Selling a dead or junk car in Ventura

Why the city's rules may differ

Vehicle Code 22660 leaves it to each city and county to write its own law for clearing junk cars from public or private land and billing the cost back. Next door, Oxnard treats a car unregistered for six months as a nuisance. A car in a Ventura driveway may face a local rule we could not read, so contact the city if a notice arrives.

State rules that apply in Ventura

• When officers can act. A Ventura car that seems abandoned on a road, or on public or private property, can be towed by a peace officer or a city employee given that job. On a public right-of-way, a car stripped of what it needs to run, from the engine to the doors, can go at once.
• Cars worth little. Before Ventura removes an abandoned car valued at $500 or less, a 72-hour notice goes on it. Some cars worth $300 or less don't get one. After removal, the city contacts the owner within 48 hours. In Ventura, a hearing request must come within 10 days. When the notice is 15 days old, Ventura is free to dispose of the car.
• Dumping costs at least $100. Ventura fines no less than that for abandoning a vehicle on a road, or on private land when its owner never agreed. The owner also has to prove the tow bill got paid.
• An unclaimed impound comes back to you. When an abandoned Ventura car sits in impound unclaimed, the last registered owner is cited. If the lien sale falls short, the Ventura owner pays the difference too. Ventura sellers who file their sale report first stay clear of it.

If it has already been towed

A Ventura tow company holds a possessory lien. If the Ventura car's legal value is $4,000 or less, the company has 15 days from the lien to start the sale and mail a "Notice of Pending Lien Sale." Mailing is followed by the sale 31 to 41 days later. Ventura owners who want a judge to hear it send in a Declaration of Opposition within 10 days. Towed or impounded covers the choices.

DMV steps for a Ventura seller

In Ventura, titles are handled at state DMV field offices, and the county plays no part. Ventura sellers sign the seller line, along with any lienholder. No notary appears in DMV's private-sale steps for a Ventura car. To replace a missing title, use REG 227.

File REG 138 to report the sale inside 5 days. Ordinary plates stay with the car. A car on its way to a dismantler needs no smog inspection. A car its owner or insurer decided was not worth fixing carries California's Salvaged brand; see salvage title.

Nearby towns

Oxnard is 5.4 miles away as the crow flies, Port Hueneme 7.8 and Santa Paula 12.3. Statewide rules are on the California page.

Getting an offer

Reach us online or at (877) 421-6008. Start the offer form for your Ventura car. We pick up from a hillside driveway, a street near the harbor, or a shop lot.