Dothan's seven-day junk car rule, and how to sell the car

Seven days, at home or on the street

Section 98-161 sets one number for two places. On private land, it is unlawful for "any partially dismantled or nonoperating or wrecked or junked or discarded vehicle or any vehicle without a current tag or any combination thereof to be kept on private real property for more than seven consecutive calendar days."

On a street or city premises, any vehicle or other property "abandoned, unclaimed or unattended" for "over seven calendar days" is in violation. That limit applies inside the city and across its police jurisdiction, which extends past the city line.

Note the tag clause. A running car with a lapsed tag falls under the private-property rule the same as a wreck. "Any combination thereof" means the conditions stack, but one is enough.

The restoration exception, and its limits

The code allows "working on one private vehicle for the purpose of restoration, provided the vehicle is kept within a completely screened enclosure." Three limits sit inside that sentence: one vehicle, a restoration purpose, and screening on every side. A second project car in the side yard, or the first one parked in the open, falls back under the seven-day rule.

Licensed repair and body shops get a similar pass for cars "kept within a completely screened enclosure." That pass ends at 90 days. If a shop has been holding your car longer than that while you decide, the stuck at a repair shop guide covers how to sell it from there.

Dothan's zoning code backs this up at the dealer level. Its definitions for dealerships say "No abandoned vehicles shall be stored on the premises," and salvage and dismantling are kept to separately defined scrap operations.

If the city stores the car

Once a car has been removed, Section 98-164 controls its release. People found guilty of the violation "shall be required to pay the cost of removing illegally parked vehicles or property and the storage costs," on top of fines and court costs from the municipal judge. And "no vehicle or property shall be released from storage, except upon the written order of the chief of police or his duly authorized representative." That means a stop at the police department before the lot. The towed or impounded guide covers selling a car in that spot.

Title and plates in Dothan

One office we checked is at 462 N. Oates Street, phone 334-677-4742. Measured straight, the office is under a mile southeast of downtown Dothan. Dothan spills into Dale and Henry counties as well, and each county may have its own offices.

No notary is needed for the seller's signature on an Alabama title. Certify the miles and use the figure printed on the buyer's application. The names on the application have to match how they appear on the title.

In Dothan, the registered owner removes the plate before the car leaves, per Alabama rules. The plate-issuing office can put it on a car you get later.

Lost the title? The Public Title Portal issues a new one for $15. Alabama eases things for older cars. Dothan sellers without a title still have a buyer: a scrap recycler or dismantler can take a car worth no more than $1,000 that has 12 or more model years on the clock. That Dothan buyer uses SCRAP to submit Notice form MVT 5-18. After the car is scrapped or dismantled, its title is suspended or revoked. Past 35 model years, a vehicle is exempt from Alabama titling, subject to the exemptions on the ADOR page.

When an insurer totaled it

The line is 75 percent of fair retail value. When an insurer pays on Dothan car damage at or above it, Alabama calls the car a total loss. Until it earns a rebuilt title, a salvage car in Dothan cannot be registered or driven. A car branded "Parts Only - Non-Rebuildable" can never be rebuilt. A car with that brand is basically good for parts, and it falls under the same seven-day rule as any other dead car in a Dothan driveway.

Nearby

Enterprise is 26.7 miles away. Phenix City is 87.1 miles away and Montgomery 92.1. Statewide rules are on the Alabama page.

Getting an offer

Phone (877) 421-6008 or send the form. List model year and maker, odometer miles, if it cranks, and the facts on the title. Pickup comes to it, even under a carport off N. Oates Street, a shop lot near downtown, or a pasture on the edge of the police jurisdiction.