Selling a dead car in North Haven

What Chapter 190 does cover

Section 190-22 lets the town impound and seize a recreational vehicle ridden in violation of the article. If fines, fees and taxes are still unpaid six months after the impound, the vehicle "shall be deemed forfeited to the Town." The owner or lienholder can still collect it within 90 days after the town posts a notice on its website and mails it. None of this is written for an ordinary car, so do not read it as North Haven's junk-car rule.

Connecticut's clocks for a car left sitting

• A day on someone else's land. Past 24 hours, a car left on a North Haven highway or on land that isn't yours is an infraction. Connecticut sets the fine at $85 or more.
• The 24-hour sticker. A car that looks left behind or has no registration can get a police notice on it. One day after that, North Haven may tow it and keep it in storage, with the owner paying.
• The certified letter. Within 48 hours of a tow, police or the parking authority write to the owner and lienholders by certified mail. North Haven owners get 10 days from then to contest.
• When a sale can happen. North Haven tows worth $1,500 or less may be sold once 15 days go by. Higher-value cars wait 45 days. That clock does not run if title has already vested in the town.

Connecticut leaves blight to each town. Its statute lets a town enforce blight rules after giving the owner notice in writing and a reasonable opportunity to correct things, but never mentions vehicles. So North Haven's own ordinance decides whether a junk car is blight there.

The tax side of a dead car

North Haven's tax list keeps the car on it until the registration is cancelled. That has teeth: if a town reports someone as tax delinquent, the DMV is required to deny registrations in that person's name. Cancel the registration after the sale and hold on to the receipt. If North Haven bills you later, show its assessor that receipt and your copy of the bill of sale. See car property tax.

The Hamden DMV office

Titles in North Haven, as everywhere in Connecticut, come from the state. The DMV office we checked is at 1985 State Street in Hamden, about 4 miles southwest of central North Haven in a straight line.

Title steps

Selling in North Haven means signing the title's back and including a bill of sale. Can't find the North Haven car's title? North Haven owners who lose a title can replace it with Form H-6B for $25.00; the DMV mails it within 20 business days. Anything over 20 model years old needs no title in Connecticut; the buyer gets Form Q-1 plus your newest registration instead. More on the Connecticut page.

Nearby towns

Hamden is 3.6 miles away. Wallingford and New Haven are 6.0 miles off, and East Haven 6.1.

Getting an offer

North Haven sellers can call (877) 421-6008 or send the offer form. We collect from driveways, parking lots and repair shops in town.