Every day your car sits at a tow yard, storage fees add up. Eventually, the yard reaches the end of the notification window and the vehicle goes to auction. The exact timeline depends on whose tow it was: the city of San Antonio or Bexar County, since each follows its own clock. Here’s what actually happens to an unclaimed vehicle in each case, and what to do if you want to stop the clock before the auction date.

What happens at the San Antonio city lot

The City of San Antonio Vehicle Impound Facility sits at 3625 Growdon Road, and it’s operated under contract with the San Antonio Police Department. If your car ends up there, the facility holds it through a notification period and then makes it auction-eligible.

The published rule: an unclaimed vehicle becomes auction-eligible 30 days after owner notification. That notification is supposed to go out before the auction process starts, and the clock runs from when the facility sends it, not from when your car was towed. After that 30-day window, the facility can dispose of the vehicle through the city’s contracted auction process. You can still claim the car during the notification window by following the standard release process, paying the tow and storage fees, and providing proof of ownership.

Storage charges keep adding up while the car sits, and both the city and state caps limit how the yard can bill those days. San Antonio’s ordinance caps daily storage at $21.03 plus tax for standard vehicles and $36.80 for vehicles 25 feet or longer. State rule caps storage at five days unless the owner was properly notified, so the yard’s ability to charge for longer storage depends on whether you were notified about the vehicle being there.

What happens with a Bexar County tow

If your vehicle was towed by the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, it goes to a different yard. BCSO tows go to contractor Texas Towing at 422 Steves Avenue, San Antonio, TX 78204, reachable at (210) 220-1000. BCSO follows the state abandoned-vehicle standard, which generally considers a vehicle abandoned after 48 hours on public property or on private property without consent, or 24 hours on a turnpike right-of-way, or 48 hours if the vehicle is inoperable and more than five years old.

The county path is shorter than the city path because the abandoned-vehicle clock starts from when the vehicle was left, not from when the tow happened. Once BCSO has the vehicle, the notification and auction timeline can move faster than the 30-day city window, which is another reason to claim the vehicle as soon as you can.

Why this matters beyond storage fees

Once a vehicle goes to auction, recovering it becomes much harder. The city or county has disposed of the vehicle to a third party, and your ability to get it back depends on whether the new owner wants to release it, which they generally don’t have to do. The auction sale proceeds typically don’t get returned to the previous owner, since the tow and storage fees, plus auction costs, eat up the value of most older vehicles before any surplus would land.

The financial exposure goes beyond the auction itself. An unpaid tow and storage balance can be sent to collections, and an unclaimed vehicle can still carry its own downstream costs, like continued registration fees or insurance charges on a car you can no longer drive. The cleanest outcome is always to claim the vehicle before the auction date, even if it means borrowing from family or putting the fees on a card to buy time.

How to claim the car before it goes to auction

For the city lot at 3625 Growdon Road, bring your certificate of title or other satisfactory proof of ownership, your photo ID, and payment for the tow and storage fees owed. The release process is set by San Antonio City Code § 19-54. If a representative is picking the car up on your behalf, they need the title plus a notarized owner authorization, and you’ll sign an indemnification agreement at pickup.

For the BCSO yard at Texas Towing, the process is similar but with the county’s contractor handling the release paperwork. Call (210) 220-1000 before you go to confirm what they need, what fees are outstanding, and what hours the yard is open. Some operators keep shorter public hours than the city lot.

How to find out where your car was towed

If you don’t know whether your car was towed by SAPD or BCSO, start with the search portal at search.autoreturn.com, which lists vehicles currently at the city lot. If your car isn’t there, the BCSO non-emergency line or the Texas Towing yard at (210) 220-1000 can confirm whether it’s at the county contractor’s site.

The SAPD non-emergency line at (210) 207-7273 can also help confirm which agency actually towed your vehicle, and from there, which yard it’s sitting at. Don’t wait to make that call. Every day you delay is another day of storage fees and another day closer to the auction date.

What if you can’t afford the fees

Talk to the yard before the auction date, not after. Some yards will work out a payment plan, especially if the balance is storage-heavy and the auction date hasn’t hit. Others will let you retrieve personal items from the vehicle without paying the full tow and storage bill, which matters if you need to recover a child seat, work tools, or prescriptions before the car itself goes to auction.

If the vehicle isn’t worth what you owe, consider signing it over to the yard instead of paying to claim it. A signed-over title ends the storage clock and the auction process, and you walk away without the balance. The yard then handles the title transfer and the eventual sale. That’s a real outcome for an older vehicle with a high storage tab, and it’s worth considering before you put the fees on a card to delay the inevitable.

For the full release process at the city lot, see how to get a car out of impound in San Antonio. For finding a towed vehicle in the first place, read where is my towed car in San Antonio.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a tow yard keep your car before auction in San Antonio? The City of San Antonio Vehicle Impound Facility makes unclaimed vehicles auction-eligible 30 days after owner notification.

What if my car was towed by the Bexar County Sheriff? BCSO tows go to Texas Towing at 422 Steves Avenue, (210) 220-1000. The county follows the state abandoned-vehicle standard, and the timeline can be shorter than the city path.

Can I get my car back after it goes to auction? Once the vehicle has been sold at auction, recovering it depends on whether the new owner agrees to release it, which they generally don’t have to do. The cleanest path is to claim the vehicle before the auction date.

Do I have to be notified before my car goes to auction? Yes. The 30-day auction clock at the city lot starts from owner notification, not from the date of the tow. The yard is supposed to send notification before the auction process begins.

What happens to the auction money? The proceeds typically go to the tow and storage fees, plus auction costs. Most older vehicles don’t generate a surplus that would return to the previous owner.

Can I sign my car over to the yard instead of paying? Yes. Signing the title over to the yard ends the storage clock and the auction process, and you walk away without the balance. Talk to the yard about the paperwork before the auction date.