Following a report in the Connecticut Mirror and ProPublica that exposed flaws in the state law, the Connecticut General Assembly on Wednesday approved further reforms aimed at regulating towing companies in the state.
The Connecticut Senate has passed a bill that would create an online portal for Connecticut drivers to track their tow trucks and require towing companies to consider the age of tow trucks before selling them.
Last year, the state Legislature overhauled the state’s towing laws, eliminating a practice that allowed towing companies to begin selling people’s cars within as little as 15 days if they determined the car was worth less than $1,500. CT Mirror and ProPublica found the window was one of the shortest in the country, and many people who couldn’t afford to pay for towing right away lost their cars.
The 2025 revised law requires a 30-day grace period before selling a car, requires towing companies to accept credit cards, allow people to retrieve belongings from towed cars and warn owners before towing cars from private property for minor problems.
However, CT Mirror and ProPublica continued to hear from residents who said they did not receive notification that their car was being sold because the address on file was outdated or because the car was still registered to someone else. The news organization also ran an analysis that found that many towing companies value vehicles much lower than estimated retail value, allowing them to sell vehicles more quickly.
The Connecticut Senate sought to address both of these issues in its latest bill, including the creation of a portal. The bill, Senate Bill 413, would place new limits on vehicles that can be sold quickly, allowing towing companies to only sell vehicles that are at least 15 years old and vehicles that are 30 days old.
The new bill passed the Senate 35-1. The House is expected to vote within the next few days.
“There’s a bad guy,” said Sen. Christine Cohen, D-Guilford, co-chair of the Transportation Committee. “We read about this in the press, and that inspired us to take action and really look at the whole towing law.”
He said lawmakers want to find language that strikes the “necessary balance between protecting consumers from predatory practices while also supporting the many reputable small businesses that provide essential services to our communities.”
The bill received bipartisan support. Sen. Tony Huang (R-Fairfield), the committee’s ranking member, urged members to support the bill. He said the bill builds on work done last year, calling it “a remarkable and groundbreaking piece of legislation.”
The measure is due in part to a task force created under last year’s traction reform law that has spent the past several months reviewing traction policy and making recommendations.
A task force made up of towing companies, consumer advocacy groups and Department of Transportation officials struggled to reach agreement on policy changes. DMV Commissioner Tony Guerrera, who chaired the task force, ultimately issued a recommendation that was not supported by all commissioners.
The new bill would create an advisory committee to continue studying towing policies and how owners can get their vehicles back. The city council also plans to monitor a portal set up by the state DMV to allow owners to see where their vehicles have been towed and whether they are for sale.
The bill also addresses towing costs. Towing companies frequently complain that the rates they charge are too low. The bill states that fee rates should be set every three years, and changes should be based on government inflation indicators.
Guerrera said the portal will increase transparency for agents and help consumers find their cars faster.
“We have to take responsibility and take things head on,” Guerrera said. “This portal, which we plan to have up and running as soon as possible, will allow someone to go online and find out where their car is, even if they don’t have all their information.”
But Rafael Podolsky, a consumer advocate who served on the task force, said the portal primarily helps eliminate red tape for towing companies and makes it easier for the DMV to monitor the system. He warned that some drivers may not be able to access the system.
“Number one, not everyone has a computer. Second, not everyone who has a computer will know to access the DMV portal. And third, even if they have a computer, not everyone has access to the Internet,” Podolsky said.
Sal Sena, president of the Towing & Recovery Professionals, a trade group in Connecticut, said he believes the portal will “make life easier for everyone” and that the state is “on the right track.”
