Vehicle impoundment
To help keep our roads safe, police have the authority to take a vehicle off the road and impound it in a storage lot.
Reasons your vehicle can be impounded
impaired driving
driving while unlicensed or improperly licensed
driving while suspended or prohibited
excessive speeding (40km/hr or more over the posted limit)
street racing or performing a stunt
improperly seated on a motorcycle
Getting your vehicle back
How you get your vehicle back depends on the length of its impoundment.
Three-day and seven-day impoundments
For three-day and seven-day impoundments you may go directly to the impoundment lot. You also need to pay towing and storage fees to the impoundment lot.
Longer than seven days
For impoundments longer than seven days, you will need to go to a
driver licensing office with
required ID and your Notice of Impoundment. You can then collect your vehicle. You need to also pay towing and storage fees at the impoundment lot.
If our offices are closed when your impoundment ends
For impoundments more than seven days that end on a holiday or weekend when our driver licensing offices are closed, you can complete your Request for Vehicle Release form on the last business day before the closure.
Appealing a vehicle impoundment
ICBC administers the filing of appeals on behalf of RoadSafetyBC for vehicle impoundments that are 30 days or longer.
To file an appeal for impoundments 30 days or longer, go to any driver licensing office. Be sure to bring your Notice of Impoundment with you.
No appeals for impaired driving
You cannot appeal a three-day or a seven-day impoundment for impaired driving.
If you can't collect your vehicle
You can authorize someone else to pick it up at the impoundment lot on your behalf. First, go to an ICBC driver licensing office to complete an Owner's Authorization form. The person collecting your vehicle must then follow the steps above and present the form at the driver licensing office.