Can I Sell A Totaled Car?
Each day you hear it all over the news. Accidents happen everywhere and cars end up completely totaled. If you’ve undergone this tragic experience, on the moment you thank your lucky star that you’re ok, but when everything gets back to normal, you remain with a totaled vehicle. What could you possibly do with it besides selling it? Here are some tips on how to sell a totaled car. Before everything you need to know that there are special laws and rules that need to be followed when trying to sell a damaged vehicle. This process can get a bit complicated, therefore you should check with the DMV before trying anything. They can explain thoroughly all the processes involved and the laws and limitations you might have to overcome. Not doing so, might create additional legal problems to your already delicate situation. Know that selling a totaled car is perfectly legal; it’s just that you need to do a little work.
First of all you must inspect the car to see if it is indeed totaled. By totaled, insurance companies describe a car that will undergo pricier repairs than the car is actually worth. Therefore you need to check with your insurance company and have the car inspected and evaluated before assuming that the car is beyond repairs.
The next step is salvaging the car. Since it has been established that the car is totaled, you have the option of selling it to your insurance company. This will transform the car into a salvage car. Most insurance companies will purchase the car and salvage it on their own; of course this means that you cannot sell it any more. Because insurance companies pay you for the salvage car, they gain the rights to what they want with it since they are the vehicle’s owners.
Your other option is to contact the department of motor vehicles closest to your location and make an application for a new title. The DMV can present you with a salvage certificate. This certificate is very important because, from now on, no matter what kind of repairs or improvements can be applied on the vehicle, it will always remain a salvage car meaning that it is no longer drivable on public roads. Keep in mind that your insurance rates will be different while some warranties can actually become void on the car.
And finally, since you have a salvage certificate you can sell the totaled car. By far the easiest method would be to sell it to the nearest dealership. You can present the situation, state that your car is a salvage vehicle and present the certificate as proof. Make your demands on the amount of cash and you will be successful most of the times. Many dealerships work exclusively with salvage cars since they can make considerable profits by repairing and selling them back to people. Don’t expect too much money for the car from a dealership because they won’t offer anything over the minimum possible.
If you want, you can try and sell it to a private party. This transaction might be trickier to make because with salvage cars comes pricier insurance (which most of the times isn’t worth it) therefore, few people would bring that much trouble on their heads. In case you don’t manage to sell it to a private party, you can always head for the nearest junkyard. The cash will be just about the same but most junkyards offer to make the transport for free. Or finally, you can head for a charity organization and get tax deduction.
You might also want to read:
Post tags: Tags: automotive articles, can i sell a totaled car
POST A COMMENT