If you’re asking what time do tow yards open, Richmond has no single opening time. Each company sets its own release hours, and those hours may differ from its towing availability. Call the company holding your vehicle before leaving home.
A yard may tow vehicles at night without releasing them then. Quick Tow Richmond’s recorded line also takes calls around the clock, but that doesn’t control another company’s impound hours.
Identify which company has the vehicle
Start by finding the company that actually holds your car. Don’t drive to a familiar tow yard based only on where the car disappeared.
For a City of Richmond tow, check the city’s Towed Vehicles lookup. The listing may show the vehicle’s make, model, color, partial VIN, partial plate, tow time, and lot address. Richmond keeps vehicles in that listing for 14 days after the tow.
Richmond doesn’t operate a municipal impound yard. Its police-directed towing contractor is Seibert’s Towing, which operates a secured lot on Southside Plaza Drive. Still, confirm the listing before traveling. A vehicle removed from an apartment complex, shopping center, or other private property may be held by a different company.
Our guide to finding your towed car in Richmond explains how to narrow the search. Check the signs at the property too. Virginia requires private-property towing signs at every entrance. Those signs must provide contact information for local law enforcement or the responsible towing operator.
Have your plate number and VIN ready when calling. Ask the company to confirm that it has the vehicle, where the vehicle is stored, and whether any hold affects its release.
Confirm what time do tow yards open for releases
Ask for the lot’s current vehicle-release hours, not its towing hours. Those are separate schedules. A company may receive towing requests throughout the night while handling releases during a narrower window.
No verified, citywide opening time applies to every Richmond tow yard. Current release hours for individual yards couldn’t be confirmed from the approved sources. The company holding the vehicle sets its schedule, so call that company directly.
Use a short checklist:
- Is the release office open today?
- What is the final check-in time?
- Can the vehicle be released after hours?
- Is an appointment required?
- Is payment handled at the storage lot or elsewhere?
- Will a hold prevent release today?
Repeat the lot address before ending the call. This matters across Metro Richmond. A tow from the Fan, Shockoe Bottom, or Southside may not lead to the same storage location. Chesterfield County also uses approved towing companies on a rotation instead of one centralized county lot.
Don’t treat “open 24 hours” as proof that releases happen all night. Confirm that someone can process the vehicle release when you arrive. Ask again on weekends or holidays, since schedules can change.
Ask what ownership proof is accepted
Before driving to the lot, ask exactly what proof the company will accept. The approved sources don’t establish one universal document list for every Richmond release. Don’t assume that a driver’s license alone will be enough.
Tell the company whether you’re the registered owner, an authorized driver, an insurer, or someone helping the owner. Then ask what documents apply to that situation. If the registration or insurance information is locked inside the vehicle, explain that before traveling.
Virginia law gives an owner access to personal items after showing proof of ownership. That right doesn’t automatically answer which documents a particular yard needs before releasing the entire vehicle. Vehicle release can involve separate ownership, payment, and hold checks.
Ask whether digital documents are accepted or whether originals are required. If the vehicle has a lien, rental agreement, company registration, or another ownership complication, mention it during the call. Get the name of each requested document and write it down.
If someone else will collect the car, ask what authorization the yard requires. That detail couldn’t be confirmed as a single statewide rule. The yard holding the vehicle should explain its current process before you make the trip.
Confirm payment and release conditions
Ask for an itemized total before arriving. Confirm which charges apply, when storage began, and whether the amount may change before pickup. For more detail, read our guide to Richmond towing rights.
Virginia operators must accept cash, an insurance-company check, a certified check, a money order, or an accepted nationally recognized credit card. Richmond also requires an itemized receipt for a covered private-property tow.
The legal limits depend on the tow’s circumstances. Richmond caps the hookup fee at $195 for a nonconsensual private-property tow involving a vehicle under 10,000 pounds. Storage is capped at $50 per 24-hour period, with no storage fee for the first 24 hours. Storage also can’t accrue during a period when recovery was prevented because the towing business was closed.
Richmond permits an after-hours release fee of up to $35 between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. for those covered private-property tows. That figure is a ceiling, not a guaranteed charge. Ask the yard whether it applies to your release.
A company can’t refuse release after the owner tenders an approved form of payment. If it does, further storage charges are suspended. The Code of Virginia towing chapter explains the statewide rules.
Plan separately for belongings and vehicle release
Getting personal property isn’t the same as releasing the vehicle. If you only need medicine, work equipment, house keys, or a child safety seat, say that clearly when calling.
Virginia law allows the owner to access and recover personal items after showing proof of ownership. The operator can’t require the owner to retrieve the entire vehicle or charge a fee for the belongings visit. The lien on the vehicle doesn’t extend to personal property that isn’t attached to the vehicle or needed for its operation.
State law doesn’t set universal hours for accessing those belongings. Ask the yard when access is available and whether staff must escort you. Our article about personal belongings at a Virginia tow yard covers that right in more detail.
If the vehicle is approaching an auction, timing matters. Virginia’s lien rules require personal property to be claimed and retrieved at least two business days before the auction date. That deadline applies to the pre-auction situation, not every newly towed vehicle.
Don’t remove installed parts or equipment needed to operate the car. Ask the yard before touching anything attached. Keep the belongings visit separate from any dispute about the tow or payment.
Frequently asked questions
Can a tow yard charge storage while it’s closed?
For a covered nonconsensual private-property tow in Richmond, storage can’t be charged for a period when the yard’s closure prevented recovery. No storage fee applies during the first 24 hours either. Ask for an itemized receipt and compare the billed periods with the yard’s release availability.
Does 24-hour towing mean 24-hour vehicle release?
No. Towing availability and impound release hours aren’t the same thing. Always confirm that the office can process your release at the time you plan to arrive.
Can Quick Tow Richmond release my vehicle?
No. Quick Tow Richmond is a referral service that connects drivers with independent operators. It doesn’t own an impound lot, hold vehicles, set another yard’s hours, or control releases. If you need a requested private-property tow, we can help connect you with an operator.
When to call us
Call when you need a licensed towing pro for a vehicle you control, rather than an impound release. Our recorded line takes calls day or night and connects drivers with independent operators. Call us at (804) 701-6752.