Selling a dead or junk car in Greenwich

Parking a dead car on a Greenwich street

The 24-hour cap. Section 14-17.1 covers any street, the whole width of publicly maintained property open to traffic, and land the Town owns or leases. Nothing may stay parked there beyond 24 consecutive hours. The section adds that it does not excuse anyone from "more restrictive provisions," so a shorter posted limit still wins.

Two-hour blocks. Streets and lots in Schedule IV allow two hours at a time during their posted daytime windows, under Section 14-6.3. Break down in one of those spaces and you are over almost at once.

Snow. Section 14-45 is blunt: when a car stalls in the snow area during a storm, the driver "shall take immediate action to have the vehicle towed or pushed from said snow area." Popping the hood does not excuse it once an emergency is declared. You may walk away only long enough to fetch help. The Traffic Authority lifts a ban or emergency under Section 14-45.2, effective the moment it is announced.

What a tow sets in motion

Section 14-42 puts an impounded car in a police officer's custody, and the officer has it stored. Section 14-150 of the state statutes takes over from there. Greenwich owners, plus any lienholder, get certified letters within 48 hours. Disputes must come within 10 days. If the car is valued at $1,500 or less, a sale can follow after 15 days; higher-value cars sit 45 days first. Towed or impounded lays out the choices.

Driveways and private land

The Greenwich sections we found deal with streets, snow areas and town property. Greenwich may pass blight rules if owners are told in writing and given a fair shot at fixing things, but on cars the state statute leaves it to local ordinance. Ask the town whether a dead car on private Greenwich property falls under rules of its own.

The long drive to a DMV office

Greenwich Town Hall issues no titles; only the state DMV does. The office we checked lies at 2 Lee Mac Avenue in Danbury, some 26 miles northeast of central Greenwich as the crow flies, and other offices may exist. Hub offices with full service do every kind of transaction, and most offices take bookings.

Sign the back of the certificate and give it to the buyer. Add a bill of sale, such as H-31. If the title is missing, Form H-6B gets you a new one for $25.00. It comes by mail within 20 business days. Greenwich cars older than 20 model years get no Connecticut title. For one of those, you use Form Q-1 with your most recent registration. See selling with no title.

Plates come home with you

Pull the plates and cancel the registration, online if you like. Connecticut gives you no other release, so the cancellation receipt is what you keep. Hold onto liability insurance until that cancellation finishes. Until then the car stays on the Greenwich tax rolls.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or send the form. For a Greenwich car, our short form covers the basics we need. Neighboring towns include Stamford, Darien, New Canaan and Norwalk, and statewide rules live on the Connecticut page.