Philadelphia reaches settlement in "courtesy tow" lawsuit, awaiting judge approval
It's a huge update, years in the making, for anyone who parks a car in the city of Philadelphia. The city could soon be overhauling its courtesy tow system after settling a lawsuit.
The settlement states the city will create relocation tracking technology that would be available on a public website, provide more notice prior to relocation tows and require stickers to be placed on cars so parking authority agents won't ticket a car if it's courtesy towed to an illegal spot.
How did we get here?
Picture this: you park your car in a legal spot, but when you come back, it's gone. You might think it was stolen, but in Philadelphia, there's a chance it was "courtesy towed."
A courtesy tow, also known as a relocation tow, is when a parked car gets legally moved because of temporary parking restrictions to make way for utility work or a special event, among other things. Police, the Philadelphia Parking Authority or a private tow company could be behind the tow.
The police district is supposed to have a record of the location of relocated cars, but that doesn't always happen, leaving drivers and police searching.
That's what happened to Jacquie Martin in January. Last month, she came out of the Eagles' playoff game with her son to find her car was gone. She thought it was stolen, but the next day, she says police told her it was courtesy-towed.
"I get it. I was parked in the wrong spot, but keep track of where you're going to courtesy tow a car. Let people know where it's going to be," Martin said.
Martin said she went to the police district that was supposed to have a record of her car, but they didn't. Instead, a police officer drove her around the city as she held her car clicker out the window, trying to locate the car.
"It was really frustrating," she said.
Martin eventually reported the car as stolen and went a month without a car before having to get a new one, and a new loan she wasn't planning on.
Similar frustrations have been felt across Philadelphia for years. In 2021, a lawsuit was filed against the city for its courtesy tow practices. Now, there's a settlement and a promise from the city to use "reasonable best efforts" to keep track of cars that have been courtesy towed.
What's next?
The city told CBS News Philadelphia, "While the litigation has been settled, we remain at work finalizing all of the process changes that will follow. The City will provide additional information in the near future about the changes that are occurring."
Martin was not part of the lawsuit. According to the agreement filed on Feb. 19, 2026, the city will pay $750,000 to 36 courtesy tow victims behind the suit.
A federal judge still has to sign off on the settlement to make it official.
