The bottom line: To sell a junk car in Vermont, give the buyer a signed bill of sale. Form VT-005 works, and no notary is needed.
A 2010 or newer car also needs its title signed over. A 2009 or older car registered in your name can sell with the registration certificate instead.
If you lost the title, order a replacement for $42 online, by mail or at a DMV office. If there was a loan, the lender mails you the title marked satisfied once it’s paid off. If you don’t have it, ask for a signed lien release.
Take the plates off at the handover, then mail them back or apply within 24 hours to move them to another car you own. Write the sale date and the buyer’s name and address on the back of your registration, and mail it to the DMV right away.
What would buyers pay for your junk car in Vermont?Fill in one form, including whether you have the title, and see which buyers make an offer.
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Offer amount 30% 5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 4/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 5/5
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Process ease 15% 5/5
- Buys any car in any condition, running or not
- Free towing, with no fees taken off the offer
- You can cancel before pickup at no cost
- Pays by check on the spot at pickup
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Offer amount 30% 5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 5/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 4/5
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Process ease 15% 4/5
- Buys damaged cars, even ones that can't be driven
- The engine and transmission must still be in
- Free towing, included with every offer
- Picks up within 48 hours, sometimes the same day
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Offer amount 30% 4.5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 4/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 4/5
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Process ease 15% 2/5
- Owned by Copart, the salvage auction company
- Buys almost any vehicle with a motor, running or not
- Free towing, and it handles the title transfer
- Hands you a check at pickup, or mails it
Automated assistant: general info, not legal advice
Answers come from our state paperwork data and published guides. Confirm anything binding with your state DMV.
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Start With Your Situation
Each card jumps to the part of the guide for that case.
How Do You Sell a Junk Car in Vermont?
Six steps get a Vermont junk car sold. The last one is done after the car has gone.
Step 1: Get quotes from several buyers
Every form asks for the year, make, model, mileage and ZIP code, and then whether the car starts.
Some buyers want the VIN. It is on the title and the registration, and visible through the windshield on the driver’s side.
List the damage and the missing parts, the converter and the wheels most of all. Rust through the frame from salted roads belongs on the form too.
Forms also ask whether the car rolls and whether it has been in a flood. A car that will not roll has to be dragged onto the bed, so say so.
Get at least three quotes. None of them commits you to anything.
Step 2: Check your paperwork
Get the title and a photo ID out before you accept anything. The name on the title has to be yours, and no lender can still be listed on it.
- Title required to sell: yes (model year 2009 and older exempt).
- Bill of sale: required.
- Odometer reading: required for vehicles model year 2011 and newer, disclosed for 20 years from the model year.
Every form you might need
These three forms cover the sale itself, a lost title, and a car whose owner has died.
Bill of sale
Form VT-005 (Bill of Sale and Odometer Disclosure Statement)
Signed at pickup. Why it matters.
Replacement title
Form VT-004 (Replacement Title Application)
For a Vermont title that is lost or torn. Fee and wait.
Inherited car
Form VT-021 (Deceased Owner Informational Bulletin) with a copy of the death certificate
Where an owner has died. What to bring.
Step 3: Accept an offer and book the pickup
Accept on the buyer’s site or on a call. The buyer passes the job to a tow company near you, and that company contacts you to set a pickup window.
You meet the driver, sign the title, and take the money. If someone else will do that for you, tell the buyer when you book.
Step 4: Get the car ready for the tow truck
A car up a dirt road in mud season, or buried by a plow bank in winter, is hard for a truck to reach. Tell the tow company, and dig the car out first.
Take everything out of the car before the truck comes: glove box, trunk, door pockets, under the seats and the spare tire well. Take off any toll pass or parking permit.
Plates stay with you. Take them off before the truck arrives.
Lost keys do not stop the pickup, because the driver winches the car on. Put it on the quote form and read our guide to selling a car with lost keys.
Step 5: Sign the title and take payment
The driver looks the car over and you sign the back of the title. You both sign the bill of sale, which also carries the odometer statement.
You are paid before the car goes on the truck, so count the cash or read the check before it moves.
Keep any paper the driver leaves with you, and check your inbox, because some buyers email the bill of sale and the confirmation instead. On the bill of sale, the buyer is the company named in your offer confirmation, not the driver.
Step 6: Keep the bill of sale and deal with the plates
If you keep the plates: the registration ends when the car changes hands, and the DMV tells you not to leave the plates on a sold car.
Cancel the insurance once the car is gone and the plates are off it. Keep your copy of the bill of sale.
Vermont Junk Car Checklist
Before the Sale
At Pickup
After the Sale
What Is Your Junk Car Worth in Vermont?
Across the country, half of all offers on old cars fall between $375 and $1,075, from our own quote data.
Nothing moves the offer more than the catalytic converter. With the converter gone, and age and mileage matched, the offer against a comparable car with it moves by about -57%. If it is missing, say so on the form.
Whether the engine starts is the next thing. Against a comparable car that drives, once age and mileage are matched, a car that won’t start moves the offer by about -46%. Our guide to selling a non-running car goes into it.
Companies That Buy Junk Cars in Vermont
Peddle
Peddle buys junk, salvage, and non-running cars
- Buys junk cars anywhere in Vermont
- Offer online, then the car is towed away
- Buys used cars no matter what shape they are in
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Offer amount 30% 5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 4/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 5/5
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Process ease 15% 5/5
Peddle buys a car with a blown engine, a failed transmission or crash damage.
Wheelzy
Wheelzy buys cars in any condition, running or not
- Free removal from any Vermont location
- Branches in 10 Vermont cities, Barre to South Burlington
- No title-transfer or removal fees in Vermont
- Cashier's check you can cash the same day
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Offer amount 30% 5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 5/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 4/5
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Process ease 15% 4/5
When the title is missing, get the quote from Wheelzy first, because it helps with the replacement. In Vermont a replacement takes not published.
CashForCars
CashForCars is owned by Copart and buys cars in any condition
- Its one Vermont yard is in Rutland
- The offer comes back in 60 seconds, by form or by phone
- Tows the car away free once you accept
- Buys trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, RVs and boats, not just cars
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Offer amount 30% 4.5/5
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Quote speed 20% 5/5
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Pickup speed 20% 4/5
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Vehicle acceptance 15% 4/5
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Process ease 15% 2/5
CashForCars is owned by Copart. The cars it buys in Vermont are sold on through Copart’s auction yards.
Collect all three numbers even if the first one looks fine. When two or more buyers quote the same car on the same day through our own quote form, the highest and lowest offers are typically $314 apart.
If the car still starts and drives and has a clean title, a private sale usually pays more than a junk buyer. Our guide to selling a car privately in Vermont covers the paperwork.
Can You Sell a Junk Car Without a Title in Vermont?
Yes, for an older car that was already registered to you in Vermont. Otherwise the title comes first.
Option 1: Sell it on the registration certificate. Under 23 V.S.A. 2012(10) and Act 165, a vehicle that was registered in Vermont before the change and never titled may still be sold without a title. The buyer receives a title when they register the vehicle.
What you hand over: a signed bill of sale with the registration certificate.
Say on the quote form that you have the registration but no title, and let the buyer confirm it takes the car that way.
Option 2: Order a new title, then sell. Every buyer can then quote the car.
Option 3: Sell the parts. A set of snow tires or a radiator sells with no title. It takes time, and our guide to selling a car for parts walks you through it.
Getting a Replacement Title in Vermont
What a replacement title takes in Vermont:
- Application: Form VT-004 (Replacement Title Application)
- How to apply: Request a replacement online, in person at a DMV office, or by mail using Form VT-004.
- Where to submit: a Vermont DMV office in person, or by mail to the Montpelier office at 120 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05603-0001
- Fee: $42
- Processing time: not published
Apply as soon as you start collecting quotes. Buyers price the car from your answers, so the mail wait and the quotes overlap.
If the old title reappears after the new one comes, destroy the old one.
If a lender still holds the title
How the lien comes off: the lienholder completes the Release of Liens section on the title, supplies a release on its own letterhead, or signs Form VT-008
A junk buyer will not take a car with a lien on it. Ask for the payoff before you accept, since a loan bigger than the offer is yours to close.
Our guide to selling a financed car explains the rest.
If your title is electronic
A lender that holds the title electronically releases the lien to the DMV, which then issues a clean paper title. Book the pickup once that title has arrived.
If the car is titled in another state
If the car still carries a New Hampshire or New York title, it can be junked in Vermont on that title. Name the state on the quote form.
That state, not Vermont, replaces its title if it is lost.
Selling a Junk Car That Isn’t in Your Name
The buyer pays whoever is named on the title. When that person has died, Vermont points heirs to Form VT-021 (Deceased Owner Informational Bulletin) with a copy of the death certificate.
Once the title is in your name, the junk sale is the same as any other.
Gifted car: No separate gift transfer form. The exemption is claimed on the VD-119 registration, tax and title application.
A car left on your land by someone else cannot be sold by you. The abandoned vehicle process comes first, and it starts with the town or the police.
Local Dismantlers vs Online Buyers in Vermont
Selling to a local yard
A salvage yard pays by weight and the scrap price of the week. What it quotes on the phone is not in writing and can shrink at the scale.
Ask whether the yard tows, and what it charges.
Put the yard’s business name on your bill of sale.
Selling to an online buyer
[‘Online buyers commit to a written offer before sending a truck, so you can weigh several. Their price counts reusable parts as well as the metal.’, ‘The truck that comes belongs to a local tow company, the same kind a yard would send. What differs is that the number was agreed first.’]
Our guide to how online buyers work out an offer goes through what moves the number.
When selling it yourself makes sense
A Subaru or a pickup with a sound engine can be worth more to a mechanic or a hobbyist than to a yard. It takes weeks, and the buyer brings a trailer. The advert, the questions and the paperwork are yours to handle in that case.
Storing a Junk Car in Vermont
Towns set their own rules on a junked car kept in view. A notice from the town can lead to a fine and then a tow you pay for.
Road salt and standing water rust a parked car’s underside. Keep it on gravel where the plow will not bury it.
More is in our guide on how to store a junk car.
Take the plates off while the car waits, since they come back to you at the sale anyway.
Vermont Motor Vehicle Resources
- Motor vehicle agency: Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
- Titles: Vermont DMV, Vehicle Title
Compare instant offers before you accept one
Compare instant offers before you accept one
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to sell a junk car in Vermont?
An offer comes back within minutes. The tow company names the day when it calls.
Order a replacement first if the title is lost.
Do I have to tell Vermont I sold the car?
Yes, by mailing your endorsed registration certificate back to the DMV. Taking your plates off doesn’t end your liability on its own.
Does this release you from liability: no; delivering the vehicle and completing the title assignment is what ends your liability as owner.
Does anything have to be notarized to junk a car in Vermont?
Title notarization: not required.
Bill of sale notarization: not required.
How to sign: no notary is needed.
Does a junk car need an emissions test or an inspection to sell in Vermont?
Emissions test to sell: not required (buyer needs a passing test to register statewide, as part of the annual inspection).
Safety inspection to sell: not required.
Junk buyers do not ask for test results.
Can I junk a car with expired registration in Vermont?
Yes. The buyer needs the title, and the car is towed. You don’t need to renew it first.
A 2009 or older car registered to you before July 2024 can be sold on its registration certificate instead.
What happens to my junk car after I sell it in Vermont?
Parts that still work come off, the fluids are drained, and the car is crushed for scrap.
The converter, the wheels and the battery are the first things a yard takes.
What if the junk car offer changes when the driver arrives in Vermont?
The driver can offer less if the car is not what the form said, for example a missing converter or a car that will not start. Nothing obliges you to accept the lower number.
Until you sign the title the car is still yours, so you can send the truck away and use one of your other quotes.
What paperwork should I keep after junking a car in Vermont?
Keep your copy of the bill of sale and a photo of the signed title.
Keep whatever the DMV gives you for the plates, because Vermont has no separate release form.
Is it worth repairing my car instead of junking it in Vermont?
Ask how much the repair would add to the car’s offer. If the repair costs more, junking is the better choice.
A car with a sound engine or a part other owners want can also be sold for parts.
Article Update History
The page now covers the Act 165 route for selling an older Vermont car on its registration, and national junk car offers from Sell Car Advisor quote data.
Originally posted and shared with our readers.
Sources
"required" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
"required for vehicles model year 2011 and newer, disclosed for 20 years from the model year" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
"$42" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Inherited Vehicle Title Transfer Form
"Form VT-021 (Deceased Owner Informational Bulletin) with a copy of the death certificate" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Replacement Title Processing Time
"not published" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
"Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Emissions Testing Required to Sell?
"not required (buyer needs a passing test to register statewide, as part of the annual inspection)" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Safety Inspection Required to Sell?
"not required" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
"No separate gift transfer form. The exemption is claimed on the VD-119 registration, tax and title application" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
How to File Release of Liability
"Send the endorsed registration certificate to the Vermont DMV, 120 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05603-0001, and add Form VD-170 if you are handing plates back at the same time." Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
"yes (model year 2009 and older exempt)" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
What to Do With License Plates
"remove the plates from the car at the handover, then either apply within 24 hours to move them to another vehicle you own or mail them back to the Vermont DMV" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Penalty for Not Filing Release of Liability
"the registration ends when the car changes hands, and the DMV tells you not to leave the plates on a sold car" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Does Plate Surrender Release Liability?
"no; delivering the vehicle and completing the title assignment is what ends your liability as owner" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Electronic Title Handling Note
"While you have a loan, Vermont sends your title to the lender. When the loan is paid off, the lender sends you the title marked satisfied, and you can keep it or exchange it for a clear title for a fee." Accessed Sep. 10, 2026
Junk Car Value Statistics, Sell Car Advisor
"On this page: 4 figures from 17,628 instant cash offers, and 3 figures from same-day quotes by several buyers" Accessed Oct. 19, 2026
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