Dozens of LA residents woke up to find their cars towed and a $400 bill because of Oscar night security
Published on Mar 24, 2026 at 2:19 AM (UTC+4)
by Molly Davidson
Last updated on Mar 23, 2026 at 3:19 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
Dozens of LA residents woke up to find their cars gone after Oscar night security triggered a wave of towing.
Instead of heading to work, they were trying to figure out where their cars had been taken.
What they found wasn’t just a tow yard, but a $400 bill waiting for them.
And most of them had no idea they were even at risk.
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Oscar night security swept up cars far beyond the red carpet
While everyone else was focused on celebrities and speeches, something very different was happening a few blocks away from the Oscars red carpet.
For the 2026 Academy Awards, Los Angeles set up a huge security zone around the Dolby Theatre, stretching about a square mile.
That might sound reasonable, until you realize it reached way further than most people expected.
Streets up to half a mile away were suddenly part of the no-parking zone.
Even in regular residential areas, where people had parked without thinking twice.
So overnight, tow trucks got to work.
Dozens of cars were cleared out, leaving entire streets looking weirdly empty by morning.
One resident, Mitchell Crispi, said he ducked out early and came back 30 minutes later to find every single car on his street gone.
Not just his, all of them.
By then, the cars were already at the tow yard.
Along with a growing crowd of confused owners trying to track them down.
And to get them back, most people had to pay around $400, which is a pretty expensive way to start your day.
LA residents were warned, but many say the signs didn’t do the job
The city says it followed the rules.
Temporary ‘no parking’ signs were put up about 48 hours before the towing started, which is the legal requirement.
But that doesn’t mean people actually understood what was going on.
Some signs were confusing, with wording that didn’t clearly match when the restrictions applied.
In a few cases, even the people handing out tickets weren’t totally sure how to read them, which says a lot.
There’s also a simple reality here.
A lot of LA residents had already parked before the signs even went up, and once your car’s there, you’re probably not going back out every day just to double-check a street sign.
So technically, the warning was there.
In practice, it didn’t really work.
That’s why people are split.
Some think living near Hollywood means you should expect this kind of thing, especially during big events.
Others argue that if the city can shut down a huge chunk of streets for the Oscars, it should be able to give people a clearer heads-up.
Either way, for a lot of locals, Oscar night didn’t end with a trophy.
It ended with a missing car and a bill they definitely weren’t planning for.
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With roles at TEXT Journal, Bowen Street Press, Onya Magazine, and Swine Magazine on her CV, Molly joined Supercar Blondie in June 2025 as a Junior Content Writer. Having experience across copyediting, proofreading, reference checking, and production, she brings accuracy, clarity, and audience focus to her stories spanning automotive, tech, and lifestyle news.
