# Hawaii — How long before a car left on your property or towed from it can legally be sold — by US state

For Hawaii, time to count as abandoned on private property is any vehicle left unattended on private or public property without authorization of the owner or occupant of the property, may be towed away; owner notice process is legal owner and last registered owner notified in writing by registered or certified mail within a reasonable period not to exceed fifteen days following the tow; minimum time before sale/disposal is thirty days after the mailing of the notice; statutory citation is HRS § 290-11, verified against its source on 2026-08-18.

- **State:** Hawaii _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Time to count as abandoned on private property:** any vehicle left unattended on private or public property without authorization of the owner or occupant of the property, may be towed away _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Owner notice process:** legal owner and last registered owner notified in writing by registered or certified mail within a reasonable period not to exceed fifteen days following the tow _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Minimum time before sale/disposal:** thirty days after the mailing of the notice _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Statutory citation:** HRS § 290-11 _(verified: appears in the quote below)_

## What the source says

> legal owner and the last registered owner of the vehicle from the department of transportation or the county department of finance. The legal owner and the last registered owner shall be notified in writing at the address on record with the department of transportation or with the county department of finance by registered or certified mail of the location of the vehicle, together with a description of the vehicle, within a reasonable period not to exceed fifteen days following the tow. The notice shall state: (A) The maximum towing charges and fees allowed by law; (B) The telephone number of the consumer information service of the department of commerce and consumer affairs; and (C) That if the vehicle is not recovered within thirty days after the mailing of the notice, the vehicle shall be deemed abandoned and will be sold or disposed of as junk.

## Source

- https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol05_Ch0261-0319/HRS0290/HRS_0290-0011.htm

Last verified: 2026-08-18. Review by: 2027-08-18.
Part of [How long before a car left on your property or towed from it can legally be sold — by US state](https://referencesource.org/abandoned-vehicle-private-property-timelines-by-state/).