Michigan Garage Keeper Liens and Vehicle Lien Sales

Identify the legal process that fits the vehicle

The Secretary of State's repair-facility guidance explains the garage keeper lien procedure for qualifying unpaid charges. Start with the reason the facility possesses the vehicle and the work or storage the owner authorized. A customer's failure to return does not replace the documentation needed to establish an enforceable claim.

The Garage Keeper's Lien Act controls the statutory sale route. Review whether the claimant qualifies and whether the transaction falls within the act. A secured lender's repossession, an abandoned-vehicle disposal and a garage keeper foreclosure use different authority and should not be combined into an improvised title application.

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Confirm facility eligibility and authorized charges

Under MCL 570.309, applicable licensing and repair-law compliance matter throughout the period covered by the claim. Preserve the repair order, estimate, authorization, invoice and communications showing what the owner requested or approved. A business should resolve a compliance problem before assuming a lien sale can cure it.

For storage-only circumstances, follow the Secretary of State's requirements concerning the written storage agreement. Identify the vehicle and person authorizing the arrangement. Charges for unrelated work, unauthorized additions or another customer's account should not be folded into the lien simply because the facility currently has possession of a valuable vehicle.

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Establish the attachment date and filing calendar

The lien attaches under MCL 570.303 when the garage keeper last performs the labor or furnishes the supplies supporting the lien. The ordinary maximum retention period is 225 days after that event, subject to the act's specific provisions (read October 21, 2026). Preserve evidence of the actual date rather than choosing a later billing date for convenience.

The enforcement statute requires application within 105 days after attachment (read October 21, 2026). Build the calendar from the documented event and allow time for complete state processing, notices and the sale interval. A deficient application near the filing limit may leave too little room to correct the problem and complete the ordinary sequence.

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Calculate storage and prior-lienholder amounts correctly

The rules in MCL 570.304 ordinarily limit included storage to $10 per day and 120 days unless otherwise agreed in writing. They also provide that a redeeming lienholder is not responsible for storage accruing before 45 days after notification (read October 21, 2026). Apply the correct rule to the correct party.

The amount a prior lienholder must pay can differ from the customer's complete invoice. The attachment statute contains separate limits tied to the repaired vehicle's market value, and the act excludes certain custom-material charges. Itemize the legal basis for each amount instead of presenting an unexplained total as equally enforceable against every recipient.

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Submit the state's initial application

Use the BDVR-35 Application for Garage Keeper's Lien with the required information and $10 application fee (read October 21, 2026). Check the VIN directly against the vehicle and the work records. An incorrect identifier can produce the wrong ownership search and defective notice to the people whose interests are affected.

The state provides the foreclosure certificate and bill of sale, TR-42, after the required review. Use the owners and lienholders identified through that process when preparing notices. A name supplied by the customer or an old insurance card is not a reliable substitute for the current ownership and secured-interest information returned by the state.

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Send a complete notice to every required recipient

The notice requirements in MCL 570.305 call for certified mail with return receipt requested to owners, lienholders and the designated state recipient. Notices must be sent within 30 days after the state's certificate date and give the owner at least 30 calendar days after the notice postmark to satisfy the lien (read October 21, 2026).

Include the itemized lien, payment demand, daily storage charges, lienholder rights and the proposed sale's date, time, manner and location. Retain mailing evidence and any returned envelopes with a copy of the exact notice. An informal telephone reminder can supplement communication but cannot replace the statutory mailing requirements.

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Schedule the public sale within the permitted sequence

The ordinary sale date must be at least 75 calendar days after the date on the state-issued foreclosure certificate, while also respecting the overall retention period (read October 21, 2026). The enforcement statute requires a public sale at the facility or the nearest suitable location. Calculate these requirements together before announcing a date.

The state can object to a sale for statutory or repair-law compliance reasons, and the act specifies the resulting investigation and timing effects. If an objection arrives, follow that process before proceeding. The facility should not assume that an earlier announced auction can continue simply because notices were mailed before the objection.

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Honor redemption before the vehicle is sold

The act permits an owner to redeem before sale by paying the required amount and allowable expenses. A prior lienholder also has a statutory opportunity to obtain the vehicle through the specified payment procedure. Keep a current payoff explanation so a timely request can be evaluated against the lawful claim rather than an outdated invoice.

If payment resolves the matter, follow the state's instructions for terminating the foreclosure paperwork or completing documents for a lienholder taking possession. Record who received the vehicle, the amount paid and the date. A resolved debt should not remain scheduled for auction merely because someone has not updated the facility's internal sale list.

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Document the auction and distribute proceeds properly

After a valid sale, complete the TR-42 as directed and give the purchaser the required certificate. The garage keeper may bid at the public sale under the statute, but taking the vehicle informally is not the same transaction. Keep records showing the sale, purchaser, price and completed documents.

The distribution order in MCL 570.306 addresses the lien, sale costs, qualifying prior lienholder claims, other reasonable charges and the owner's remaining proceeds. Follow its procedure for unclaimed money. Surplus funds do not automatically become additional shop revenue because the owner failed to collect the vehicle.

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Keep abandoned-vehicle disposal separate

The abandoned-vehicle custodian instructions describe the separate role of towing custodians and law enforcement records. Use them when the vehicle's custody and disposition arise from that process. A garage keeper should not switch labels merely because a required lien application deadline was missed.

Owners can consult the Attorney General's towing guidance and the Secretary of State abandoned-vehicle resource when a tow or abandonment notice is involved. Identify which notice was received and which process it invokes before choosing a response or assuming the garage keeper redemption rules apply.

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Apply for the purchaser's title using the sale evidence

The buyer submits the completed foreclosure certificate with the documents needed for the Michigan title and registration transaction. Verify the VIN, buyer identity and sale information before leaving the auction. A bid receipt alone may not provide the required ownership evidence for the office.

The sale does not erase the vehicle's mechanical condition or make a scrap or salvage vehicle immediately roadworthy. Examine the actual title classification and arrange any required inspection, insurance and plate transaction. Preserve the foreclosure documentation with the resulting title so the ownership path remains understandable at a later sale.

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Address disputes with the actual claim records

An owner or lienholder disputing a garage keeper claim should preserve the contract, authorizations, invoices, mailing envelopes and proof of payment. Ask for an itemized explanation and identify the specific charge or procedural step in dispute. MCL 570.307 provides a damages remedy for qualifying harm from failure to comply with the act.

Check the notice dates promptly and obtain case-specific assistance if ownership or an imminent sale is contested. A complaint and a court order stopping a sale are different actions. The complete record helps the appropriate agency or court evaluate what happened without relying on either party's summary of an undocumented conversation.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does an unpaid Michigan repair invoice automatically transfer ownership to the shop?
The debt does not itself transfer the vehicle. A qualifying garage keeper must complete the applicable statutory foreclosure and public-sale process.

Can a garage keeper choose the invoice date as the lien attachment date?
The attachment rule follows the last qualifying labor or supplies. Preserve the actual work records and calculate the filing period from the event specified by the statute.

Is mailing notice only to the person who dropped off the car sufficient?
Required notices go to the owners, lienholders and state recipient identified by the statutory process. The customer's identity may differ from the recorded owner or secured party.

Can the facility keep every dollar received at the lien auction?
Sale proceeds must be distributed in the statutory order, including qualifying claims and any remaining amount due to the owner. Unclaimed proceeds have a specified handling process.

Does a garage keeper sale replace abandoned-vehicle procedures?
These are separate legal routes with different qualifying circumstances and documents. Determine the vehicle's actual custody and claim basis before selecting either process.

May a buyer register a salvage vehicle immediately after a lien sale?
The ownership documents do not remove salvage or scrap restrictions. The buyer must address the applicable title classification and road-eligibility requirements before registration.

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More Michigan SOS guides

The other Michigan SOS guides, 52 of them:

Where this subject meets the courts and the county records: liens and deeds recorded in Michigan and Michigan property records.

Property records in the largest Michigan counties, each with the local court and office that holds the file: Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Kent, Genesee and Washtenaw.