An Act Relating to Abandoned Vehicles
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0301
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: DIAMOND, THERIAULT, MAZUREK, PARRY, ROSEN
Amends: 29-A MRSA §1852, 29-A MRSA §1854, 29-A MRSA §1856, 29-A MRSA §1857

Legislative Document 
No. 301 
S.P. 90 
In Senate, February 3, 2011 
An Act Relating to Abandoned Vehicles 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
JOSEPH G. CARLETON, JR. 
Secretary of the Senate 
Presented by Senator DIAMOND of Cumberland. 
Cosponsored by Representative THERIAULT of Madawaska and 
Representatives: MAZUREK of Rockland, PARRY of Arundel, ROSEN of Bucksport. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  29-A MRSA §1852, as amended by PL 2007, c. 150, §2, is further 
amended to read: 
§1852.  Abandonment defined 
For the purposes of this subchapter, a vehicle is considered "abandoned" if the owner 
or lienholder does not retrieve it and pay all reasonable charges for towing, storing and 
authorized repair of the vehicle within 7 14 days after the notices to the owner and 
lienholder are sent by the Secretary of State or 7 14 days after the advertisement is 
published as required in section 1854, subsection 4.  There is a rebuttable presumption 
that the last owner of record of a motor vehicle found abandoned as shown in the files of 
the office of the Secretary of State is the owner of the motor vehicle at the time it was 
abandoned and the person who abandoned it. 
Sec. 2.  29-A MRSA §1854, sub-§4, ¶B, as amended by PL 2007, c. 150, §5, is 
further amended to read: 
B.  State that if the owner of the vehicle or lienholder has not properly retrieved it and 
paid all reasonable charges for its towing, storage and repair within 7 14 days from 
the publication, ownership of the vehicle passes to the owner of the premises where 
the vehicle is located; and 
Sec. 3.  29-A MRSA §1856, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2007, c. 150, §6, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Evidence of compliance.  A person who has complied with section 1854, 
subsection 4 shall present evidence of compliance to the Secretary of State immediately 
after the 7-day 14-day notice period.  The Secretary of State may not issue a letter of 
ownership or certificate of title until at least 21 days after the date on which the person 
who has possession of and control over the vehicle notified the Secretary of State by 
complying with section 1854, subsections 1 and 2. 
Sec. 4.  29-A MRSA §1857, as amended by PL 2007, c. 150, §7, is further 
amended to read: 
§1857.  Limits 
If the notification to the Secretary of State required by section 1854 is made more 
than 7 14 days after receipt of a vehicle described in section 1851, the person holding the 
vehicle may not collect more than 7 14 days of storage fees.  Daily storage charges must 
be reasonable and total storage charges may not exceed $900 for a 30-day period. 
SUMMARY 
This bill amends the abandoned vehicle laws by increasing the number of days that 
must lapse before a vehicle is considered abandoned from 7 to 14.  The bill also increases 
the maximum time a person has to notify the Secretary of State from 7 to 14 days in order 
to be eligible for additional daily storage fees.