How to fill out Georgia MV-1S

Applies for a Georgia salvage certificate of title. It is the ordinary title application with the tag half taken out and the destination changed: this one does not go to a county tag office at all, it goes to the Salvage Unit at the Motor Vehicle Division in Atlanta.

Written against MV-1S (Rev 6-2020), issued under the Motor Vehicle Division's Salvage Unit in Atlanta, rather than any county tag office. Almost everything on this form is identical to the ordinary title application, which is exactly why people fill in the wrong one. Check the heading before you start: the salvage version says Motor Vehicle Salvage Title Application, and it has no lessee section.

Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank MV-1S from the dor.georgia.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today.

Every line, in the order you meet it

1. 1
   You fill this in

   Section A, the vehicle

   Vehicle ID, current title number and state of issue, year, make, model, body style, colour, cylinders and fuel type.

   Watch out: Copy from the certificate you hold. If the certificate has already been surrendered to an insurer, the current title number is something the insurer's total loss paperwork will carry.

2. 2
   You fill this in

   Section A, odometer exceptions

   EXEMPT, Exceeds Mechanical Limits of Odometer, or Not the Actual Mileage.

   Watch out: A flood or fire car often has a working odometer and a true reading. Damage is not a mileage exception and ticking one because the car is wrecked is a false statement.

3. 3
   You fill this in

   Section A, odometer reading and date purchased

   The mileage and the date you acquired the vehicle.

   Watch out: Date purchased is when you bought the car, not the date of the accident or the date the claim settled.

4. 4
   You fill this in

   Section B, owner 1

   Full legal name, driver's licence number and state, date of birth, e-mail, phone, address and mailing address.

   Watch out: All owners listed on the title have to sign this form, so a second name on the certificate means a second complete block below.

5. 5
   You fill this in

   Section B, signature and date

   The owner signs and dates under their own block.

   Watch out: The line above it is a felony certification, and on a salvage application the thing being certified includes how the vehicle came to be yours.

6. 6
   You fill this in

   Section C, seller information

   The full legal name or business name and address of whoever the vehicle was acquired from, and the Georgia county name where they are in Georgia.

   Watch out: On a retained total loss this is still the person you originally bought the car from, not the insurance company that settled the claim.

7. 7
   You fill this in

   Section D, lienholders

   Up to two rows of twelve-digit ELT identification number, name and address.

   Watch out: A lien survives the damage. If finance was outstanding when the vehicle was written off, the lender belongs here and the salvage certificate will show it.

What gets this one rejected

• •Sending it to a county tag office. The instruction page routes it to the Salvage Unit at the Motor Vehicle Division, at a post office box in Atlanta, and not to a county.
• •A missing owner signature. The purpose paragraph says the form must be signed by all owners in section B.
• •Filling it in for a car that only looks rough. A salvage certificate is a legal brand on the vehicle for the rest of its life, not a description of its condition.
• •Leaving the odometer exceptions to the tag office. There is no tag office in this route, and the exception boxes are part of the application.
• •Assuming it comes with a plate. This form applies for a title. The road-legal end of a rebuilt vehicle runs through an inspection first.

Rules that decide whether it is accepted

• •It is where a retained total loss goes. Where an insurer settles a claim and the owner keeps the vehicle, the vehicle needs a salvage certificate before anything else happens to it - including any attempt to sell it on.
• •The way back to a normal title is an inspection. A salvage-branded vehicle that has been repaired needs a rebuilt inspection before Georgia will issue an ordinary certificate. That is the Form T-22R, and it has its own fees.

Every line here was read off MV-1S (Rev 6-2020) itself — the PDF is here — and off the Georgia Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division pages. This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ, theirs governs.

Back to all Georgia seller paperwork, or what selling a car in Georgia involves.