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The downsides of a salvage title are that it's harder to find insurance and repairs could be costly if you want to get the car road-legal again. A salvage title means the vehicle was declared a total loss by an insurance company as a result of damage that would cost more than the vehicle’s value to repair.
Why Salvage Titles Are Bad
- Vehicles with salvage titles usually cannot be financed.
- Most insurers will only offer minimum coverage for salvage-titled cars.
- Repairs can take a long time and be expensive to complete before a salvage-titled vehicle is safe to drive.
- A salvage-titled car requires a full inspection by a certified mechanic and a new title before being legal to drive.
- Vehicles with salvage titles are worth 20% to 40% less than comparable used cars with clean titles.
Positives of Salvage Titles
Not everything about a salvage title is bad. In fact, salvage titles are a useful tool for both consumers and DMVs to understand a vehicle’s past. Additionally, because salvage-titled cars are worth less than their clean-titled counterparts, they are very cheap to buy at auctions or even from some used car dealers. Plus, once the vehicle is repaired and inspected, it is issued a rebuilt title and can be driven legally in most states.
To learn more, check out WalletHub’s guide to salvage-title vehicles.
People also ask
How can you get insurance on a car with a salvage title?
You can get insurance on a car with a salvage title after the car is repaired, inspected and issued a rebuilt title. At that point, you will be able to get liability insurance with the rebuilt salvage car, though some insurance companies will be hesitant to provide full coverage for the vehicle. Even after repairs, insurance companies are still hesitant to cover a car for its full market value if it was given a salvage...
read full answerDoes a salvage title affect insurance?
Yes, a salvage title affects insurance because salvage-titled vehicles cannot be insured until they have been fully repaired, inspected, and retitled. Vehicles that are declared a total loss and given a salvage title are not legally eligible to be driven in most states until they receive a rebuilt title.
How Salvage Titles Affect Insurance
- Getting insurance on a car with a salvage title can be a bit more difficult than for normal vehicles.
- ...
Is it worth buying a car with a salvage title?
No, it is not worth buying a car with a salvage title because cars with salvage titles can be difficult to insure and are generally not eligible to be financed. A car that has a salvage title has previously been declared a total loss, so it may also require costly repairs before you can drive legally.
Before a salvage-title car can be legally driven, it must be repaired fully and inspected by a certified...
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