The Expert Podcast

Don't buy any cars at Copart that say "certificate of destruction" or "non-reparable." These cars are designated to be used for parts only. If you see a vehicle at Copart or IAA that says "non-reparable," "junk parts only," or "certificate of destruction," you will not be able to get a title for it. That's a designation that permanently cancels that VIN number from ever getting a title in any state in the country. In fact, it's even hard to export them. The CBP (Customs and Border Protection) normally requires a car to be completely dismantled into major component parts before it gets shipped out, so you can't export it either.

How does this happen? Well, the insurance companies are slapping this designation on these cars because they don't want them back on the road for liability purposes. We've talked about that in other videos, so avoid them like the plague. If you see a car that says "non-reparable," don't consider it a challenge, like someone's throwing down a gauntlet saying, "I bet you can't repair it." Even if you can repair it, you can't title it.

Also, be aware of vehicles that have no title, only a bill of sale, out of certain states like Washington State. It may seem innocent enough—well, "you know, bill of sale only, that's okay." It's not. Some states don't even put a designation on a vehicle of "parts only" or "non-reparable." They just say "no title, bill of sale," and it's the same thing. You could buy that car from Copart in Washington State with "bill of sale only" and then come to find out later it's not able to be titled and is ineligible.

Now, you can try all you want—you can search all around the internet, you can desperately try to contact different companies—but there is no way to get a title for it. Believe me, we've tried. This has been going on for 10 years. We get 100 calls a day from people who bought these cars. If there was a way to do it, believe me, we'd be doing it. It's a federal law that prohibits any state from issuing a title for these vehicles. By law, it's a federal statute that prohibits these cars from going on the road. So, avoid them like the plague. Don't buy one.

If you have purchased one, you can check out our website for maybe some options of how to get the most amount of money back for it. You're not going to put that car back on the road, but you may be able to do some things to extract some value and get some of your money back, maybe even selling it back to Copart. It may be possible that they weren't supposed to sell it to you in the first place. There's some laws around that too.

But, non-reparable, certificate of destruction, junk parts only—don't buy those cars. In fact, over the next few years, you'll find more and more vehicles at Copart will have that on it. There are going to be very few salvage titles left. All of them are going to be parts only over the next couple of years. So, unless you can specifically verify that the car is a salvage or clean title, don't buy it because you won't be able to put it back on the road.