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

For Tennessee, time to count as abandoned on private property is more than forty-eight (48) hours; statutory citation is Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-16-103, verified against its source on 2026-08-18.

- **State:** Tennessee _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Time to count as abandoned on private property:** more than forty-eight (48) hours _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Statutory citation:** Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-16-103 _(verified: appears in the quote below)_

## What the source says

> Tennessee / <https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-55-motor-and-other-vehicles/> Title 55. Motor and Other Vehicles / § 55-16-103 Tennessee Code Title 55. Motor and Other Vehicles § 55-16-103 Current as of January 02, 2024 | Updated by <https://www.findlaw.com/company/our-team.html> Findlaw Staff As used in this section and <https://1.next.westlaw.com/Link/Document/FullText?findType=L&originatingContext=document&transitionType=DocumentItem&pubNum=1000039&refType=LQ&originatingDoc=Ibccb7bd034e511ec836cbe43105259ed&cite=TNSTS55-16-104> §§ 55-16-104 -- <https://1.next.westlaw.com/Link/Document/FullText?findType=L&originatingContext=document&transitionType=DocumentItem&pubNum=1000039&refType=LQ&originatingDoc=Ibccb7bd134e511ec836cbe43105259ed&cite=TNSTS55-16-109> 55-16-109 : (1) “ Abandoned motor vehicle ” means a motor vehicle that: (A) Is over four (4) years old and is left unattended on public property for more than ten (10) days; (B) Is in an obvious state of disrepair and is left unattended on public property for more than three (3) days; (C) Has remained illegally on public property for a period of more than forty-eight (48) hours;

## Source

- https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-55-motor-and-other-vehicles/tn-code-sect-55-16-103.html

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/).