Selling a dead or junk car in Simsbury

How Simsbury's removal notice works

Section 147-5 covers an abandoned car or "discarded motor vehicle parts" found on private property. The town writes to the landowner, the person in possession or control of the land, and the car's owner if known, by "registered or certified mail, return receipt requested". The letter asks for "the immediate removal" of the car.

Then the dates:

• The notice is "deemed to have been properly given" on "the third calendar day" after mailing.
• If the car is still there after "30 calendar days subsequent to the receipt of said notification", the town "may cause removal" to a licensed junkyard or an impound area.
• The town can then seek its removal and disposal costs from the landowner, whoever controls the land, or the car's owner.

So a letter mailed on the 1st counts as received on the 4th, and the 30 days run from there.

Two offices, two jobs

Section 147-7 splits the work. "The Zoning Enforcement Officer of the Town of Simsbury shall be responsible for providing all notices", while "The Chief of Police shall be responsible for the removal and disposition" of the car. Questions about the letter go to zoning. If the car is already gone, it is a police matter.

Section 147-3 exempts cars kept in a motor vehicle junkyard licensed under state law. A home driveway is not one, so the chapter reaches ordinary houses.

The state clocks behind the town's

Connecticut law runs alongside Chapter 147. If you leave a car on a highway or another person's land for over 24 hours, that's an infraction, and the fine is $85 or more. When police put a sticker on a car that seems left behind or unregistered, the owner has 24 hours. Then Simsbury may tow it and hold it in storage, billed to the owner. After a Simsbury tow, the owner gets a certified letter within 48 hours and has 10 days to contest.

Title work goes to the state, not Town Hall

Connecticut titles come from the state DMV. Simsbury has no title counter, and neither does the county. The DMV we checked for Simsbury is at 60 State Street in Wethersfield, roughly 14 miles southeast on a map line. Most offices book appointments.

To sell in Simsbury, sign the back of the title and add a bill of sale, either Form H-31 or your own version. Keep copies. The DMV's seller steps include no notary. Older cars are easier. Simsbury cars past 20 model years old have no title. For a Simsbury car like that, the sale needs Form Q-1 and its latest registration certificate. Newer cars work the other way. A licensed recycler can't legally take that Simsbury car with no title. A lost Simsbury title is replaced on Form H-6B for $25 and mailed within 20 business days. See junk car with no title.

Plates and the Simsbury tax bill

Pull the plates and cancel the registration. The town keeps taxing the car until the DMV cancels the registration, which is why the receipt counts. Keep liability insurance on until the cancellation goes through. If Simsbury's assessor sends another bill anyway, show them the receipt plus a bill of sale copy. After you sell covers the rest.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or ask online. Simsbury owners can get started through the offer form. If a zoning letter has already come, mention the date on it. Nearby Bloomfield and Farmington are close by. Statewide rules are on the Connecticut page.