Bill to Combat Predatory Vehicle Booting, Increase Consumer Protections Signed Into Law
DENVER, CO – Governor Jared Polis yesterday signed into law a bill to crack down on predatory vehicle booting, improve industry transparency, and ramp up consumer protections.
HB25-1117, sponsored by Representatives Junie Joseph, D-Boulder, and Andy Boesenecker, D-Fort Collins, and Senators Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, and Mike Weissman, D-Aurora, will improve oversight, transparency, and fairness surrounding vehicle immobilization, including booting.
“Booting can be a useful tool for property owners, but it must be done fairly, with clear rules and oversight,” said Joseph. “This new law protects Coloradans from predatory booting practices while giving responsible companies the clarity they need to operate legally and transparently. By empowering the Public Utilities Commission to oversee booting, we’re making sure companies follow the rules and consumers are treated with respect.”
“Lack of oversight has enabled predatory and abusive practices in the vehicle booting industry, and it’s time for Colorado law to catch up,” said Gonzales. “In previous years, we have made important progress to protect Coloradans from predatory towing practices, and this law is a step toward doing the same for vehicle booting. It establishes clear guidelines including prohibiting indiscriminate patrolling of parking lots and providing advanced notice before a car is immobilized, ensuring that no Coloradan unfairly loses access to their vehicle.”
“Right now, vehicle booting companies are taking advantage of a lack of regulation to immobilize Coloradans’ vehicles for profit,” said Boesenecker. “Our law cracks down on booting companies that patrol parking lots and authorize their own booting practices that typically end up costing Coloradans money and time. To improve transparency and strengthen consumer protections, booting companies will be required to give consumers a fair warning and place a written notice on vehicles at least 24 hours before immobilizing them.”
“For most Coloradans, a car is not a convenience – it is a livelihood. Cars are how Coloradans get to work, buy groceries and medicine, and take their kids to school,” said Weissman. “This new law is about preventing abuse by the vehicle booting industry, which currently operates with very little oversight, and establishing basic protections for Colorado drivers like clear signage and access to a payment plan. These protections prevent predatory booting and ensure that hardworking Coloradans can quickly restore access to their cars.”
The law gives the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) additional oversight to deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a permit to a vehicle booting company if the company is violating specific guidelines.
Under the law, vehicle booting companies will be required to:
Document a vehicle’s condition and the reason for immobilization before they immobilize it,
Display the name of the company, the permit number, and a phone number of the company on each company vehicle used for immobilization,
Not charge more than once for the removal of more than one immobilization device, and
Remove an immobilization device if at least $60 of the total amount owed is paid.
Additionally, vehicle booting companies must refrain from immobilizing a vehicle if:
It has already been immobilized by another company,
It is on private property, unless given appropriate permission,
There is inadequate signage posted by the property owner, or
Less than 24 hours notice has been given for a vehicle in a parking space or common parking area, with certain exceptions including if a vehicle is in a spot reserved for people with disabilities, is blocking a fire hydrant or roadway, or is in a spot designated for a specific individual.
In recent years, Colorado Democrats have passed landmark legislation to protect consumers against predatory towing practices, including HB21-1283, HB22-1314, and HB24-1051.