(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, the police department through its chief officer, after complying with § 55-16-105, may execute a written waiver of its right to sell a vehicle taken into custody under this chapter in favor of a garagekeeper or towing firm in whose possession the vehicle was lawfully placed by the police department under this chapter. If a garagekeeper or towing firm has made repairs to a vehicle for which a waiver has been executed, the garagekeeper or towing firm may proceed to enforce the lien as provided in § 66-19-103. If the garagekeeper or towing firm has not made repairs to a vehicle for which a waiver has been executed, the garagekeeper or towing firm may proceed to sell the vehicle in accordance with the procedure established in § 55-16-106.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 55-16-107

  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Owner: means a person who holds the legal title of a vehicle, or in the event a vehicle is the subject of an agreement for the conditional sale or lease thereof, with the right of purchase upon performance of the conditions stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee or lessee, or in the event a mortgagor of a vehicle is entitled to possession, then the conditional vendee or lessee or mortgagor shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of this chapter and chapter 10, parts 1-5 of this title. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Vehicle: means every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) As to third-party purchasers, the sale of the abandoned, immobile, or unattended vehicle shall be valid, but the garagekeeper or towing firm shall sell the vehicle in a commercially reasonable manner, and failure to do so may subject the garagekeeper or towing firm to suit for monetary damages by either the true owner or a lienholder.
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