Auburn junk and dead car sales

What Chapter 8.14 tells you, and what to check

The section titles tell you two things. The city treats an inoperable car as a nuisance in its own right, not only when it is wrecked or stripped. And it has a section devoted to abating and removing junk vehicles on private property.

Our read of the code did not bring back the text of those sections, so we cannot quote their clocks or definitions here. Before you count on any grace period, open Chapter 8.14 at the link in our sources and read the abatement and nuisance sections in full. If a notice arrives, the date and deadline printed on it are the ones that count. State law, below, applies either way.

The 72-hour street rule

Section 22-26 is short and leaves no gap: "It shall be unlawful to leave any vehicle on any public street or other public way in the city for more than seventy-two (72) hours." It covers every vehicle, running or not. A car that quits on a residential street off campus has three days before it is in violation.

Big vehicles have a tighter rule

If the dead vehicle is a big commercial truck, a moving van or a long trailer, Section 22-32 is the one to read. It restricts parking or storage of any commercial motor vehicle, utility trailer or semi-trailer "greater than seven (7) feet wide or twenty-five (25) feet long" on certain streets. Its list includes moving vans, delivery trucks, flat-bed and stake-bed trucks and construction equipment. One exception allows parking tied to an adjacent business for up to 72 hours, and only where the street is at least 31 feet wide. A junk truck sells the same way a car does, so a broken one need not sit there.

When the car belongs to someone else

If a car has been left on your Auburn property without your consent for more than 48 hours, Alabama calls it unclaimed. The same is true of a car left more than 48 hours on a public road. The state process then runs through the Department of Revenue, starting with a report within five calendar days. That route is for cars that are not yours; for your own car, selling it is quicker.

Totaled, flooded or parts-only

A lot of dead cars in Lee County have been through an insurance claim. Alabama's rules on what that does to the title:

• Total loss. Once an insurer pays an Auburn claim with damage at or above 75 percent of fair retail value, the car becomes a salvage vehicle.
• Salvage. It cannot be registered or driven until a rebuilt title is issued.
• Flood. A "Flood Vehicle" legend goes on the salvage title and stays on every title after it.
• Parts only. A "Parts Only - Non-Rebuildable" brand means the car can never be rebuilt.

None of these stops a sale of the car as it is. See insurer totaled it.

Plates, title and the Lee County office

The Lee County office we checked is at 215 S. 9th St., Opelika (334-745-9761). That is roughly 7 miles northeast of central Auburn in a straight line. Other county offices may exist. Lee County handles Auburn plates and registration. Titles come from the Alabama Department of Revenue.

When you sell, you take the plates off, and they can transfer to a car you buy next. If you do buy another car, move the plate on time: Alabama adds a $15 penalty plus interest for a late transfer. No notary has to witness you sign the title. Certify the miles so they equal the buyer's application, and the owner names there must be spelled just as the title spells them.

No title? No title on an Auburn car? Scrap recyclers and dismantlers in Auburn may still accept a car valued at no more than $1,000 once it reaches 12 model years of age. The Auburn buyer then sends Notice form MVT 5-18 through the state's SCRAP portal. Otherwise, the dismantler needs the current, properly transferred title.

Getting an offer

Selling a dead car in Auburn? Call (877) 421-6008 or use the offer form. A car that does not run is the usual case; the truck comes to it, whether it is behind an apartment near campus or in a garage across town. Auburn is about 8 miles from Opelika and about 29 from Phenix City. The Alabama page has the statewide rules.