Getting rid of a junk or broken-down car in Bourne

Moving a car that isn't yours

Section 120D says no one may remove a vehicle from private property unless the driver "was forbidden to park there" by notice from the person in lawful control of the land. That can be a sign or a direct warning. The police must also be notified. Skip telling police or getting the owner's okay, and the fine can reach $100. The RMV's own law page sends owners to local police guides for removals from private property, so the Bourne police are the call to make. For the full process, see car abandoned on your property.

Bourne's street officer can also remove an apparently abandoned car parked "more than 72 hours" on a road or someone's land without permission, if it's worth less than its removal and disposal (c. 90 s. 22C).

If the police had it towed

After a police tow in Bourne, passenger car storage can't top $35 per 24 hours in a fenced, lit, secure lot, and half that in any other lot. Because the storage company has a lien, each extra day is charged against the car. If paying to free a towed Bourne car makes no sense, towed or impounded covers selling it instead.

Paperwork for a Bourne sale

No notary appears anywhere in the RMV's private-sale steps. In Bourne the mileage goes in from the seller. Then buyer and seller each sign the transfer section, print a name and add the date. When a Bourne title has no place to write the price, put it on a bill of sale. The Bourne buyer then has 10 days after the sale to title it, paying the $75 fee.

Having no title for an old car can be fine. Bourne passenger cars from 1980 or before that were bought ahead of Nov. 26, 1990 never had to have one. Use your last registration and a bill of sale.

Plates and the registration

Bourne sellers hold on to their plates. Log in to MyMassGov, end the registration, and keep the receipt for your insurance company, which wants a copy. Destroy the plates afterward, by halving them or sending them to a recycler; the RMV does not take them back. With the registration gone, the car is barred from "any public way," so it rides out on the truck. Ending it also stops the town's excise bills.

The buyer handles inspection. Within 7 days of registering, the car has to pass Massachusetts Vehicle Check, which is the state's safety and emissions test. So a Bourne car that would fail does not need fixing before it is sold.

Getting an offer

In Bourne, ring (877) 421-6008 or use our form and sell the whole car as it sits. We pick up anywhere in Bourne's 40 square miles. Bourne's neighbors are close: Sandwich lies 5.5 miles away on a map and Wareham 6.4. For state rules, see the Massachusetts page.