Selling a dead car in Cheshire

What Cheshire's blight code says about cars

Section 3-33 defines blighted premises as property that "is and continues to be in a state of disrepair or is becoming dilapidated." Cars enter that definition by two doors.

• The count. A second inoperative or unregistered vehicle stored outside a permanent garage. Visibly inoperative boats count toward it too.
• Debris. Cheshire's debris definition covers "junk comprised of equipment or machinery such as automobiles" that are "unregistered and missing parts, not complete in appearance and in an obvious state of disrepair," and loose car parts as well.

Enforcement belongs to a blight prevention officer named by the town manager. The definitions we have give no notice period, so if a Cheshire letter arrives, ask that officer which deadline it carries.

Snow, sleet and the street

Leaving a broken car at the curb trades a blight question for a winter one. Section 15-4 bars any vehicle from standing on a town highway or town lot in a way that would "hamper or interfere with the effective removal or plowing of snow" during falling snow, sleet or freezing rain. Cheshire presumes the registered owner parked it, and the car "may be removed in accordance with Section 14-150" of state law. That statute has Cheshire police mail the owner a certified letter within 48 hours of the tow, with 10 days to file any challenge.

Section 15-3 keeps cars off sidewalks, out of posted no-parking zones, and out of any spot where they would be "a menace to traffic or public health or safety." It makes a narrow allowance for a car "which becomes disabled to such an extent that it is impossible or impractical to remove it."

Emissions, titles and plates for a Cheshire seller

Plenty of Cheshire cars get sold right after failing emissions. Connecticut's test comes every two years at private stations and costs $20; cars from model year 2001 back are skipped, as are those within their first four model years. A lapse in emissions can suspend a registration. Failed emissions lays out the options.

Cheshire Town Hall does not issue titles; Connecticut's DMV does. The office we checked is at 2210 Thomaston Avenue in Waterbury, roughly 10 miles northwest of central Cheshire on a straight line. A normal sale seldom requires that drive. The seller signs the back of the certificate and adds a bill of sale. A lost title is replaced through Form H-6B ($25), delivered by mail in up to 20 business days. Anything older than 20 model years goes untitled in Connecticut, and a DMV letter citing C.G.S. 14-166 documents that exemption.

Take the plates with you when the car leaves. End the registration through the DMV, file the receipt, and leave your insurance alone until the cancellation goes through. The Connecticut page gathers the rest.

Getting an offer

Selling a car in Cheshire? Dial (877) 421-6008 or fill in our offer form. The truck can load it from a Cheshire driveway, a garage bay, or a lot over in Meriden or Southington.