A tow is the highest-severity enforcement action your patrol vendor can take: it removes a vehicle from your property. This article covers the background you need before a tow ever happens — how tows are authorized, what ParkingPass records when one occurs, and the patterns in your tow history that point to a fixable process problem.
This is part of a three-part set. For what to do in the hours and days after a tow, see Handling a Tow: The First Hour, the Call, and Follow-Up. For handling a tow a resident or guest challenges, see Tow Disputes and Wrongful Tows. For Colorado-specific authorization, see Colorado Real-Time Tow Authorization.
Where Tows Fit in the Enforcement Ladder
ParkingPass supports four enforcement action types:
Warning — Lowest severity. Notice that a rule was broken; no further action.
Citation — A formal violation, typically with a fee.
Boot — The vehicle is immobilized in place until the resident contacts the patrol vendor.
Tow — The vehicle is removed from the property.
Your patrol vendor decides which action to take based on the violation type, the vehicle's history, your property's parking policy, and any escalation rules your vendor follows. A tow is usually the result of a vehicle that's been warned or cited before, a vehicle that's blocking a fire lane or accessibility space, or an unregistered vehicle on a property with strict enforcement.
How a Tow Is Authorized
The authorization path depends on where your property is located.
Standard properties (most states)
Your patrol vendor, working within the parking policy you've approved, makes the call to tow when a violation meets your property's tow criteria. ParkingPass logs the action; you don't need to approve it in real time.
Colorado properties
Colorado law requires real-time authorization before a tow occurs. The patrol vendor submits a request through ParkingPass, an authorized representative at your property approves or denies in real time, and the tow only proceeds on approval. See Colorado Real-Time Tow Authorization for the full workflow.
Assigned Parking Tow Requests
If your property uses Assigned Parking and a resident finds an unauthorized vehicle in their spot, they can request a tow directly from their resident portal. The vendor still confirms the request before the tow occurs. See Assigned Parking Tow Requests.
What Gets Recorded
When a tow occurs, the patrol vendor creates a violation record in ParkingPass with:
Ticket # — a unique identifier for the violation.
License plate and vehicle details (year, make, model, color).
Violation reason — the rule that was broken (e.g., "Expired Guest Vehicle", "Non-Resident/Unregistered Vehicle", "Backing into Parking Space" if your property prohibits it, "Inoperable Vehicle (Flat tire, etc.)").
Final Action — flagged as Tow.
Date and time of the action.
Patroller — the individual or team member who took the action.
Photos, where the vendor captured them.
Status — typically Active when the record is created.
You can find this record in the Violations Report (Reports → Patrol → Violations) by filtering Violation Type to Tow.
Patterns That Suggest a Process Problem
One bad tow is a normal day. Repeating patterns are a process issue. Watch for:
Multiple tows of the same vehicle — usually means the resident isn't getting the message, or there's an authorization issue (expired permit, lapsed guest pass) that should have been caught earlier.
Multiple tows at the same location — signage or zoning may need attention. See Using Patrol Analytics to Improve Your Parking Program for how to spot hotspots.
Tows on residents who registered correctly — a configuration issue between your resident records and how patrol sees authorization. Worth a call to ParkingPass support.
Tows happening right after DNT expirations — your DNT review cadence is too long. See Managing the Do-Not-Tow (DNT) List and Permit Types Explained for review guidance.
A sudden spike in tows — check whether the patrol vendor changed something on their end (a new patroller, a new escalation rule), or whether your property had a recent event (move-in season, weather event, new amenity opening).
Working With Your Tow / Patrol Vendor
Your patrol vendor is the operational owner of every tow at your property. A healthy working relationship makes everything about tows easier.
Know who to call after hours. Tows happen at every hour. Confirm your vendor's after-hours contact and keep it accessible.
Establish a regular review cadence. Monthly or quarterly, sit down with your vendor and walk through the most-significant enforcement actions. The Patrol Analytics report makes this easy.
Share your dispute outcomes with your vendor. If a tow is overturned because of a vendor judgment call, your vendor needs to know so the same mistake doesn't happen again.
Confirm tow signage compliance. Most jurisdictions have specific signage requirements (size, visibility, language, contact info). Your vendor or your local counsel can confirm what your property needs.
Common Questions
Does ParkingPass tow the vehicle?
No. ParkingPass logs the enforcement action; the actual towing is performed by the patrol vendor or their contracted tow operator. Recovery and recovery fees are handled by the tow vendor directly.
How long do tow records stay in the system?
Tow records remain in the Violations Report indefinitely. They may be archived from the default view but can be re-included using the "Exclude Archived" filter.
Can I see how many tows my property has had this month?
Yes. Open Reports → Patrol → Violations, filter Violation Type to Tow, and set the date range. The Patrol Analytics report also includes tows in its enforcement trends.
Important Notes
Tows are the most visible enforcement action your property takes. They generate strong reactions, so handling them calmly and consistently is what makes the program defensible.
Patterns of repeated tows usually point to a fixable underlying cause (signage, expired DNT, communication gap). Patrol Analytics is the fastest way to spot those patterns.