Sales and Use Tax Letter - 2011 - Letter of Technical Advice

Sep 21, 2026

March 2, 2011 letter of technical advice addresses Florida sales and use tax treatment for towing and storage charges. It explains that separately stated towing charges are not subject to tax, citing Florida law. For storage fees, tax generally applies unless the vehicle is stored following a lawful impoundment by law enforcement or an authorized towing service. The letter also discusses how to evaluate tow receipts and officer comments for exemption documentation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages3

Reading Time1 min

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Towing Charges

Storage Fees

March 2,2011 Mike Seamon,Executive DirectorProfessional Wrecker Operators of Floridamseamon@hotmail.com SENT VIA TUMBLEWEED Re: Letter of Technical Advice 11A-259Towing and Storage ChargesSales and Use TaxSection 212.03(6),F.S.Rule 12A-1.006,F.A.C.Rule 12A-1.073,F.A.C. Dear Mr.Seamon: Pursuant to Rule 12-11.003,F.A.C.,taxpayers may seek informal written technical advice fromthe Department of Revenue (Department).This advice is issued in the form of a Letter ofTechnical Advice (LTA).This LTA is being issued in response to our January 2011 meeting andyour request for informal guidance concerning the matter described below.Please note that thisLTA constitutes the opinion of the writer only and does not represent the official position of theDepartment. You state that a member of your organization received a letter from Lieutenant Solomon E.Heard,Rotation Wrecker Administrator with the Florida Highway Patrol,which indicates that atowing company should not charge sales tax on a tow bill when a member of law enforcementcalls for towing,roadside assistance,or storage.You state that this is different from theinformation the Department provided you regarding this issue in its August 2,2006,letter to you. You ask us to confirm when tax is due on the towing and storage of a motor vehicle in this state.You have provided us with a copy of the letter from Lieutenant Heard and a copy of the 2006letter you received from the Department for our review. # Towing Charges Florida law provides that towing charges are not subject to tax if the charge is separately statedon the customer's invoice.Therefore,we agree with Lieutenant Heard that no tax should becharged for the towing of a vehicle when the towing charge is separately stated on the invoice.Rule 12A-1.006(17),F.A.C. Letter of Technical AdvicePage 2 of 3 # Storage Fees Florida law provides that the storage of motor vehicles in the State of Florida is subject to tax,unless specifically exempt by Chapter 212,Florida Statutes.Section 212.03(6),F.S.Thus,it isour position that when a towing company tows a vehicle and stores the vehicle on its lot,thetowing company has granted a right to occupy its space for storage which is subject to tax.However,Rule 12A-1.073,F.A.C.,provides that the storage of motor vehicles occurring from alawful impoundment by a local,state,or federal law enforcement agency or an authorized towingservice is not subject to tax. The Department has also interpreted the term“authorized towing service”to mean any companythat a law enforcement agency contacts or contracts with to provide towing of vehicles that areimpounded by the law enforcement agency.The term "lawful impoundment by law enforcement"includes those situations where the owner of the vehicle involuntarily surrendered its vehicle tolaw enforcement;inclusive of those instances when the driver and/or owner is incapacitated.Thevehicle owner cannot be in a posture to control by directive to the officer where and by whom thevehicle is towed and stored.For example,when a law enforcement agency contacts a towingcompany to tow a vehicle because the owner does not know who to call for a tow,or the ownerof the vehicle asks law enforcement to call a towing company for him or her;these are not lawfulimpoundments by a law enforcement agency or authorized towing service.The storage feescharged associated with these tows would be subject to sales tax. Accordingly,we disagree with Lieutenant Heard's assertion that no tax should be charged on anyvehicle tow bills "arising out of any law enforcement calls"for storing(separately stated towingcharges still remain nontaxable)a vehicle in this state.It is the Department's position that taxshould be charged on the storage fees for those law enforcement calls where the vehicle ownerdoes have direction or control over the towing or storage of its vehicle. You have provided a copy of a Florida Highway Patrol Vehicle Tow Receipt and have asked usto review the tow re

FAQs

When are Florida towing charges not subject to sales tax?

When towing charges are separately stated on the customer’s invoice, the towing portion is not subject to tax.

Are storage fees for motor vehicles always taxable in Florida?

Storage of motor vehicles is generally subject to tax unless a specific statutory exemption applies.

What determines whether storage is exempt as a lawful impoundment?

Exemption depends on whether the storage resulted from a lawful impoundment by law enforcement or an authorized towing service, and the documentation must distinguish taxable storage from lawful impoundments.

Sep 21, 2026

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