In the United States, over 700,000 cars are stolen each year. The authorities recover an average of 46% of those vehicles. That percentage varies by state: while Alabama has only a 28% percent recovery rate, Washington State had 71% and Utah, 63%. As a general rule, agencies must classify as Motor Vehicle Theft all cases where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access ”even though the vehicles are later abandoned”.
So you bought that salvage title vehicle at auction. The next step after you get the car is to make the repairs. Your goal is to get the vehicle roadworthy, and for that to happen it must pass inspection. You might need to photograph repairs to your salvage car Maybe your state is one of those that requires you to submit before and after photographs of the build. A friendly reminder: ALWAYS check your state’s regulations and the titling process. This article is purely informational and it’s not meant to be a comprehensive guide on what you need to submit to local authorities. That is something you need to research on your own.
A salvage title vehicle is one that has been written off by the insurance company because the cost to repair the salvage car exceeds its estimated value. This will vary from state to state, but for the most part, that number is over 60% of the value of the salvage car. At that point, the insurance company will write-off the car, pay the claim and request a salvage title for the car.
In part 1, we told you about how to prepare for the inspection process for repaired salvage cars. In Part 2, we will talk about the actual inspection.
Once the owner of the salvage title car or truck has repaired the car and taken the photographs, it is time to assemble the documents, showing where each major component used in the repair was sourced from, and go to the actual inspection. Depending on the jurisdiction that can mean going to a repair shop that is authorized by the state to do the inspections, or it can mean some sort of governmental entity or officials. For example, in the case of Michigan, inspectors are law enforcement officers from the county the owner resides, as is the case with Wisconsin, where the certified salvage title inspector is a law enforcement officer.
Are you trying to find salvage cars for sale online? There are many options and several things to consider. To make the process easier we have put together this guide.
This guide will answer all questions you may have when trying to find salvage cars for sale online.