Happy New Year!
Posted December 29th, 2025 by Peter Lukevich, JD
Service Member Data has promoted awareness of and provided Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) continuing education to operators for nearly six years. In addition to presenting at the recent American Towing Dallas–Fort Worth Tow Show and Towman, we believe SCRA education is just as critical as verifying the active-duty status of registered owners. SMD emphasizes that compliance with the SCRA is mandatory and that violations can have significant consequences.
The SCRA impacts every towing company in the US that impounds vehicles and in some manner disposes of those vehicles by auction sale, lien sale, or sale to scrap processors or other buyers. This means that in order to comply with the law it is critical that the tow operator determine whether the registered owner of a vehicle being sold is owned by a current member of the US military that is on active duty. One other important note, it is not relevant whether the active-duty member is deployed or at home in the US.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) actively enforces the SCRA. Failure to comply with the SCRA can result in penalties of up to $55,000 for a first violation and up to $110,000 for subsequent violations, plus attorney fees and other costs. Many states have similar laws. Defending an action brought by the Department of Justice, a state attorney general, or an active-duty servicemember can also cost tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees and staff time.
You can click on this link to view current and previous actions against operators across the US. It is easy to conclude that taking reasonable steps to determine the active-duty status of an RO is not only a legal requirement, but doing so is smart business.
It is difficult for towers to comply with the SCRA based on what you are provided by your state DOL or DMV. There is a way to show that you are doing the most you can to comply with the SCRA. We are here to discuss the requirements of the federal law and the nature of litigation that can be started against a towing company. Many years of experience working with tow operators across the US has allowed us to develop accurate, reliable, fast and affordable processes to guide the tow company owner in making the active-duty determination.
As you close out this year, we encourage you to think about how you comply with the SCRA. Spending a bit of time today to think about how you identify and determine whether the RO of a vehicle you plan to sell is on active duty or was just recently released from active duty (90 days or less) will be a great business resolution for 2026. We are here to help prevent you from being on that list on the DOJ website.
All of us at Service Member Data wish you a happy holiday season and great 2026!
Service Member Data
