Insurance auto auction
A salvage auction run to sell vehicles insurers acquired through total-loss and theft claims.
An insurance auto auction is a salvage auction that sells vehicles on behalf of insurance companies after they pay total-loss or theft claims. The insurer takes title, the car is branded, and the auction sells it to rebuilders, dismantlers and exporters.
If your car is totaled, this is likely its next stop unless you keep it. The amount the insurer expects to get at auction is often what it subtracts from your payout if you keep the car.
Insurers must report to NMVTIS at least monthly on the junk and salvage vehicles they obtain from the current model year or the four prior model years, including the VIN and the date the vehicle was obtained or designated junk or salvage. The Department of Justice says total losses are covered whether the insurer retitles the vehicle or the owner keeps it.1
References
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U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, “For Insurance Carriers” (NMVTIS), https://vehiclehistory.bja.ojp.gov/nmvtis_insurance ↩