Vehicle Laws - Towed, Removed, or Abandoned Vehicles - Electronic Notice to Owner
Summary
SB40 updates Maryland’s vehicle towing and abandoned-vehicle notice laws to allow electronic notice in limited circumstances. For vehicles towed or removed from parking lots, a tower may use the Motor Vehicle Administration to send notice electronically to the owner using the email address on file, but only if the owner does not respond within 7 days must the tower also send the traditional certified and first-class mail notice. The bill also allows electronic notice to insurers or secured parties if they agree in writing or by electronic communication. Similar electronic notice procedures are added for police departments that take abandoned vehicles into custody and notify the last known registered owner through the Administration.
The bill also requires the Motor Vehicle Administration to adopt regulations for electronic notification and to maintain a database of insurer notice addresses, which must be made available to towers free of charge. Existing notice, storage, towing, and reclamation provisions remain in place, including deadlines for police notification, owner redemption rights, and fallback posting in circuit court when notice cannot be delivered or acknowledged. The act takes effect October 1, 2025.
Impact
SB40 amends Transportation Article §§ 21-10A-04, 25-204, and 25-205 to add electronic notice options for tow operators and police departments while preserving existing mailed-notice requirements as a backup. It affects vehicle owners, towing businesses, insurers, secured parties, police departments, and the Motor Vehicle Administration by creating a new electronic-notice workflow tied to MVA records and by requiring MVA regulations and an insurer-address database. The bill does not eliminate traditional notice methods; instead, it supplements them and updates the procedures for abandoned and towed vehicles statewide.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the Senate 45-0 and the House 136-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. The absence of committee transcript discussion suggests there was little recorded debate or opposition, and the final enactment reflects a consensus around modernizing notice procedures.
Contention
No major points of contention are evident in the available record. The main policy issue is the shift to electronic notice, which could raise concerns about reliability, access to email, and whether owners actually receive notice; however, the bill addresses that by requiring follow-up mailed notice if the owner does not respond within seven days. Another practical issue is administrative implementation by the MVA, including regulation-writing and maintaining the insurer database, but no specific opposition from any stakeholder is reflected in the votes or transcripts.