Selling a dead car in Laguna Beach

What the city code covers

Chapter 7.22 of the Laguna Beach code carries the heading "Removal of Wrecked and Abandoned Vehicles." The piece we read is the step after a removal, quoted above. We did not find the city's warning period for owners or its rules for cars on private land, so Laguna Beach may have local rules beyond what is listed here. State law (Vehicle Code 22660) lets each city write an ordinance for clearing dead cars off private and public property and recovering the expense. If a notice is taped to your windshield, call the city.

Street rules from state law

State law lets a car that never moves off the street be towed. Vehicle Code 22651 allows a tow when a Laguna Beach car stays in one spot 72 straight hours against a city ordinance. Laguna Beach may also haul off a car parked on public right-of-way at once under Vehicle Code 22669 if its wheels, engine, windshield, doors, tires, transmission or other essential parts are gone. If yours is already gone, see towed or impounded.

Two California rules that shape a junk sale

Emissions. If a Laguna Beach car falls short of state air board standards, Vehicle Code 24007 limits the sale. A dealer can take it, or it can be lawfully wrecked or dismantled. When a Laguna Beach buyer takes delivery, the seller must give them a certificate of compliance or noncompliance. A car headed for dismantling also skips smog testing.

Title brands. California brands a title Salvaged for accident, flood or vandalism damage, and for cars once dismantled. No separate flood brand exists. Once the owner or insurer judges a Laguna Beach car not worth repairing, it is total-loss salvage. It then carries a salvage certificate, not a title. More at salvage title.

The rest of the DMV steps

The state DMV, not Orange County, issues titles. Laguna Beach sellers can hand the papers in at a DMV field office. By mail, they go to PO Box 942869 in Sacramento. A Laguna Beach title needs your signature and any lienholder's, and the DMV lists no notary for a private sale. A lost title starts with REG 227. Send REG 138 within 5 days of a Laguna Beach sale, and tickets and liability after that fall on the buyer. Ordinary plates usually remain with the car, but a car recorded as Junk sends its plates back to the DMV.

Getting an offer

Online or at (877) 421-6008, say what make and model it is, the year, the mileage, if it starts, and the title situation. Free pickup anywhere in the US covers a steep Laguna Beach driveway, a garage by the water, or a repair shop. Aliso Viejo and Laguna Niguel are each under 4 miles away; the California page lays out state rules.