Florida Statutes 
713.78 Liens for recovering, towing, or storing vehicles and vessels.
(1) For the purposes of this section, the term:
(a) "Vehicle" means any mobile item, whether motorized or not, which is mounted on wheels.
(b) "Vessel" means every description of watercraft, barge, and air boat used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water, other than a seaplane or a "documented vessel" as defined in S. 327.02(8).
(c) "Wrecker" means any truck or other vehicle which is used to tow, carry, or otherwise transport motor vehicles or vessels upon the streets and highways of this state and which is equipped for that purpose with a boom, winch, car carrier, or other similar equipment.
(2) Whenever a person regularly engaged in the business of transporting vehicles or vessels by wrecker, tow truck, or car carrier recovers, removes, or stores a vehicle, vessel, or mobile home upon instructions from:
(a) The owner thereof; or
(b) The owner or lessor, or a person authorized by the owner or lessor, of property on which such vehicle is wrongfully parked, and such removal is done in compliance with S. 715.07; or
(c) Any law enforcement agency; or
(d) A mobile home park owner as defined in S. 723.003 who has a current writ of possession for a mobile home lot pursuant to S. 723.061,
she or he shall have a lien on such vehicle or vessel for a reasonable towing fee and for a reasonable storage fee; except that no storage fee shall be charged if such vehicle is stored for less than 6 hours.
(3) This section does not authorize any person to claim a lien on a vehicle for fees or charges connected with the immobilization of such vehicle using a vehicle boot or other similar device pursuant to S. 715.07.
(4)(a) Any person regularly engaged in the business of recovering, towing, or storing vehicles or vessels who comes into possession of a vehicle or vessel pursuant to subsection (2), and who claims a lien for recovery, towing, or storage services, shall give notice to the registered owner, the insurance company insuring the vehicle notwithstanding the provisions of S. 627.736, and to all persons claiming a lien thereon, as disclosed by the records in the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles or of a corresponding agency in any other state.
(b) Whenever any law enforcement agency authorizes the removal of a vehicle or whenever any towing service, garage, repair shop, or automotive service, storage, or parking place notifies the law enforcement agency of possession of a vehicle pursuant to S. 715.07(2)(a)2., the applicable law enforcement agency shall contact the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, or the appropriate agency of the state of registration, if known, within 24 hours through the medium of electronic communications, giving the full description of the vehicle. Upon receipt of the full description of the vehicle, the department shall search its files to determine the owner's name, the insurance company insuring the vehicle, and whether any person has filed a lien upon the vehicle as provided in S. 319.27(2) and (3) and notify the applicable law enforcement agency within 72 hours. The person in charge of the towing service, garage, repair shop, or automotive service, storage, or parking place shall obtain such information from the applicable law enforcement agency within 5 days from the date of storage and shall give notice pursuant to paragraph (a). The department may release the insurance company information to the requestor notwithstanding the provisions of S. 627.736.
(c) Notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, shall be sent within 7 business days after the date of storage of the vehicle or vessel to the registered owner, the insurance company insuring the vehicle notwithstanding the provisions of S. 627.736, and all persons of record claiming a lien against the vehicle or vessel. It shall state the fact of possession of the vehicle or vessel, that a lien as provided in subsection (2) is claimed, that charges have accrued and the amount thereof, that the lien is subject to enforcement pursuant to law, and that the owner or lien-holder, if any, has the right to a hearing as set forth in subsection (5), and that any vehicle or vessel which remains unclaimed, or for which the charges for recovery, towing, or storage services remain unpaid, may be sold free of all prior liens after 35 days if the vehicle or vessel is more than 3 years of age or after 50 days if the vehicle or vessel is 3 years of age or less.
(d) If attempts to locate the owner or lien-holder prove unsuccessful, the towing-storage operator shall, after 7 working days, excluding Saturday and Sunday, of the initial tow or storage, notify the public agency of jurisdiction in writing by certified mail or acknowledged hand delivery that the towing-storage company has been unable to locate the owner or lien-holder and a physical search of the vehicle or vessel has disclosed no ownership information and a good faith effort has been made. For purposes of this paragraph and subsection (9), "good faith effort" means that the following checks have been performed by the company to establish prior state of registration and for title:
1. Check of vehicle or vessel for any type of tag, tag record, temporary tag, or regular tag.
2. Check of law enforcement report for tag number or other information identifying the vehicle or vessel, if the vehicle or vessel was towed at the request of a law enforcement officer.
3. Check of trip sheet or tow ticket of tow truck operator to see if a tag was on vehicle at beginning of tow, if private tow.
4. If there is no address of the owner on the impound report, check of law enforcement report to see if an out-of-state address is indicated from driver license information.
5. Check of vehicle or vessel for inspection sticker or other stickers and decals that may indicate a state of possible registration.
6. Check of the interior of the vehicle or vessel for any papers that may be in the glove box, trunk, or other areas for a state of registration.
7. Check of vehicle for vehicle identification number.
8. Check of vessel for vessel registration number.
9. Check of vessel hull for a hull identification number which should be carved, burned, stamped, embossed, or otherwise permanently affixed to the outboard side of the transom or, if there is no transom, to the outmost seaboard side at the end of the hull that bears the rudder or other steering mechanism.
(5)(a) The owner of a vehicle or vessel removed pursuant to the provisions of subsection (2), or any person claiming a lien, other than the towing-storage operator, within 10 days after the time she or he has knowledge of the location of the vehicle or vessel, may file a complaint in the county court of the county in which the vehicle or vessel is stored or in which the owner resides to determine if her or his property was wrongfully taken or withheld from her or him.
(b) Upon filing of a complaint, an owner or lien-holder may have her or his vehicle or vessel released upon posting with the court a cash or surety bond or other adequate security equal to the amount of the charges for towing or storage and lot rental amount to ensure the payment of such charges in the event she or he does not prevail. Upon the posting of the bond and the payment of the applicable fee set forth in S. 28.24, the clerk of the court shall issue a certificate notifying the lienor of the posting of the bond and directing the lienor to release the vehicle or vessel. At the time of such release, after reasonable inspection, she or he shall give a receipt to the towing-storage company reciting any claims she or he has for loss or damage to the vehicle or vessel or the contents thereof.
(c) Upon determining the resp