An expired registration can get your car towed in Massachusetts, and a revoked one, usually tied to a lapse in insurance, is a bigger risk than a simply late renewal. To get the car back you clear the registration problem with the RMV, then redeem the car with the standard documents and fees. The fastest fix is to never let the registration or the insurance behind it lapse.
Why an expired registration gets you towed
Registration and insurance are linked in Massachusetts. Your registration depends on active insurance, so when the insurance lapses, the registration can be revoked, not just expired. A car with a revoked or expired registration parked or driven on a public way is exposed to enforcement.
Police can order a car with an invalid registration removed, and that tow follows the state’s non-consensual towing rules. It is not the same as forgetting to feed a meter. The underlying issue, especially a revocation, has to be fixed before the car is legal to drive again.
How to get the car back
Work the problem in order. First, find out where the car is: if it was towed inside Boston, check the plate lookup at cityofboston.gov/towing/search, which covers the past 15 days, and the car will be at 200 Frontage Road. In a suburb, contact that town’s police.
Second, fix the registration with the RMV. If the registration was revoked over insurance, you generally need to restore active coverage and clear the RMV’s requirements before you can reinstate. Driving the car off the lot with an invalid registration just sets up the next tow.
Third, redeem the car. At the Boston lot you need a valid driver’s license, your plate number, proof of active registration, and proof of insurance, which is exactly why the registration has to be sorted first.
What it costs
At the City of Boston lot, the tow fee is $90 and storage is $3 per hour up to $15 per day, with a 2.5% fee on card payments. If the tow was a non-consensual one under state rules, the DPU maximums in 220 CMR 272 cap the charges: up to $132 for the first five miles and up to $35 per day of storage.
Storage is the part that grows, so the day you resolve the registration and pick the car up matters. Every day the RMV issue drags on is another day of storage on top of whatever it costs to reinstate.
When renewing is not worth it
Sometimes the tow is the moment you realize an old car is not worth putting back on the road. If the reinstatement, repairs, and back-owed costs exceed what the car is worth, you can junk it instead. In Massachusetts that means signing the title over to a buyer or scrapyard and returning the plates to the RMV to cancel the registration. Do not abandon it on a public street, because under M.G.L. c. 90 s. 22C a car left over 72 hours can be removed, and you stay on the hook for it.
Frequently asked questions
Can my car be towed just for an expired registration? Yes. A car with an invalid registration on a public way can be ordered towed. A revoked registration, often from an insurance lapse, is an even bigger risk than a late renewal.
What do I need to get it out of the Boston lot? A valid driver’s license, your plate number, proof of active registration, and proof of insurance. That is why you fix the registration with the RMV before going to the lot.
How much will it cost? At the Boston lot, $90 plus $3 per hour up to $15 per day of storage. A non-consensual tow under state rules is capped at $132 for the first five miles and $35 per day of storage.
What if the car is not worth reinstating? You can junk it: sign the title to a buyer or scrapyard and return the plates to the RMV. Do not leave it on the street, where the 72-hour abandoned-vehicle rule applies.
When to call us
Call when the car is cleared for release but cannot be driven, or when you want to haul a car you have decided to junk. Quick Tow Boston connects drivers with independent operators across Greater Boston, with the price quoted before dispatch. Calls are recorded after a notice. Reach the dispatch line at (857) 858-5057.