Selling a dead or unregistered car in Troy

The 48-hour warning

Section 275-1 labels abandoned, junked, discarded, dismantled or inoperable cars on private land reachable from the street a "public nuisance" under the state Penal Law. The council's worry is children who play in and around them.

The process is quick. After "the forty-eight-hour notice and warning," if the car has not been moved as the Commissioner of Public Works directed, the Commissioner can send a city employee or an authorized agent to remove it. On vacant land the duty falls on whoever owns, leases or occupies the parcel, no matter who left the car there.

When a tow truck takes a car from private land

Section 275-22 adds a paper trail. A tow operator who removes a car from private property without the registered owner's written consent must send written notice to the Police Department "within 48 hours of such removal." The notice lists the year, make, model, color, VIN and plate number. Then the car is protected for a week: "It shall be unlawful to dispose of any such vehicle, or any part thereof, for a period of seven days" after that notice. The operator keeps a copy for a year. If your car vanished from a lot, the police should have a record of who took it.

Abandoned cars that the Police Department impounds can end up at a public auction run by the City Purchasing Agent under Section 275-19. They sell "as is," and the winning bidder hauls them away.

Who may haul junk here

Troy licenses its junk trade. Chapter 185 counts anyone in the business of buying or selling "old or scrap metal, junk or secondhand articles" as a junk dealer. Section 185-10 says the city license number must appear "in a prominent place upon each vehicle used for the collection of junk." The state stacks another rule on top. A Troy buyer who parts out or scraps cars must hold a DMV vehicle dismantler registration. In New York, skipping it is a class E felony.

Selling it: who signs, and what to keep

Only the title's named owner may sell in New York. When two owners appear, a single one can sign, and a member of the business signs for a company car. A Troy seller completes the title's transfer section and an MV-912 bill of sale, and no notary is needed. Giving the car away? On the Troy bill of sale, write $0 as the price and include the DTF-802 Statement of Transaction.

Plates come next. Without a notice-of-sale form in New York, pulling the plates is what protects a seller. Keep the bill of sale in case the DMV later sends an insurance-lapse letter. Plates go back before insurance ends, never after. See after you sell.

Nearby towns

From Troy, Albany is 7.9 miles away as the crow flies, Schenectady 13.6 and Saratoga Springs 23.5. For statewide rules, see New York.

Getting an offer

Online or at (877) 421-6008, let us know the car's year and model, the miles on it, if the engine catches, and the owner named on the title. Already have a 48-hour warning on the windshield? Say where the car is parked and the truck will meet it there.