How to Junk a Car Sitting at a Repair Shop

Before you tell the shop to release the car, make sure junking is the right call. Get the estimate in writing and ask which parts are needed and which are optional. Our guide on how to read a repair estimate helps, and finding what the car is worth gives you the other number you need.

If the estimate came from a crash, stop and check your claim first. See selling before the claim settles.

Ask the shop these questions, and get the answers in writing, by email or on an invoice:

• “What do I owe today, including diagnosis and any work you’ve done?”
• “Are you charging storage? If so, how much, and starting when?”
• “Have you put back any parts you took off? Is anything missing from the car?”
• “Do you consider that you have a claim on the car until the bill is paid?”
• “When do you need it gone?”

Pay what you agree you owe, and get a paid receipt. If the shop has taken parts off, have them put back or ask for them to go with the car, and tell the buyer. A car with missing parts can change an offer. See selling a car with missing parts.

We’ll be straightforward: the facts we have checked for this guide don’t cover when a Washington repair shop can hold a car until it’s paid, or how much it can claim. So we can’t tell you if a particular shop’s claim is valid.

What we can tell you is that Washington has title procedures for personal property liens. WAC 308-56A-310 covers the chattel lien process, which can transfer ownership. So a bill left unresolved may lead to more than a collection letter. Ask the shop what process it says it is using and ask for the paperwork.

What to do:

• Ask for the claimed amount in writing.
• Check it against your signed work order and any estimate.
• Try to settle it, and get the release in writing.
• If you dispute it, you can file a consumer complaint with the Attorney General at 1.800.551.4636. The AG says it cannot compel a business to respond or adjust.
• If the amount is serious or the shop won’t budge, talk to an attorney.

Don’t have the car taken away while there is an unresolved claim. A title with a lender’s lien on it is a separate issue, covered in selling a car with a lien.

Now the practical part. Ask the shop:

• “Who has the keys, and can you hand them to the driver?”
• “What days and hours can a tow truck come? Does someone need to be there?”
• “Is the car inside a bay or outside? Can you put it somewhere the truck can reach?”
• “Is it put back together enough to roll? Are the wheels on?”
• “Can you email me that it’s okay for the truck to take the car?”

Then tell the buyer about the shop’s hours and contact, how the car sits and what state it’s in. Make sure you’re booking a time that works for the shop and for you. We pick up from business lots, and we are open 7 days, 8 AM to 11 PM, but a shop may have shorter hours. A car that’s partly apart may count as incomplete, which may carry a pickup fee or may be declined, so say so up front.

The title is probably at home, not at the shop. Find it before the day. We need one of three documents: Title, Affidavit in Lieu of Title or Junk Vehicle Affidavit. See our paperwork guide.

We recommend you be there, so you can hand over the paperwork and get paid. Don’t leave a signed title with the shop for someone else to pick up. Here is who to give it to. If you can’t make it, read what to arrange.

Clear the car out while you’re there. The registration and insurance card may still be in the glove box, and things may have been moved during the work, so go through it carefully. Then take your plates. DOL says sellers are legally obligated to remove them. Afterward, file your Report of Sale within five business days.

When you’re ready, call us at (206) 941-0612 or use the pickup form. Non-running car removal explains the service.