Upshur County Vehicle Impound Guide

The Gilmer impound lot closes at 5 p.m. on weekdays and stays shut all weekend, which means a DWI arrest on a Friday night comes close to guaranteeing three straight days of storage fees before anyone can legally retrieve the car. The workaround exists but has a cost: Texas rules require a facility that isn't open 24 hours to release a vehicle within an hour of a request made any time between 8 a.m. and midnight, Monday through Saturday. Invoking that right on a Friday night triggers an after-hours gate fee, so it's worth doing the math on whether that fee actually beats three days of accumulating storage charges before pushing for it.

Finding the car

Most tows in the area go to the primary rotation facility on Walker Street in Gilmer, though a rural county-wide rotation means a vehicle could also land with a secondary provider depending on where the arrest happened. Calling the Sheriff's Office non-emergency dispatch line with the license plate or VIN is the fastest way to get a definitive lot assignment.

The two traps everyone hits

The first is the "daily cutoff" miscalculation: storage bills by the calendar day, but state rules carve out an exception if the car is on the lot less than 12 hours even across midnight — impounded at 10 p.m. Friday, retrieved by 8 a.m. Saturday, and the facility can only legally charge for one day, not two. Lots get this wrong more often than they should, so it's worth documenting the exact tow time and checking the math before paying. The second is the insurance fallacy: a lot demanding proof of active insurance before releasing a car is simply wrong. State law explicitly bars that requirement — all that's needed is a valid photo ID and an instrument of release like a registration or title.

Only the owner gets the car back

If the arrested driver wasn't the registered owner, the actual owner has to show up in person, or send someone with a properly notarized power of attorney specifically authorizing that release. Having the keys isn't enough — a facility won't release the vehicle to a non-owner on that basis alone.

What it costs

State caps run $272 for the tow and $22.85 a day for storage on a vehicle under 25 feet (more for anything longer), plus a $50 notification fee if formal notices go out by mail. Cash and all major cards are accepted; a lot refusing electronic payment is out of compliance with state rules.

Challenging the tow

Anyone who believes the tow lacked probable cause, or that the fees ran over the state cap, has 14 days to request a hearing at the Justice of the Peace court in the precinct where the vehicle was towed. Filing runs roughly $40 to $50.