The short answer
Before you junk a car, take out personal items and toll tags, remove the plates if your state keeps them with the owner, find the title and your ID, and leave the car complete. After pickup, file your state's notice of sale and cancel the insurance.
Most of the problems people have after junking a car (a toll bill, a parking ticket, a lost garage remote) come from things that take five minutes to handle beforehand.
What should you do before the tow truck arrives?
- Clear out the car. Check the glove box, center console, under the seats, the trunk and the spare tire well. People leave sunglasses, paperwork with their address on it and, more often than you'd think, cash.
- Take off toll tags and parking permits. A toll transponder left in a car can keep billing your account.
- Remove the plates if your state keeps them with the owner. In some states you return them to the DMV; in others you can move them to another car.
- Find the title and your photo ID. If there's a loan, have the lien release. If the title is lost, read how to sell without a title.
- Wipe your phone from the car's system. Newer cars store contacts and addresses. Use the infotainment menu to delete paired phones.
- Leave the car complete. Pulling the battery, wheels or converter lowers the offer more than those parts are worth on their own.
- Make sure the truck can reach it. Unlock gates, move other cars, and tell the buyer about flat tires or a tight driveway.
What happens at pickup?
The driver checks the car, you sign the title where the seller signs, and you're paid before the car is loaded. Don't sign until the price is confirmed.
What should you do after the car is gone?
- File the notice of sale or release of liability if your state has one. It protects you if the car gets a ticket before it's re-titled or recycled. Our state title guides list the ones we know of.
- Cancel the insurance and any automatic registration renewal.
- Keep a photo of the signed title and your payment receipt.
What happens to the car's records? Federal rules (28 CFR 25.56) require auto recyclers, junk yards and salvage yards to report the junk and salvage vehicles they take in to the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System every month (NMVTIS). The Justice Department's NMVTIS site says the system is designed to protect consumers from fraud and to keep stolen vehicles from being resold (vehiclehistory.bja.ojp.gov). The reports make it harder to put a junked car's VIN on a stolen one, and easier to catch someone who tries. It's another reason to keep proof of the date you sold the car.
Frequently asked questions
Should I remove the battery before junking my car?
No. Buyers price a complete car, and a missing battery can lower the offer by more than you'd get selling the battery.
Do I need to cancel insurance before junking my car?
Cancel it after the car has been picked up, and check your state's plate rules first. In New York, for example, the DMV says to surrender your plates before your liability insurance lapses (NY DMV).