Costs · 6 min read
How Much Does a Tow Cost in Michigan?
A tow in Michigan typically costs $85 to $135 for the hook-up plus $3.50 to $6.50 per mile, putting a standard local tow between roughly $120 and $200. Non-consensual tows are capped by state law, and Detroit separately caps light-duty vehicle tow fees. Roadside services such as jump starts and lockouts usually run $60 to $100.
· AA Towing Services
The two numbers that make up your bill
Almost every towing invoice in Michigan is built from a hook-up fee plus a per-mile rate. The hook-up covers dispatching the truck and getting your vehicle safely onto it. The mileage covers the drive from your location to the destination.
- Hook-up fee: typically $85–$135 for a light-duty vehicle
- Per-mile rate: typically $3.50–$6.50
- A 5–10 mile local tow therefore lands around $120–$200
- Roadside services (jump, lockout, tire, fuel) are usually flat, around $60–$100
AA Towing Services starts at $80 for the hook-up — below the bottom of that market band — with roadside services from $65. We do not publish a per-mile figure, because the number that actually matters to you is the finished total, and that is what you get on the phone before a truck moves. Ask any company for the total rather than the rate; the ones that will only give you a rate are the ones to be careful with.
What legitimately changes the price
Some price variation is real and some is invented. These are the genuine reasons a quote moves:
- The vehicle does not roll — seized wheels or crash damage need skates, dollies or a winch
- Vehicle weight — medium and heavy duty need different equipment entirely
- Difficult access — a parking deck with low clearance, a soft shoulder, a steep embankment
- All-wheel drive or low clearance, which requires a flatbed rather than a wheel-lift
- Severe weather, when recovery genuinely takes longer and carries more risk
Tows you did not ask for are different
If your car was towed from private property or by police order, that is a non-consensual tow, and Michigan law treats it differently from a tow you requested. Michigan caps the total that can be charged on a non-consensual tow, and Detroit separately caps light-duty tow fees within the city.
You also have rights most drivers are never told about:
- You may inspect the vehicle and retrieve personal belongings. The first visit is free; after that the operator cannot charge more than $25 per visit.
- You can challenge both whether the tow was proper and whether the fees were reasonable, in the district court for that area. Do it promptly — there are time limits.
- The operator must disclose their rates for towing and storage.
- You can file a complaint with the Michigan Attorney General's Consumer Protection team.
To find out who has your vehicle, contact the police department for the jurisdiction where it was parked. This is general information rather than legal advice — if real money is at stake, talk to a lawyer.
How to not get overcharged
- Get the hook-up fee and the per-mile rate on the phone, before you agree to anything.
- Ask what would change that number. A straight operator will tell you; a vague one is leaving room.
- Say what the vehicle is — make, model, whether it is AWD, whether it rolls. Most surprise charges trace back to a surprise vehicle.
- Ask for an itemised receipt. You will need it if you are claiming from an insurer.
- Be suspicious of a quote far below the ranges above. Nobody works at a loss; that money gets found somewhere.
