How to Sell a Junk Car in Arkansas? + DFA Title Transfer

The bottom line: To sell a junk car in Arkansas, get quotes from a few online buyers, pick the best one, and hand over the signed title when the tow truck arrives. Most sales finish in 24 to 48 hours.

Peddle, Wheelzy, and CashForCars all buy in Arkansas and tow for free. Most junk cars bring $200 to $600. On the day you need the title and a photo ID, and nothing else.

Arkansas does let you scrap a car with no title, but the rule is narrow. The condition: the vehicle must be at least 25 model years old with no title available and sold for scrap or dismantling; otherwise apply for a replacement title, or a bonded title if the title was never in your name.

Lost the title? A replacement takes at least 3 weeks by mail, so start that first. Once the car is gone, file the transfer notice within 10 days or you stay on the hook for the property tax. Start by getting a few numbers side by side and compare offers from multiple buyers.

Most people land here with one specific problem. Jump straight to yours.

Six steps, and only two of them take real effort. If your title is in hand, you can start this morning and have the car gone by Friday.

Every quote form asks the same handful of things: year, make, model, your ZIP code, and whether the car starts and rolls. Most also ask for the VIN, which sits on a small plate at the base of the windshield on the driver’s side, or on the sticker inside the driver’s door frame.

You get a number back in about a minute. It’s a real offer, not an estimate, and it holds for seven days with all three buyers below.

Answer honestly about missing parts and flood or fire damage. The offer is based on what you typed, so a surprise at pickup is the one thing that changes the number.

Three forms take about five minutes total, or you can compare offers from multiple buyers in one go.

Top junk car buyers in Arkansas. All three buy across Arkansas and arrange the tow themselves, though pickup in the more remote Ozark and Delta counties can run an extra day.

Title required to sell: yes

You also need a photo ID that matches the name printed on the title. That’s the whole list for most sales.

Expired registration doesn’t stop anything. Neither does an expired tag or a lapsed insurance policy, because none of that is part of the title transfer.

A bill of sale is required, and Arkansas uses Form 10-313 for it.

Where to get it: downloadable PDF on the Arkansas DFA website; Form 10-313 combines the bill of sale with the odometer disclosure

Odometer disclosure is required for model year 2011 and newer vehicles, with model year 2010 and older, trailers, and vehicles over 16,000 lbs GVWR exempt. Most junk cars are old enough to fall outside that, so the mileage box is often just a formality.

If both names on the title are joined by “and,” both people have to sign. If they’re joined by “or,” either one can.

Most junk sales need no forms at all. These come up when something is missing or the car isn’t straightforwardly yours.

Once you accept, the buyer hands your car to a local towing partner and that dispatcher calls you, usually the same day. You agree on a window, normally a morning or an afternoon rather than an exact hour.

Someone whose name is on the title has to be there to sign and hand over the keys. If that can’t be you, ask the buyer about power of attorney before pickup day rather than on it.

Your quote is good for seven days, so there’s no rush to lock in a slot the same afternoon.

Most junk pickups use a flatbed, which needs about 40 feet of straight approach and something firm to back onto. Gravel and packed dirt are fine. Soft ground after a wet week is not, so mention it when you book.

Empty the car properly. Check the glovebox, the center console, under the seats, the door pockets, the visors, and the spare tire well, because that’s where insurance cards, garage door remotes, and toll tags hide.

Leave the plates on until the truck is on its way. A car sitting in the driveway with no tags can draw complaints from neighbours or get reported as abandoned, so pull them the same day it goes.

Gather every key you have, including the spare. Leave the catalytic converter, battery, and wheels on the car, because those are part of what you were offered and stripping them lowers the number.

Notarization is not required in Arkansas, so you sign the title right there at the car with the driver watching. Use blue or black ink and sign exactly as your name is printed on the front.

Don’t sign until the driver is standing there. A title signed in advance and left on the kitchen counter is a real problem if the pickup falls through.

Payment is usually cash or check. It depends on the tow company. You get paid before the car goes on the truck, not after.

Take a photo of the signed title and the bill of sale before either leaves your hand. If you want the full walkthrough of which box goes where, our guide to selling a car in Arkansas covers the title section by section.

Plates stay with the seller in Arkansas, so you have two options once the car is gone.

You can transfer your plates to another vehicle you own, or return them to a DFA revenue office. Moving a plate onto another car you own costs $1.

Handing the plates back is not the same as clearing your name off the car.

Does surrendering plates release you: no, you must also file the Notice of Transfer of Ownership to release liability

The form you file is Notice of Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle, and you have 10 days to do it. This is the step almost nobody tells Arkansas sellers about.

File online through the Arkansas MyDMV portal, or submit the Notice of Transfer of Ownership at a DFA revenue office.

If you skip it: the seller may remain liable for property tax and for the vehicle until the transfer is reported

In practice that means a personal property tax bill next year for a car that’s been crushed for months. Take ten minutes and file it.

Cancel the insurance last, once the car is physically gone and the filing is in. Doing it the week before leaves you uninsured on a vehicle still sitting in your driveway.

Most junk cars bring $200 to $600. Heavier trucks and SUVs land at the top of that, and small cars missing major parts land at the bottom.

Weight drives the floor, because a scrapped car is priced as metal by the ton. Everything above that floor comes from parts the buyer can resell.

Our own 2026 quote tests on junk-tier cars came back between $345 and $600 across these buyers. A 2011 Audi Q5 with a salvage title and 193,000 miles was offered $597.43 by CashForCars.

The catalytic converter matters more than anything else. If yours has been cut off, expect the offer to drop by a few hundred dollars, and say so on the form so the number you see is the number you get.

Completeness beats condition. A car that doesn’t run but still has its engine, transmission, battery, and wheels is worth more than a running car that’s been picked over.

Weight is free money. A three-quarter ton pickup and a compact sedan in identical shape are not close, because one has nearly twice the metal.

Parts demand lifts common models. Pickups and older domestic sedans do well in Arkansas because the yards move those parts quickly.

Flood and fire damage cut deep. Water above the dash ruins the wiring and electronics, which are the parts a yard most wants to resell.

A missing title costs you options, not always dollars. Fewer buyers will bid, and less competition usually shows up as a lower number.

For a wider look at how offers stack up, see who gives the most cash for junk cars.

All three of these buy cars that don’t run, and none of them ask you to get it started or towed anywhere. They send a truck and take it as it sits.

Peddle works through local towing partners around Little Rock, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Springdale, Jonesboro, and Conway.

Peddle offered $385 for a 2008 Subaru Outback with rear damage and $580 for a salvage title Audi Q5. The quote holds for seven days and pickup usually lands within 24 to 48 hours.

One limit worth knowing upfront: Peddle only buys cars with a clear title in your name.

Wheelzy covers Rogers, Bentonville, North Little Rock, Pine Bluff, Hot Springs, and Texarkana through its own tow network.

Wheelzy offered $351 for a salvage title Honda Accord and $362 for a Trailblazer that doesn’t drive. The offer holds seven days, and the driver checks the car against your description before paying.

Wheelzy will often help sort out a missing title, and in some cases accepts registration or other proof of ownership instead.

CashForCars runs a network of roughly 200 locations, reaching Little Rock, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Jonesboro, and Hot Springs.

CashForCars came in highest on our two worst vehicles, offering $375 for the non-running Trailblazer and $387 for the salvage title Accord. Quotes hold for seven days and most deals close in 24 to 48 hours.

They handle the ownership paperwork on their end, including lien releases and registration cancellation, and some locations accept a bonded title.

If your title is clean and in your name, Peddle is the simplest of the three. If the title is missing or the ownership is messy, Wheelzy and CashForCars are the two that work with alternate documents.

Get all three numbers anyway. Our tests showed spreads of $30 to $200 on the same car, which is real money on a $400 sale.

There is a legal path, and it’s narrower than most sites suggest. It comes from Arkansas Code § 27-14-913 (scrap or dismantle exception) and § 27-14-409 (bonded title).

The condition: the vehicle must be at least 25 model years old with no title available and sold for scrap or dismantling; otherwise apply for a replacement title, or a bonded title if the title was never in your name

You have three options, depending on your car.

1. The 25 year scrap route. If the car is old enough and headed for dismantling, you can sell on a bill of sale instead of a title.
2. A replacement title. The normal answer for anything newer, and cheap enough that it’s usually worth the wait.
3. A bonded title. For a car that was never titled in your name, like something you bought years ago and never transferred.

What the state needs: A bill of sale verified and signed by a law enforcement officer for 25+ year scrap vehicles, or Form 10-345 Statement of Facts for a bonded title

You don’t file anything on the 25 year route. Your job is to get a municipal police officer, a sheriff, or a deputy to sign the bill of sale after checking the year, make, model, and VIN against the car.

The officer forwards it to the Office of Motor Vehicle, and the city or county collects a $5 fee for that service. The buyer files the Notice of Intent to Dismantle from their end.

Because the buyer has to do their half, ask before you accept an offer. Not every yard or national buyer will take a car this way, so confirm it on the phone rather than assuming.

One thing to be sure about: once that dismantle notice is recorded, Arkansas will not issue a title for that car again. There’s a 90 day window to correct a filing made in error, and after that the car can never go back on the road.

This is common with cars bought cheap from a neighbour or a relative years ago. A replacement title won’t work, because the state can only reissue to the last owner of record, and that isn’t you.

The bonded title route exists for exactly this. You post a surety bond, the state issues a title in your name, and after that you sell the car normally.

It takes longer and costs more than a replacement, so weigh it against what the car is worth. On a $300 shell, call Wheelzy or CashForCars first and ask what documents they’ll take.

A replacement title costs $10 and takes at least 3 weeks by mail. That’s cheap and slow, which changes how you should think about it.

If the car is worth more than about $500, apply and wait. The fee is nothing against the extra buyers who will bid once you have a title in hand.

If it’s a stripped shell worth $200, weeks of waiting isn’t worth it. Call Wheelzy or CashForCars first, since those two work with alternate documents.

The form is Form 10-381. You apply in person at any Arkansas state revenue office, or by mail to the DFA Special License Unit.

Where to send it: any Arkansas state revenue office, or by mail to Department of Finance and Administration, Special License Unit, P.O. Box 1272, Little Rock, AR 72203

Can you get it faster: yes, in person at the Central Revenue Office in Little Rock

What that costs: $10, ready for pickup in 3 business days

Apply for the title and get your quotes at the same time. There’s no reason to sit and wait before finding out what the car is worth.

A lien has to come off before anyone will buy the car. To clear it, the lienholder completes Form 10-315 (Official Release of Lien) or provides an official release letter on company letterhead.

If the loan is settled but the lien is still showing, call the lender and ask for the release on letterhead or the completed form. Banks handle this constantly and it usually takes a few days.

If you still owe more than the car is worth, you’ll need to clear the balance before the sale. Our guide on selling a financed car walks through the options.

Arkansas mails you a paper title. There’s no owner-facing digital title to pull up on a phone at pickup, so the physical document is what the driver needs to see.

Replacement available online: no

That means the application goes in on paper, either in person or by mail.

Arkansas borders six states, so cars carrying Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma titles turn up here constantly. You can sell one sitting in Arkansas without converting it first.

The buyers handle it routinely, and the title’s home state doesn’t change what happens at pickup.

If that title is lost, apply to the state that issued it, not to Arkansas. The Arkansas DFA can’t replace a title it never printed.

The form for an inherited vehicle is Form 10-306 (Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle), or Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration if probated. Which one you use comes down to whether the estate went through probate.

Arkansas sets a small estate threshold, and staying under it is what lets you use the simpler affidavit route.

Small estate threshold: $100,000, the small estate threshold under Arkansas Code 28-41-101

If probated: Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration with the title. If not probated: Form 10-306 affidavit plus a copy of the death certificate. The heir must title the vehicle in their own name before selling it.

That last part catches people out. Titling a dead relative’s junk car into your own name first feels like pointless bureaucracy, but it’s the step that makes the sale legal.

A car left on your property by someone else is a different problem entirely, with its own process. See our guide on selling an abandoned vehicle.

Arkansas doesn’t stamp “junk” on a title. What it tracks is what happens to the car, and each label carries a different consequence for you.

The last row is the one to think about. If there’s any chance you or someone else might want to fix the car later, the dismantle route closes that door for good.

If your car carries a salvage brand, our guide on selling a car with a salvage title covers what changes.

A local yard can sometimes beat an online offer, especially if they need your exact model for parts. The catch is that you have to call around, and each call means describing the car again.

Some yards also charge for towing, or knock the tow cost off the offer. Ask about that on the first call rather than finding out at pickup.

Online buyers give you a firm number in a minute, hold it for a week, and tow at no cost. That predictability is why most people use them for a car that isn’t worth a day of phone calls.

A reasonable middle ground is to take an online quote first, then call one or two local yards with that number in hand. If nobody beats it, you’ve lost ten minutes.

If you’re waiting on a replacement title, the car has to sit somewhere. Keep it on private property, since an unregistered car parked on a street or in a public lot can be tagged and towed.

Many Arkansas cities and homeowner associations have their own rules about inoperable vehicles in view of the street. A tarp and a spot behind the home solve most complaints.

Put something under the engine to catch drips. More on this in our guide to storing a junk car.

Motor vehicle office: Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Motor Vehicle (DFA)

Transferring ownership: Arkansas DFA, Transfer Vehicle Ownership

Where transfers happen: any Arkansas state revenue office, or online through the MyDMV portal

With the title in hand, 24 to 48 hours from accepting an offer to the car leaving. The quote itself takes about a minute.

Without the title, the replacement is what sets the clock. Apply for it and get quotes at the same time so you’re not waiting twice.

Almost always. Title required to sell: yes

The one exception comes from Arkansas Code § 27-14-913 (scrap or dismantle exception) and § 27-14-409 (bonded title), and even then a law enforcement officer has to verify and sign the bill of sale before it counts.

Cost: $10

That’s one of the cheaper replacement fees in the country, and checks go to the Department of Finance and Administration. The cost isn’t the issue. The wait is, so start it the day you notice the title is gone.

No. Arkansas does not require the title assignment to be notarized; sign in blue or black ink exactly as your name appears on the title.

The bill of sale doesn’t need a notary either. Notarization on Form 10-313 is not required.

Neither. Emissions testing is no testing required and a safety inspection is not required to sell.

Arkansas has no statewide vehicle emissions testing program, and Arkansas has no periodic safety inspection program for vehicle sales. A car that hasn’t started in three years is no harder to sell here than one that runs.

One thing, and it’s the step that takes your name off the vehicle.

Form: Notice of Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle
Deadline: 10 days

If you miss it: the seller may remain liable for property tax and for the vehicle until the transfer is reported

Yes, but pull them as the truck arrives rather than days ahead. Plates stay with the seller in Arkansas, not with the car.

After that you can transfer your plates to another vehicle you own, or return them to a DFA revenue office. Moving one onto another car you own costs $1, and either way you still file the transfer notice.

Not until the lien is cleared. To clear it, the lienholder completes Form 10-315 (Official Release of Lien) or provides an official release letter on company letterhead.

If the loan is already settled, this is a phone call and a few days. If you still owe money, the balance has to be cleared first.

Yes. Registration and title are separate, and only the title matters for the sale.

Just don’t leave an unregistered car parked on a public street while you wait for pickup.

It goes to a yard, where anything resellable comes off first: the catalytic converter, alternator, doors, glass, and often the engine. What’s left gets crushed and sold as scrap steel.

That’s why a complete car is worth more than a stripped one, even when neither will ever run again.

The driver checks that the car matches what you described. If everything lines up, the number doesn’t move.

Offers change when something wasn’t mentioned, like a missing converter or flood damage. You’re never obligated to accept a revised number, so you can turn the truck away and try another buyer.