed within 10 to 14 days with the Grainger County General Sessions Court at 270 Justice Center Drive.