Selling a junk car in Sandy

There is a simpler route. We buy whole non-running and junk cars, so you sell the whole car as it sits, and free pickup anywhere in the US covers Sandy too.

Two paths to scrap

Path one is the dismantling permit. After the title is turned in for cancellation, the permit holder may strip the car or deliver it to a licensed crusher, dismantler or salvage dealer.

Path two fits a car with no future. For a Sandy car that won't run and won't ever be rebuilt, State Tax Commission staff can sign an "Affidavit of Abandoned and Inoperable Vehicle". People also call it a Junk Permit. Under the statute, an investigator's written finding that rebuilding is impossible is what makes it abandoned and inoperable. After that, no permit steps are needed to scrap it. The salvage buyer signs a pledge that it won't be rebuilt.

Weigh both routes in part it out or sell it whole.

A week on borrowed ground

Utah calls a car abandoned once it stays "on public or private property for a period in excess of seven days without express or implied consent of the owner or person in control of the property." Beside a highway the cutoff is shorter, 48 hours. Abandoning a car either way is an infraction.

Nine miles to a counter

From central Sandy, the Taylorsville office we checked (Suite 1200, 4315 South 2700 West, 801-297-7780) is about 9 miles northwest as the crow flies, a long drive for one signature.

Most of the job can happen at home. Utah needs no notary on a seller's signature. Owners listed with AND all sign; with OR, one signs. Get the title to the buyer inside 48 hours. Hold on to a bill of sale as proof (TC-843 is optional).

If your Sandy car is under 20 years old, the TC-891 odometer form gets signed by both you and the buyer too. Pull your plate unless it is sold along with the car, since a plate left mounted can drag future tickets back to you. Report the Sandy sale to the state on the Motor Vehicle Portal, by mail, or by calling 1-800-DMV-UTAH. Each step is on the Utah page.

Neighbors

Cottonwood Heights lies 3.4 miles from Sandy and Midvale 3.7. Next come Draper at 5.2 miles, Murray at 5.8 and Holladay at 6.3.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or send the form. Note the model year, brand, model and odometer, where the title stands, and whether anything has been removed already. A driveway, a shop bay or a store lot anywhere in Sandy's 24 square miles works as a meeting point for the truck.