PORTLAND, Ore. — Any vehicle parked publicly in Portland that doesn't display at least one license plate and a vehicle identification number (VIN) will be automatically towed as of Nov. 12, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) said.
The warning comes after a recent change in city code, allowing authorized officers to tow vehicles without notice when they don't have a visible VIN and do not display license plates.
Implementing automatic tows will help parking enforcement officers more quickly clear vehicles that violate city code, including abandoned vehicles, PBOT said.
The change has left some residents worried. Along Northeast Sunderland Avenue there are many run-down RV's and derelict cars without license plates or VIN numbers — but for many people, the vehicles are their homes.
"I don't have anywhere else to go; I don't have anything else but this," Meghan said, referring to her RV she got from a friend who passed away. For the past three months she has knowingly kept in a no-parking zone next to the city-run Safe Rest Park for vehicles that she hopes to get into one day.
PBOT clarified that they won't automatically tow vehicles that have VIN or plates obscured or missing if there is someone living in the vehicle.
"The goal of this new policy is primarily to address people who appear to be intentionally hiding their VINs and removing license plates from their vehicles to make them unidentifiable to parking enforcement officers and avoid accountability for violating parking or other rules," the agency said, in part.
Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services requires that most vehicles display two license plates, one on the front and the other on the back. However, vehicles like mopeds and motorcycles only require one plate on the back.
A VIN is usually visible on the driver's side of the vehicle's dashboard, and it can be read from outside the vehicle by looking in through the windshield.
"I think it will make it better," said Suzanne Rollins, who lives in Northeast Portland and has for years been dealing with RVs and other vehicles lined up in front of her house. "We've gotten multiple notices from the post office that they can't deliver our mail because there's somebody parked right in front of the mailbox."
What to do if your vehicle gets towed
If you believe your vehicle was towed, PBOT says you can call Portland Police Auto Records at 503-823-0044 to find your vehicle and learn how to get it back. PBOT manages a towing hardship fund to help people with low income retrieve their towed and impounded vehicles.