Sell your car in Covington: running, wrecked or with a dead engine
Ask for a cash offer online or by phone, and the pickup comes to you anywhere in Covington. Below you'll find what a buyer from Ohio does to title a Kentucky car, and how long a dead car can sit on a Covington street or in a yard. The Kenton County Clerk's two offices are listed too.
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What a Cincinnati buyer does after the handoff
- Get an out-of-state VIN inspection. Ohio asks for it before a Kentucky title can become an Ohio title. As of September 2026, the Ohio BMV lists three places to get one: a deputy registrar license agency, a participating Clerk of Courts title office, or a participating licensed Ohio dealership.
- Title it at a Clerk of Courts title office. In Cincinnati, that's the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts. The buyer brings your Kentucky title, identification and the inspection, and pays the title fee plus sales tax on the purchase price.
- Then get plates through the Ohio BMV. Ohio plates come after the car has an Ohio title, and the Clerk of Courts' title office doesn't issue them.
Where we pick up around Covington
We buy cars in all 19 of Covington's neighborhoods, ZIPs 41011 and 41014 among them, and the pickup comes to you. The same goes for the Northern Kentucky towns nearby, from Newport and Fort Thomas along the river to Erlanger and Florence down the interstate, and Independence, where the county clerk has its second office. Work nights or odd shifts? Tell us your hours and we'll set the pickup window around them, with early mornings, evenings and weekends all possible. If the title is notarized ahead of time, the paperwork at pickup takes minutes.
Car parked on the street for pickup? Check your sweeping days. Covington sweeps residential streets three times a year, in spring, summer and fall, one side of the street per day, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. Temporary signs go up the business day before, and a car left in the sweeper's path can be ticketed. Type your address into the city's street-sweeping map to see the date for each side.
When the buyer takes your car home to Ohio
A buyer who lives in Ohio titles the car in Ohio. The Kenton County Clerk's out-of-state checklist says your completed Kentucky title "is presented to the out of state purchaser so they can title & register the vehicle in their state." The numbered steps below walk through a Cincinnati buyer's side in order.
That checklist is for a Kentucky title. If you moved to Covington from Ohio and the car still carries an Ohio title, start with our guide to selling a car with an out-of-state title.
Cash for your car in Covington
The Covington Motor Vehicle Parking Authority's parking FAQ says cars on city streets have to be moved every 72 hours, and moved more than 50 feet or to a different block face. A car with a dead engine can't do that on its own.
Off the street, Covington's nuisance code (as amended in 2020) sets a 72-hour limit too. A vehicle that is "non-functional, in a state of disrepair, or lacking a valid license" can't be stored for more than 72 hours in any residential zone, unless it is inside a completely enclosed building (§ 92.13). For a junked or wrecked car, the city can give the property owner five days' written notice. If the owner doesn't act, the city may remove the car itself and have a lien on the property for the cost of towing, storage and disposal (§ 92.12).
Cash for cars in Covington, KY covers that car too: ask for an offer, and the pickup comes to the curb or the yard where it's parked. If it's only good for scrap, whether it sits on a block face or behind the house, ask for a junk car offer.
For a car that was wrecked, selling a car after an accident covers what buyers check, and selling a car the insurer totaled explains your choices once it is declared a total loss. For a dead engine, selling a car with a blown head gasket or seized engine sets the repair bill against what the car is worth.
Where the title work happens, on each side of the river
- •Kenton County Clerk, Covington: 1840 Simon Kenton Way, open weekdays 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; the motor vehicles line is 859-392-1652 (source)
- •Kenton County Clerk, Independence: 5272 Madison Pike, with the same weekday hours and the same motor vehicles line (source)
- •Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Auto Title Division, downtown Cincinnati: 1001 Main St., open weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., (513) 946-4646. The clerk names 8 to 10 a.m. as the time to avoid long lines, and has offices on Hamilton Avenue, on Red Bank Road and in Evendale too (source)
Asked by Covington sellers
Can my buyer finish the title at the Kenton County Clerk without me?
Yes, once your part is done. The Kenton County Clerk, which handles Kentucky DMV title work in Covington, says a buyer can transfer the car alone if the seller has filled in their part of the title completely, including the signature and the notary. The buyer still has to come in person, because the clerk takes no transfers by mail. They also need a Kentucky insurance card that shows the car's VIN and names them as the insured.
What does the Kenton County Clerk ask for when the car is sold to an Ohio buyer?
The Affidavit of Non-Exchange, form TC96-167. The clerk's out-of-state checklist says it must be submitted for all vehicles sold out of state, signed by the registered owner with the signature notarized. If clerk staff do the notarizing, bring identification.
I sold my car but got a Kenton County tax bill for it. What now?
The clerk says you owe vehicle property tax on any car registered to you on January 1. For a bill on a car you no longer have, the clerk's answer is to ask for the registration and title to be cancelled. For a sold car, that takes two affidavits: one for correction or exoneration and one for incomplete transfer. Sold it out of state? The clerk says a sale after January 1 leaves that year's tax with you, while a sale before January 1 can be exonerated. It advises copying the front and back of the signed title to show the Kenton County Property Valuation Administrator, (859) 392-1750.
My car was wrecked in Covington. Who can get the police crash report, and what does it cost?
Only people involved in the crash: the driver, the owner, an insurance company or an attorney for one of them. The Covington Police Department, at 1 Police Memorial Drive, hands out copies weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Bring the report number, a picture ID and $5 in cash, check or money order; the department doesn't accept credit cards there. Reports can also be bought online for $10 by card.
Selling to a buyer who lives in Kentucky instead? Follow our Kentucky title transfer steps.