Sell your car in Fort Lauderdale: running, flooded or tag expired
Fort Lauderdale's code presumes a car with no current license tag is inoperable, and on a residential lot an inoperable car can't be left in the open from 9 at night until 6 in the morning. Rather than screen it, sell it: get a cash offer online from our buying partner, and the free pickup comes to the car anywhere in Broward County.
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The overnight rule for a dead or untagged car
- Check the tag and the condition. Sec. 47-34.4 of the city's land development regulations calls a vehicle inoperable when it's wrecked, derelict or partially dismantled, and presumes the same of any vehicle that doesn't display a current license tag (Fort Lauderdale ULDR). A car that still starts can fall under it on a lapsed tag alone.
- From 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., keep it out of view. On residentially zoned property, an inoperable vehicle can't be parked or stored during those hours unless it's inside a garage or carport or screened from view (ULDR Sec. 47-34.4).
- Or have it collected. Ask for an offer with the car where it sits, and the free pickup takes it off the property.
Where we pick up around Fort Lauderdale
Free pickup covers Fort Lauderdale and the rest of Broward County. The truck comes to the car wherever it's parked, in the garage, behind the hedge or on the driveway, and a car that won't start is fine; mention it when you book.
Downtown's Government Center isn't the place for title work. FLHSMV lists its office at 115 South Andrews Avenue, A100, as a driver license office, open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. by appointment only (FLHSMV). Tags and titles go to the motor vehicle offices listed below.
A car that was in the April 2023 flash flood
The National Weather Service's Miami office called the April 12, 2023 Fort Lauderdale flash flood by far the most significant flood event of that year, causing at least $28 million in damage and displacing residents of entire neighborhoods for as much as a week (NWS Miami). By December 28, Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport had logged 113.61 inches of rain for 2023, its wettest year on record (NWS Miami).
A car that sat in that water can still get an offer. If an insurer paid a claim on the flood damage, the sale runs differently than if nobody claimed it, and our flood-damaged car guide takes the two cases one at a time.
Cash for your car in Fort Lauderdale
In a residential district, Sec. 47-34.4 reaches the right-of-way too. A vehicle parked there in violation of it may be towed, and the charges for towing and storage become a lien against the vehicle (Fort Lauderdale ULDR).
Selling it as it stands avoids both the overnight rule and the tow. A car that's wrecked, won't start or is missing parts can still get an offer through our junk car page, and the truck loads it where it's parked.
If it simply stopped running, selling a car that doesn't run covers who takes one and how it's priced. If the only problem is the lapsed tag, selling with expired registration explains who pays the lapsed fees.
Where Fort Lauderdale title work gets done
- •1113 N. Federal Highway is the Ft. Lauderdale office on FLHSMV's Broward list, open weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., motor vehicle services only, 954-765-4697 (FLHSMV)
- •The list gives it two asterisks, its mark for a license plate agent: a private tag agency that may charge additional fees for performing motor vehicle transactions (FLHSMV)
- •For the county tax collector's office (the local DMV), go to Broward's tax collector-sponsored center at 1800 NW 66th Ave., Suite 101, Plantation. It's open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., title services stop at 4:30 p.m., and a tax collector service fee is added to motorist services fees (FLHSMV)
Asked by Fort Lauderdale sellers
My car was towed off the right-of-way in Fort Lauderdale. Will the city tell me where it is?
It has to. Sec. 47-34.4 says enforcement personnel shall give the owner or operator notice of the removal as soon as practicable, with information on where the vehicle is (Fort Lauderdale ULDR). The towing and storage charges are a lien against the car.
Does the 9 p.m. rule apply to an untagged car I keep in a closed garage?
Not while it stays inside. The overnight limit exempts a vehicle parked or stored within a garage or carport (ULDR Sec. 47-34.4). When you sell, pickup can collect it straight from the garage.
Which Fort Lauderdale office handles title work on a Saturday?
The license plate agent at 1113 N. Federal Highway, open Saturdays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (FLHSMV). Broward's tax collector-sponsored center in Plantation lists weekday hours only.
Signing the title over, filing the notice of sale and deciding what happens to your plate work the same way in every Florida county, so they're on our Florida selling page. For the deadline side of the seller's notice, see notice of sale deadlines by state.