What Is the Salvage Value of My Car?

So how do you determine the salvage value of your vehicle? Well, it's probably easier than you think. Whether it's a traffic accident or a natural disaster, most of us will have a car smashed into salvage at some point in our driving lives.

Everyone hopes they can get some value out of their ravaged ride to help pay for a new vehicle. And you need to know if selling your car to the insurance company is your best financial decision. 

What is a Salvage Vehicle?

First, let's define some terms. A salvage vehicle is one where the estimated cost to repair it is greater than the overall value of the vehicle. Salvage can be a very broad term. If you have a rare vehicle with super expensive parts that requires a mechanic with hard-to-find skills, a minor fender bender could technically make it a salvage vehicle. On the other hand, an extra dent on a driving collection of dents won't reduce the value much unless it gets hit somewhere vital.

Next, let's talk about how a vehicle can be deemed as salvage or determined by an insurance company to be a total loss.

How Can a Car Become Salvage Vehicle?

Your car becomes a salvage vehicle when an insurance company officially determines a salvage title should be issued by the state. As you might guess, the fine line between salvage and repairable can depend on the insurance adjuster.

Vehicles can get damaged in traffic accidents like t-bone crash, side collisions, head-on collisions, and even rollover accidents. It's not uncommon for both vehicles in an accident to be determined to be total losses and issued salvage titles.

Beyond accidents, vehicles often get totaled by severe weather events. Whenever you see a story about a tornado sweeping through a neighborhood, a hurricane striking a coastal area, or severe flooding from a town on a river or lake, you can be certain many vehicles will be determined to be salvage.

Lastly, your vehicle may be turned to salvage by either hitting an object, or an accident with an uninsured motorist. In these latter occasions, knowing the salvage value becomes even more important to getting wheels back under you.

How Can I Determine the Value of My Salvage Vehicle?

Always remember that a vehicle will always have some value to someone, even if just to recycle the metal it's made of. Here are some of the key elements for estimating the salvage value of your car.

• Use an industry resource like the Kelly Blue Book and the National Auto Dealers Association Used Car Guide to look up the retail and wholesale value of your vehicle.
• Add the retail and wholesale values together and divide them by two to get a good estimation of the fair market value. ((Retail Value + Wholesale Value)/2)
• Find what percent of market value your insurance company uses to determine salvage value. The percentage can vary, but it's usually around 75% of market value.
• Subtract that percentage as a decimal from 1.0. For example, if a 75% loss of market value is considered salvage, 1.00 - .75= .25.
• Multiply the market value by the resulting decimal. For example, if your market value is $10,000, multiply it by .25, and your salvage value is $2,500.

Can I Keep My Salvaged Vehicle to Repair or Sell Myself?

If you have a car you really love that you don't care how much it costs to repair, then yes, you may be able to get your car retitled from a salvage vehicle to a rebuilt vehicle. This depends on state and national laws and usually requires an inspection.

You may want to keep your car even if you don't plan to repair it in cases where you think the salvage value is greater than the settlement you're being offered by the insurance company. If you accept a settlement, your car will usually be hauled away to a yard to be sold at auction for parts or raw materials.

If you choose not to accept the insurance company's offer, you can store the vehicle where you want in accordance with state laws while you figure out how you want to dispose of it.

The Easiest Way: Sell Your Salvage Car to CashforCars.com.

The simplest way to determine the salvage value of your vehicle is to get a free quote from CashForCars.com either by filling out our online form or calling us at 800-227-2893. We'll give you a fair offer for your salvage vehicle. That way you can make an informed decision on how to dispose of your salvage car.

You can still accept the settlement from your insurance company, or you can accept the offer and schedule a convenient time for CashForCars.com to pick up your vehicle and title and deliver your payment.

CashforCars.com is also a great way to get fast cash when your car gets turned into salvage without comprehensive insurance, or when there isn't another driver with liability insurance to file a claim against.

Whether your vehicle was totaled by an uninsured driver, a natural disaster or a one-car accident, we can get you some money to make a down payment on your next daily driver. Whatever your situation, we make it fast, safe and easy to sell your salvage title vehicle.