Selling a dead or junk car in Westerville

Section 303.10, step by step

1. The car qualifies. It can't move on its own because of defective or missing parts, and it has been that way 10 days running. A car "unfit for further use" also counts, and that test has no 10-day wait: the car is dangerous, has defective or missing parts, or is otherwise unfit to carry people or goods.
2. The City Manager gives notice to the owner, the occupant or whoever is in charge of the premises. Westerville can deliver it by hand, leave it at your usual residence, or post it registered or certified to the last address on file.
3. You have 10 days from the notice date to end the violation, whether by repair, an enclosed structure or removal.
4. After that, every day is a new offense, with no further notice. Penalties climb from a minor misdemeanor to fourth degree for a repeat inside a year, then third degree.

Zoning asks for more at home

Section 303.10 is not the only rule. On a residential lot, Section 1171.06 wants every vehicle on the premises in working order, with proper tags and stickers, unless it is parked inside an enclosed structure. Cars must sit on an impervious surface, like a driveway or parking area, or in a garage or carport. The zoning nuisance section lists abandoned unlicensed or inoperable vehicles as a public nuisance.

The property maintenance code the city adopted, in Section 1327.03, goes further still. It keeps inoperative and unlicensed vehicles off every Westerville premises, parked or stored. Stripping a car or tearing it down is out, spray painting requires a booth, and a big overhaul or body work belongs inside an approved enclosed structure.

Streets, towing and snow

Abandoning a junk car is its own offense under Section 303.09. The clock is 72 hours on another person's land without consent. A car on a public road or other right-of-way gets 48 hours, unless the Police Chief was told why. Conviction brings a minor misdemeanor, and Westerville also bills its disposal costs.

Section 303.08 lists the tows that matter here: a car that sits on someone else's land past 48 straight hours without the possessor's okay, one stored against Section 303.10, a wreck that won't run, and a car blocking somebody's driveway. Police tell the registered owner about the tow, why it happened and where the car went. Redemption is at the Police Division: identification, ownership papers, fines or bond, a release form, then the tow and storage bill.

After 3 inches of snow, Section 351.14 bars parking on any street designated for emergency snow removal until it has been cleared. A car left there can be towed and impounded.

Two counties, three nearby title offices

Westerville straddles Franklin and Delaware counties, but title work isn't tied to either; Ohio accepts any county's Clerk of Courts. From Westerville's center point, Franklin County's Campus View office is about 5.1 miles west as the crow flies, at (614) 525-3090. Delaware County's sits in Lewis Center, about 6.3 miles to the northwest. Eastward, Licking County runs one in Pataskala, on Worthington Rd., about 10.1 miles away.

Ohio wants a notary watching when a seller signs the title over, Westerville sellers included. At the transfer the registration lapses, so the plates come off, and they stay with you.

Getting an offer

Online or at (877) 421-6008, give us the car's model year and name, its miles, whether the engine runs, and what the title shows. You sell the whole car as it sits. Nearby: Delaware and Columbus; Ohio has statewide rules.