Certificate of Destruction

[jerem0621]

I checked out a pretty nice 2002 Jayco Fifth wheel today. I really liked it. It had two slides, split bath, etc.

In the back it had some damage from obviously backing up into something. No biggie, its used.. or so I thought.

The owner had been using it for two years like this and said it was great. Said he bought it from an insurance company in Florida and brought it here to Tennessee.

He said that it had a "Certificate of Destruction" from Florida instead of a title :E

No wonder it was a bargain.. lol..

Maybe my country mind just isn't working right, but doesn't a certificate of destruction mean that the RV should be dismantled, parted out, etc?

Does anybody know what "Certificate of Destruction" technically means? how was this person able to use this RV as is for two years with one of these?

Thanks!

[fishingbob61]

I live in TN also and see a lot of RV trailers on the road with no tags and one day in a campground I asked a person with no tag and he said he never bought tags for camper, said didnt need them in TN.

[ronpbkaer]

Old-Biscuit wrote:


Kentucky has been accepting Florida C.O.Ds for YEARS. You send in the C.O.D. to the transportation cabinet, submit two notarized body-shop estimates to repair the vehicle, along with 2 photos of the car showing the damage, and in turn, they send you a Kentucky Salvage title. From there, you just repair the vehicle, have it inspected (They only write down your VIN and check the mileage for your inspection. They don't actually inspect the work itself) and send in your receipts and a notarized labor statement. From there, you'll get a letter in the mail that allows you to register the vehicle and receive a Kentucky Rebuilt Title.

Only catch......you have to be a KY resident

This guy is absolutely correct, I found an amazing deal on an RV and was crushed when I seen the title was a CoD.

I "HMMMM USED TO LIVE IN ILLINOIS" when I found this out. I called Kentucky Transportation and they said I had to be a resident. So I packed up everything I owned and moved to Paducah, KY. Which was conveniently 2 hours away from me.

So now that I live at PO BOX XXX, I walked into the Clerks Office with 2 photos of Damage, 2 estimates of Repairs, and the salvage pull receipt.

30 days later I received a salvage title, then I repaired the vehicle and submitted the receipt of repairs with 2 photos of repairs and 30 days later I received a "Rebuilt Title".


Warning, the title still show the CoD, Salvage, and Rebuilt Status.

Not all states will allow you to register these titles! I suggest you check with your local transportation board and not the DMV, they know nothing, and I mean nothing!

I was specifically told that if I went to Florida or California with this vehicle it would be impounded and I would be fined. Now, that would require a cop to pull me over and run the VIN during a normal traffic stop. This is rare, but I have seen it done to me on several occasions.

Florida is really big on this when it comes to RV's given that it is Snow Bird RV country. They may not check a VIN on your car, but they usually do on RV traffic stops.




P.S. I think this is a scam by insurance companies. I hate when big companies lobby Washington to stick it to the little man. How else could they get away with this. The reason this RV was CoD was because of a large scratch in the paint because it was by all means flawless otherwise. Re-painting it would cost 15-25 thousand so they did this to screw the original owner.


IF I CAN ASSIST SOMEONE IN CORRECTING THIS SITUATION I WOULD GLADLY DO IT, NOT EVERYONE IS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO LIVE NEAR KY. CONTACT ME IF YOU NEED HELP!


(ronpbaker hotmail com) if you can not figure that out then you need more help than I can give you

I am also monitoring this thread for new posts

[christopherglen]

I would pull it once, then park it for good.

[Ivylog]

He probably bought it from Copart and Florida is the worst about making a vehicle "destruct" while the same amount of damage in GA, TN, NC, AL, & KY will only have a salvage title. You cannot get a tag for a CD or a salvage title vehicle (except KY as posted above). Other than KY you have to have a salvage title (Not Destruct) vehicle fixed and inspected and then you get a "Rebuilt Title" which then lets you get a tag.
He's been able to use it by putting a tag from another trailer on it. As long as he does not have an accident he'll probably get away with this.
PS, I've thought about buying a destruct trailer, BUT only use it for a hunting camp where once you get it there, who cares. My daily driver is a Copart hail PU that I did nothing to other than paying the $118 to have it inspected so I could get a "Rebuilt" title and a tag. If I put a new hood on, it would look pretty good as the rest of the metal is thicker (fewer dimples) than the hood. If you do not wash it you do not see the dings.:B

[Old-Biscuit]

A Certificate of Destruction (or C of D) is only issued when the car is unrebuildable (as deemed by the insurance company). These are cars that required more than 80% of the vehicle's cost to repair.

Kentucky has been accepting Florida C.O.Ds for YEARS. You send in the C.O.D. to the transportation cabinet, submit two notarized body-shop estimates to repair the vehicle, along with 2 photos of the car showing the damage, and in turn, they send you a Kentucky Salvage title. From there, you just repair the vehicle, have it inspected (They only write down your VIN and check the mileage for your inspection. They don't actually inspect the work itself) and send in your receipts and a notarized labor statement. From there, you'll get a letter in the mail that allows you to register the vehicle and receive a Kentucky Rebuilt Title.

Only catch......you have to be a KY resident

[CraigEvans1]

Bought a certificate of destruction rv trailer only minor water damage everything works will need to replace some wiring but was interested in going to Kentucky to get new title. Can I still do what you did in Kentucky 

[way2roll]

While I am sure Old biscuit would appreciate this question, his post is over 12 years old and he hasn't been on here in years. You will have better luck getting answers if you post a new question instead of a response buried in a 12 year old thread.