Selling a junk car in Reading

Two parts of the code, one rule

Reading reaches the same result twice. The quality-of-life section, 180-1203, bans the cars listed above and adds that "No vehicle shall, at any time, be in a state of major disassembly, disrepair, or in the process of being stripped or dismantled." The city's version of the International Property Maintenance Code, in Section 180-1301, says "inoperative or unlicensed motor vehicles shall not be parked, kept or stored on any premises." It defines an inoperable car as one that "cannot be driven upon the public streets," for reasons including being "unlicensed, wrecked, abandoned, in a state of disrepair, or incapable of being moved under its own power."

The definitions in Section 180-1202 spell out what a "motor vehicle nuisance" looks like. One listed defect will be familiar to anyone who has pulled the wheels off a project car: "Storage or placement of the vehicle in an unbalanced condition, on concrete blocks or other similar apparatus."

Notices, fines and appeals

Once notice has been served, "Each day that a violation continues after due notice has been served shall be deemed a separate offense punishable by a separate fine." If you think the city got it wrong, Section 180-1301 lets anyone directly affected appeal to the board of appeals, "provided that a written application for appeal is filed within 20 days after the day the decision, notice or order was served."

Owners of a building with an open notice should also know this: the code bars selling, transferring, mortgaging or leasing that property until the notice or compliance order has been satisfied. A dead car in the yard can hold up a house sale.

On the street

Section 576-408 covers city streets, highways and public property. Three things get a car in trouble there:

• no current, valid registration plates
• no current inspection sticker, unless the car is legally parked at or near an official state inspection station with a work order for an inspection "within 24 hours"
• being "deemed mechanically inoperable"

Breakdowns on someone else's land get a short window too. Under Section 576-409, a driver whose car became disabled on private property must "within 24 hours" show proof of the emergency and remove the car.

Towing and snow

Only "approved storage garages" named by City Council may remove and impound cars under the parking part of the code. Each garage must show it is bonded or insured, must file its schedule of charges with Council, and must not charge anything else. Council strikes a garage from the list for an unapproved charge.

The Mayor, or the Managing Director when the Mayor is away, declares snow emergencies. That can happen while snow is falling, after fresh snow, or on "a firm forecast of snow." Owners then have "a maximum of four hours" to clear the snow emergency routes. The Reading Parking Authority opens its garages to city residents at no charge during the emergency. If the car won't start, there is no way to meet that four-hour window.

Title, plates and inspection in Berks County

Berks County does not issue titles. Pennsylvania does, and in Reading the signing is done before one of the state's authorized agents: a notary, tag service or car dealer. With the agent watching, you put your signature on the seller's section, write your name out by hand and enter the mileage; the buyer adds a signature too. The statute calls for the assignment to be "sworn to before a notary public or other officer empowered to administer oaths." Scrap processors and salvage dealers are the exception, since the law lets them accept the assigned title unnotarized.

In Reading, pull the plate before our truck drives off. It is yours, not the car's. Reading sellers can mail it back to PennDOT or carry it over to another vehicle, a move that costs $11.00. No release-of-liability form appears in PennDOT's selling steps, so the plate is how you close your side.

Berks is listed in PennDOT's South Central emissions region, which Publication 763 describes as pending certification. Every Pennsylvania car still needs its annual safety inspection, which is why so many dead cars in Reading trip the sticker rule first. If the title is gone, Form MV-38O replaces it for $72.00. If the car is salvage-bound and the title is lost, a salvor can still accept it under the Vehicle Code; junk car with no title explains both routes.

Getting an offer

Send the form or ring (877) 421-6008. Reading car? Use the offer form. We haul from tight rowhouse streets, alley garages, or a shop in Pottstown. The Pennsylvania page has the statewide rules.