Selling a dead car in Chester

Chester's own code

Chester's ordinances on junk or abandoned cars were not available online when we checked. Local rules could sit on top of the state's, and only the city can say for sure. The rest of this page is Pennsylvania law, which applies here either way.

Delaware County inspections

Publication 763 lists the Philadelphia emissions region as five counties: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia. (Chester County is a different place from the city of Chester, which sits in Delaware County.) State law gives a new buyer ten days of driving before a current inspection certificate is needed. A junk car leaving on a truck does not need either test.

A stranger's car on your lot

Some Chester owners are stuck with a car that is not theirs. Here is the state's process. Once the car has overstayed your permission by more than 24 hours, a report to local police lets you authorize its removal. Chester police treat it as abandoned within five business days. From the mailed notice, the owner and any lienholder have 30 days to cover towing and storage and recover it. See car abandoned on your property before you call a tow.

On a street, the state presumes abandonment when a car is "physically inoperable and left unattended on a highway or other public property for more than 48 hours." The owner can rebut that.

Scrap processor or salvage dealer

Pennsylvania treats the two buyers a little differently, and both skip the notary:

• Scrap metal processor. The title is signed over to the processor, who forwards it to PennDOT with a nonrepairable mark. A nonrepairable car can never be rebuilt or retitled.
• Vehicle salvage dealer. The dealer receives the signed title and files it with PennDOT either as nonrepairable or along with a certificate of salvage application.

Our junkyard or scrap yard guide sorts out who does what.

Signing the title in Chester

Delaware County has no title office; PennDOT's authorized agents do the job instead, whether a tag service, a notary or a dealer. A Chester agent sees you sign, print your name and enter the miles. A co-owner signs too. The buyer then has 20 days, starting that day, to ask for a new title.

Keep the plate for yourself. In Chester, either send it back to the Return Tag Unit at PennDOT or spend $11.00 to have it on a different car.

Getting an offer

Getting a number takes a short note about the car: what it is, the mileage, whether it starts, and the title's status. Send it online or phone (877) 421-6008. Pickup is free anywhere in the US, so a Chester side street, a driveway or a repair-shop lot all work. Philadelphia sits 17.0 miles off in a straight line. For rules across the state, see the Pennsylvania page.