Getting rid of a dead car in Winter Park

How the city decides a car is disabled

Chapter 98 defines a "disabled motor vehicle" as one "incapable of being self-propelled upon the public streets of the city," or one that does not meet the rules for street use, "including a current motor vehicle license." An "abandoned motor vehicle" is any one "left unattended for a period exceeding 48 hours" (98-186). The signs of "evident disuse, neglect or abandonment" include:

• wrecked or inoperative, or partly dismantled with no engine or transmission
• no valid license tag
• vegetation under it as high as the body or frame
• refuse or debris collected underneath, or use only as storage

Under 22-177, the notice must be in writing and give the date the ten days run out. If the disabled car is not removed within those ten calendar days, "enforcement of this article will ensue."

Boots, tows and the 15-day window

On a street, a public parking lot, a bridge or a causeway, the city may have an abandoned or disabled car removed right away in the listed cases, with the cost made a lien against the car. Police may also tow a car parked where or when parking is banned (98-34). They must tell the owner in writing why it was moved and where it went. Police who cannot identify the owner must send a written report once three days go by with the car unreturned.

Five or more unpaid parking notices can lead to a boot (98-35). A mailed notice comes first, and the owner can ask the chief of police in writing, within 15 days of mailing, to contest it. If a day passes with no one arranging to get the boot off, the car can be towed. A car left in violation in a signed or paid space for over 48 hours can also be booted.

Four miles to the title office

FLHSMV's Orange County service center, 301 S. Rosalind Ave., Orlando, (407) 434-0312, lies only about 4 miles southwest of downtown Winter Park, as the crow flies. Go there if the title is electronic; you and the buyer reassign it in person, IDs in hand. It also handles a duplicate on form HSMV 82101, which costs $75.25, with $10.00 more for Fast Title. A lost paper title must be replaced before you sell. No fee applies when the title was lost in the mail and less than 180 days have passed since it was issued.

The Florida checklist

• No notary on the seller's section of a paper title.
• The plate is yours: reuse it on a future car, or hand it in if the insurance on it is ending.
• File the sale notice (form HSMV 82050) inside the 30 days Florida Statute 319.22 allows.
• No title and an old car worth under $1,000? The derelict certificate, HSMV 82137, is the route. See selling with no title.

Getting an offer

Fill in the short form online, or ring (877) 421-6008. Year, model, approximate miles, whether it runs, and the title question are all we need to begin. Pickup can be from a street near downtown, a garage, or a repair bay. Nearby: Casselberry, Altamonte Springs and Orlando. See Florida for statewide rules.